Anybody NOT seen 'Zulu?'

[poohbear 1,360]

Reminded me today after hearing the film theme in a TV Ad...Fifty years since I saw this at the Metropole....fifty ruddy years...My God!

[katyjay 5,090]

50 years ago, was 1964, and saying the actual year doesn't sound half as bad as saying, 50 years!

[Commo 1,292]

Even worse, half a century! frightening!

Three of the defenders at Rorkes Drift are buried in Ruddington cemetery; Caleb Wood, Robert Tongue and James Marshall.

[Smiffy49 590]

We were all at my grandmothers house, it had been raining all morning.

Boredom had set in, we had all played non stop ping pong on the dining room table throughout the previous evening, so my grandmother had banned it for two weeks.

The table was now full of board games, ludo, snakes & ladders, monopoly etc etc.

Little squabbles had broken out so a plan was put in place to brave the elements.

Looking through the evening post(and to give her some peace) my grandmother suggested a trip to the pictures !

Wow ! What's on said all !

She ran through a list of films showing at the various cinemas in Nottingham and a vote was cast in favour of "Zulu"

An outing was quickly arranged for an evening visit, after tea.

The party consisted of my two brothers, two cousins, a friend from school, my dad, mother and an aunt and uncle.

We slipped in another "secret" game or so of ping pong, whilst my grandmother was out.

She had gone up Wilford Road on the trolley bus to get a few "odds and ends", about an hour round trip.

Later, just as we were about to leave and get the bus into town I managed to bang my head against a door.

I felt really dizzy and a bit sick (a trip to A & E nowadays!) but the resultant swelling was lightly covered in butter (also useful for removing tar etc, I had found out years earlier)

We all stood at the terminus waiting for the bus to go around the traffic island and then pull up at to the terminus.

I did not feel well and was slightly embarrassed by the faint aroma coming from my head wound.

My aunt said "you don't look well" Everyone looked dismayed at the thought of not going... because of me.

All agreed that "I did not look well" A few rueful glances were exchanged between brothers and cousins at the thought of missing "Zulu"

My grandmother, who had been standing with us offered to save the situation and take me back into the house.

I still did not feel well, so agreed to go back in and from her front room window watched as the bus left in the direction of town and "Zulu"

My grandmother made me a strong cup of tea, with four sugars. Another application of butter and I felt a bit better.

Feeling sorry for me, she agreed to allow me to play ping pong again with my grandfather.

He would aim for the little chip on the edge of the table that sent the ball flying off in various directions ! My grandmother even had a go and I think she enjoyed it.

Later when everyone returned, I felt a little jealous hearing my brothers and cousins with their excited chatter about the film.

We will all go again they said, it's worth seeing twice they said !

After the weekend we all went back to our respective homes. We never did go again... never went to see "Zulu"

Whenever I see it advertised on TV or see the DVD in the shops I think about that "Zulu" weekend......

Am I the only one I wonder?

Smiffy

[plantfit 7,580]

And Cetchwayo (sp) asagie (sp) and shield are in the Nottingham castle museum, and Gonville Bromheads ancestral home is just down the road from my house at a place called Thurlby just off the A46 tother side of Newark (he went to school in Newark as a lad) there was such a lot of fuss made about the Rorkes drift episode in the hope it overshadowed the terrible defeat of the regiments at Isandlwana,another film about that defeat was Zulu Dawn accompanied by a cracking book called The washing of the spears

Rog

[poohbear 1,360]

All those dead at Isandlwana because the C/O General Chelmsford wouldn't listen to the Boer scouts and laager overnight. (prepare a fortified camp)

Those Boers survived because they refused to bed down in the camp.

I remember reading a comment in the 1879 Times in the old reference library in Nottingham.....When are our Generals going to realise that "A handful of our soldiers are more than a match for any number of naked savages" is no longer the truth.

It would appear they ignored what happened to Custer only three years previous.

[denshaw 2,871]

Them spears look dangerous, could have somebody's eye out.

[Limey 242]

This is the grave of a British officer who was killed during the Zulu wars. Taken on Hlobane Mountain, Natal, South Africa.

Some of the movie was filmed in Swaziland, about 100 miles north from where I took the photograph. I lived in Swaziland for about 18 months from 1976 to 1978.

[tomlinson 879]

As the Goon Show said, "I've been hit by an assagai, and 'ass a guy who threw it"!

[Beachbum 68]

I remember watching Zulu in 1965, just before going through the Panama Canal on our way to New Zealand we had exchanged films with another ship and thats what we got. The screen was a sheet of canvas rigged between two derricks, the stalls, the aft deck, the millions of stars on a velvet backdrop the lighting, just the gentle noise of the sea, oh, and the sound of a train in the distance.

[mary1947 2,079]

Living in South Africa in the 70s near Jo'berg we decided to go to Durban for a holiday, while there we went to see the Zulu's they use to (for want of a better word) do Zulu dancing, when they stamped there feet the ground felt just as though it was going to split open. Unless you have seen them it's hard to put it into word's but the flim shows you just how it was, but not the fear that must have

gone though the men who were fighting.

I think it was shame about the Zulu's as they were a great nation.

While in the hotel one of the waiter's called Nelson was very polite he was a Zulu I would like to

know what he was thinking about when he was serving a white person. He was a very proud man.

[colly0410 1,181]

Can't ever remember seeing Zulu, sometimes try to watch a film on telly but invariably fall asleep & miss most of it. So i'd be one who's NOT seen Zulu..

[mick2me 3,033]

Much mention in these forums of Notts connections with Zulu.

My absolute favourite clip, I defy you to watch it without a frog in your throat.

The Welsh and the Zulus, two great nations.

[FLY2 10,108]

It's always amazed me that our troops didn't have machine guns or repeater rifles, or weren't they invented then.

A good Gatling gun would have sorted them out!

[Stan 386]

Grapeshot I believe was not used during the Zulu war. Canister shot (or case-shot) was It was similar to grapeshot in which the canister round's effect is similar to that of a giant shotgun shell.

Extract from THE BATTLE OF KHAMBULA
29th March 1879
“On Buller’s command, fired a volley into their ranks and were then ordered to remount and ride back into the laager. However the NNH remained to skirmish the flanks of the iNgobamakhosi. The effect of the volley was spontaneous. The iNgobamakhosi rose as one, bellowed uSuthu and charged forward. As the mounted men retreated, the Artillery had opened fire with case shot into the packed masses of the iNgobamakhosi. The effect was devastating. Dead and wounded warriors lay spread like a carpet for half a mile or so to the north of the laager and redoubt.”

And this from the Battle Of ulundi

"The mounted troops by the stream opened fire from the saddle in an attempt to trigger a premature charge before wheeling back to gallop through the gaps made in the infantry lines for them. As the cavalry cleared their front at about 9 a.m., the four ranks of the infantry with front two kneeling, opened fire at 2,000 yards into the advancing Zulu ranks. The pace of the advance quickened and the range closed between the British lines and the Zulus. The British were ready and the Zulu troops faced concentrated fire. Zulu regiments had to charge forward directly into massed rifle fire, non-stop fire from the Gatling guns and the artillery firing canister shot at point-blank range."

[poohbear 1,360]

Pity Custer didn't take advice and have the new Gatling gun on his last escapade wasn't it?

I often wonder the outcome of the Zulu war if it had been fought by warriors with assegais and equal British soldiers with swords and longbows.

[FLY2 10,108]

The Longbowmen won against the odds at Agincourt, I see no reason why they wouldn't have triumphed against the less disciplined Zulus..

[Smiffy49 590]

For anyone who has not seen Zulu it's on Film 4 this afternoon (07/10/2014)

That includes myself, but I am off to Melton Mowbray Market so will have to set the recorder !

Smiffy

[tomlinson 879]

Reminds me of the famous Goon Show line of a similar age. "I've been hit by and assagai - and 'ass a guy who threw it"!

[firbeck 859]

A great-great-great-uncle of mine fought and survived at Rorkes Drift. I don't know much about him except his first name was George and he was on my mothers side of the family, part of some Welsh connection somewhere along the line I gather. I've tried looking him up on a list of survivors but I'm not sure of his last name. The legend passed down was that he was bent down having a drink from a stream and saw the reflection of a Zulu warrior sneaking up behind him, assegai raised for the kill, George, however, was holding his trusty Henry Martini rifle with the safety off and turned round and shot him dead. He brought back the warriors shield, assegai and a dagger which ended up with my uncle. As a consequence of watching the film when it came out in 1964 ( at the Odeon I think ), my uncle, who lived in Mapperley at the time, gave me the dagger, which I still have. It's a very crude affair, curved, quite long and made out of bashed steel with a hardwood handle. The scabbard is made out of a split hardwood branch wrapped in a greenish cloth which has dark patches on it, reputedly the warriors blood! The shield and assegai vanished when my aunt became ill and cleared out a lot of her possessions up in Morecambe, my cousin was not impressed.

It's interesting the references made to Custer on this thread, when my old man took me to see the film when it came out I recall him saying something like 'It's about time they made a film like this instead of all those bloody 7th Cavalry versus Indians films, this will show them how it should have been done'. I have a very interesting biography about Custer, basically he was an arrogant, reckless pillock who time after time underestimated his 'enemy' and cared little for the lives of his own men, it makes an interesting comparison.

[poohbear 1,360]

. I have a very interesting biography about Custer, basically he was an arrogant, reckless pillock who time after time underestimated his 'enemy' and cared little for the lives of his own men, it makes an interesting comparison.

Sounds a bit like General Chelmsford with regard to the slaughter at Isandlwana...All nations had there generals who underestimated their native opponents.

[Limey 242]

I used to live about 40 miles south of the "Little Big Horn" battlefield. It is a VERY interesting place to visit. It is true he was an arrogant man - he rode a white horse and wore white leather jacket and leggings - I guess he didn't think that would make him a target! It was his arrogance that lost him the battle - the Americans had him outnumbered, and probably had more weapons available than he had. I doubt that even a Gatling gun would have helped - he was basically surrounded and his support was effectively cut off. He underestimated the number, strength and skill of his opponents - a brilliant recipe for defeat!

[Annesleyred1865 137]

must have seen it more times than Ive seen Eastenders, didnt realise it was 50 years ago since I saw it at Hucknall Byron

[Ashley 288]

a good few streets in New Basford named after people/events, yet to find a Caine Street though!

[MelissaJKelly 2,120]

I've never seen it :/