This fascinating Australian documentary about Bill Lancaster was put together by the Lost Aviator’s great nephew, filmmaker Andrew Lancaster (Accidents Happen).
Captain ‘Bill’ Lancaster, (no relation to the author of this review), was a pioneer flyer of the twenties and thirties who disappeared on a flight over the Sahara in 1933. It took twenty-nine years before his mummified body was found beside the wrecked plane. His log-book, was tied to the wing, and his diary contained the calm yet moving record of his horrific wait for death eight days with virtually no water and his poignant devotion to Chubbie. Bill Lancaster’s horrific end was in keeping with his racy, colourful life, love of planes and constant search for adventure.
His service career established his reputation as a man without fear, and when he left the RAF in 1926 he turned to trailblazing including entering long haul flight competitions. An attempt to be the first man to fly a light plane from England to Australia saw him unexpectedly become involved with ‘Chubbie’ Miller who Lancaster trained during the flight to become a top female pilot. Together they both neglected their families, and they flew together for four years until the Great Depression forced them to cease and try and find work.
Miller was born in Australia and Lancaster in the UK. The celebrated aviator flew to Australia in an Avro Avian with Miller in 1927, (the Red Rose – symbol of the House of Lancaster) making her the first woman to manage the grueling England-Australia passage. We learn how Bill Lancaster made a desperate effort to retrieve his fortunes,and how Chubbie fell in love with an American writer, Haden Clarke, while he was away working. Clarke was shot dead on Lancaster’s return, leading up to a full account of what became one of the most sensational murder trials of the century. Was it a suicide? Did Lancaster murder Clarke? Was he covering up for Miller or she for him? As to what actually happened we will never definitively know.
The documentary featured interviews with Andrew Lancaster’s parents and his aged great aunt. THE LOST AVIATOR cleverly includes black and white footage of the time and newsreels as well as current family interviews and voice overs of letters and diaries. As well the doco featured footage from The Lancaster-Miller Affair screened on Channel 9 during the 1980’s. (The most recent cinematic interpretation was the 2009 French film, The Last Flight, with Guillame Canet and Marion Cotillard). There is even an interview with the actor who played Bill Lancaster, as well as American forensic specialists and legal experts.
Whilst Lancaster was cleared of all charges, it remains a very controversial murder trial, which whilst now 80 years ago,still raises many questions today. It is worth noting that if the trial would have been conducted today it would have been carried out in a very different way.
We see visits to various sites in the US, the UK and Australia – including the house in Miami where the murder took place and the courtroom – and also the Sahara Desert site where Lancaster’s plane crashed . The wreck of his plane, the Southern Cross Minor, was recovered by an intrepid , very dangerous expedition in 1975 and brought to Australia and is now held as an exhibit in the Queensland Museum. Mention is also made of celebrated British writer Ralph Barker’s book about Lancaster entitled, Verdict On A Lost Flyer.
The author has sifted through the material surrounding the media frenzy and the speculation that has followed over the last 80 years. He holds firm to his conviction that his great uncle was in fact guilty and admits that he wishes that he could be proved wrong. Many within his family have made peace with their uncertainty…The author’s own parents have accused him of ‘dragging up old coals’.
Composer Matteo Zingales‘ score adds a lot to the film, balancing sadness and reflection with exuberance.
A tale as exciting as the jazz age in which it is set, its sad conclusion still leaves the reader free to decide their own verdict on Bill Lancaster, adventurer and pioneer aviator.
THE LOST AVIATOR screened as part of the Sydney Film Festival held in June and also had screenings at the recent British Film Festival held at Palace cinemas.