Guy Martin’s Spitfire is, in fact, Sqn Ldr Geoffrey Stephenson’s Mk Ia Spitfire N3200.
Covering the Dunkirk evacuation beaches on the 26th May 1940 Stephenson got tangled in a dogfight with German planes and a lucky bullet strike hit the radiator causing the engine to seize.
With no chance of crossing the channel, Stephenson put the Spit down on Sangatte beach and set about trying to escape to the UK – his luck ran out for ht second time and he ended up spending the rest of the war in various POW camps, ending it in Colditz.
As a huge fan of British engineering and history Guy was only too keen to get involved in the restoration of N3200 to airworthy condition.
The likeable TT racer gets his hands dirty with all aspects of the project, and also gets to meet some of the people involved in the wider Spitfire story. This is another really enjoyable programme from the people who brought us ‘The Boat that Guy Built’ and ‘How Britain Worked’.
Highly recommended.