Codename Snake Eyes (1960)

Royal Marines exercise 'Codename Snake Eyes' 1960 documentary by the Central Office of Information for the Admiralty. The exercise involves an amphibious attack on a fictitious Mediterranean island nation.
The aircraft carrier is HMS Centaur (R06), built at Harland and Wolff and commissioned in 1953. She is flying off de Havilland Sea Venoms. The command ship (Commodore Amphibious Warfare) is HMS Meon (L369). The landing ship is HMS Striker (LST3516).
British government film. Uploaded as "fair use."

[@wardogs489]

I saw this when I was 15. I became a Royal Marine when I was 18. This film was designed to tempt the likes of me, and it worked. I had a BRILLIANT 22 years and would do it all again. Thanks for the memories David Bober!

[@John-rh7oy]

I'm 16 and by god do I want to be a bootneck now

[@james9311]

BZ

[@yomperone]

None of those Officers look familiar to me ,also the Duke Of Edinburgh was standing on the right by the bow of the LCT on the first of 2 Rhinos (self propelled barges’)’ before hitting the beach

[@JammyDodger45]

@@John-rh7oy - so now you're 19 what's the story?

[@357SWAGNUM_MAGA_X]

I'm not even from England but thank you for your service ❤

[@karlflavell968]

Very much of it's time but brilliant viewing. Interesting to see the mix of Lee Enfields with a few SLR's towards the end as they came into service. My grandad was RM during WW2 and was captured on Crete in 1941 while fighting in the rearguard to cover the evacuation from Sfakia and spent 4 years in a German POW camp.. Incredibly proud of him although sadly he's no longer with us.

[@wearetomorrowspast.5617]

Hat's off to your grandad.We won't see the likes of him again. Massive respect.

[@Mosey410]

I know how ya feel, my Pop was a 60mm mortar man landed at Normandy on D plus 7 . Fought through the hedge rowes was bombed by his own planes twice in Operation Cobra and held Hill 412 at Mortain wounded . He was back with his unit and fought through to Germany crossing the Roer and the Rine. He saw men go mad from the artillery barrages and what the SS did when leaving villages . We’re very proud of him. It wasn’t till I was older and he passed that I realized how tough he was. Cheers to our Grandads ☘️

[@garyproffitt5941]

My Dad 7:46 was a Royal Marine Commando and give us a clue with the exercise Mediterranean Island. Super stuff 1960! My Father, Barry Proffitt, the intelligent one. The mine sweeper and great stuff.

[@Electricfox]

13:00 45 Commando and Radios, got to love it. I have a picture my Grandfather took of a particularly disgruntled looking radio operator in the late 1940s with the caption "Don't blame me for the grim look, that little set is more obstinate than a mule."

[@Clipgatherer]

Almost like a real-life “The Guns of Navarone”. (Which is one of my favourite movies, BTW). 😊

[@howardjolley2215]

I'm 70 years old and from Canada and I thank god for all British and Commonwealth troops. There are not as many as there once were, but they are still the best in the world. Unfortunately, our respective governments are not always that way. (I love the stickwork of the Royal Marine Drummers.)

[@carmelpule1]

This is Malta where I live. The Map shown the wrong way round is that of Marsaxlokk and Hall Far appears in another location. The sharp cliff is Ghar Lapsi not too far from Blue Grotto at Zurrieq which tourists frequent. Then there are a lot of skirmishes all over the island and so the location is without continuity really, but effective. I remember when they made this film. I worked at the local Dockyard and did some work on those landing barges. Then I finished at Chatham on O and S subs.

[@carmelpule1]

@Best of Scottish This choice of identity " Best of Scottish" suggests that you are related to Scotland. After I worked at Chatham Dockyard, I moved to Newcastle upon Tyne to attend the University, at about 1960 when the university was really Durham University. On my 30 cc motorcycle, I used to often go up to Scotland, Glasgow, Isle of Aran, Edinburgh, Pitlochry to see the Salmon that went up a special water tunnel to bypass the dam. At Edinburgh, I used to go to Ferrybridge to see the 1st suspension bridge being built and ofter admired the Forth Bridge a little further out. It was always so windy!! I was allowed to go up the 700ft towers of the first suspension bridge. I should go to Scotland to see the new suspension bridge and perhaps walk Princess Road for the last time and see that flower clock in those gardens. I also frequented the Cheviot Hills where the RAF used to practice low-level flying with the Jaguars aircraft, which was deafening for my ears. The film Codename Snake eyes could easily have been partly shot in Scotland or Ireland as the scenery in the film, " Ryan's Daughter" is much more spectacular than what we have in Malta, especially now, where, politicians, building contractors, and millionaires are taking over every piece of public land! Thank you for your comment.

[@carmelpule1]

@Best of Scottish Thank you for replying, You seem to be going over some difficult times,. Well, all the best and I am sure that you will cope. Good luck.

[@anthonygoodwin4732]

Remember it well……Paul’s Punchbowl……..hic

[@MrJazzflute]

when the ships were made of wood and the men were made of steel , per mare per terram

[@brnesouthwest9915]

Jazzflute NON the latin for ships made of wood and men made of steel would be: Navi factus ex lignum et hominess factus ex ferro

[@JammyDodger45]

@@brnesouthwest9915 - 🤣 you must be joking?

[@janhollon3078]

Interesting seeing true professionals at work.

[@ethelmini]

19:00 Converting to SLRs mid invasion. now that's profeshneil soldjuring!!

[@richardthornton3775]

Some Proper knarly commando stuff there. Brilliant👊🏼

[@tisbut_a_scratch589]

.303 rifles and rock climbing wearing ammunition boots! Respect.

[@JammyDodger45]

Even hauling yourself up the rope in that kit is a serious undertaking.

[@grahambober8616]

Graham visited this site in May 2017. well done for putting this up for general display!

[@simonyip5978]

'40' is 'forty' '42' is 'four two' (not 'forty two') '45' is 'four five' (not 'forty five')

[@packyourbag4606]

Is it not 'four five engage'? ;-)

[@gailshea2294]

That interesting.I can understand why. 👍

[@darrenburnfan]

How marvellous to see this again for the first time since 1960. I was only 13 when I first saw it at my local Essoldo as the supporting film to the biblical drama "The Story of Ruth", which was accompanied everywhere on general release by "Code Name Snake's Eye". Like "The Story of Ruth", "Code Name Snake's Eye" was in CinemaScope and the original wide image is heavily cropped at the sides on this upload. But even so, we're lucky to be able to see it at all.

[@donalwhelan2242]

Essoldo ,as in Shoot up Hill/Kilburn?

[@davidrayner182]

No, the Essoldo circuit had hundreds of cinemas throughout the country at that time. In my case, I went to see it at the now long gone Essoldo Danilo, Hill Street, Stoke on Trent. @@donalwhelan2242

[@davidrayner182]

About time this short had a proper DVD restoration in full width CinemaScope.

[@crystalbear3375]

Interesting to see 37 pattern webbing being used, even though 2 years after the introduction of 58 pattern!

[@borninthewoods4482]

The Denison smocks!!

[@yomanry1]

Interesting to see that there were such things as "non-commando" marines then.

[@h7283]

There still is, bandsmen are infantry trained,but not to commando standard.

[@IbnBahtuta]

Those were the days.

[@thevengefulpenguin]

5:58 Naughty, Naughty. Straddling the cable, Marine or not, the Bosun’ll have his guts...

[@JammyDodger45]

Or the cable will have his nuts.

[@lizzietaylor5407]

Brilliant stuff! God saave the RMs ....but it's to late for the AWS you saw here. 2 x LSTs, 2 x LCTs, LSH HMS Meon , ML 2583 with either HMS Ceylon or Birmingham in support. If you've not worked it out, Malta is the location for the 3 Cmdo Bde invasion...of their own barracks and RAF Ta'Qali.

[@bobdinwiddy]

05m45s CO arrives via helicopter . . . top secret plans are blown overboard by the downdraft . . . but hey - it's cinema ! the real plans are on a microfilm slipped into his left shoe :D

[@RiflemanMoore]

There still are, RM bandswomen, the blue beret with red tombstone backing to the badge is also worn by marines in training before passing the commando course and by RM cadets. The 'non-commando' marines were known as 'fleet marines' during and after WW2. For a while after WW2 the Admiralty insisted on commando trained marines wearing the blue berets on shipboard duties! Can't remember when that changed...it was very unpopular as you can probably imagine.

[@minimums5831]

Great channel! Love these prestige color films

[@cristianosorio4402]

Uuufff unos bravos escalar ese acantilado así.

[@ourllamacalmerfarminfrance239]

Great to see Eastney Barracks again. I was in the band at it’s closure. A very sad time but a year or so of fantastic memories. Just don’t mention ghosts.

[@chriswalford9228]

My Dad was stationed there for a while . There used to be a tunnel under the road and they would do night canoe practice. Dad spent time with me on Sundays in the old museum and then looking for used mortar shells on Eastney beach at Fraser gun battery. We found one once with the fins sticking up and I took it to school next day.

[@JohnoO_O_]

How the mighty have fallen

[@granskare]

very nice video..

[@mrdynamic8678]

Rappels with bare hands, wow

[@asimplebutimaginativeman2359]

1:56 "what about opposing forces?" "They'll be there" Lol no shit Sherlock

[@bertmacdonald337]

Sarcasm isn`t one of your strongpoints, is it lofty?

[@zen4men]

Is'nt that cove with the narrow entrance the one used in the film Brown on Resolution?

[@Katmando376]

Was the closing scene in Chatham? Suppose a few Royal Marines were National Servicemen.

[@johnsmith-ht3sy]

Interesting, never knew Vampire jets were on aircraft carriers. I knew they were in the Rhodesian air force in real combat.

[@kitspackman3994]

They're Sea Venoms, the FAA's all weather fighter at the time.

[@gailshea2294]

Why called Vampire jets?

[@johnsmith-ht3sy]

@@gailshea2294 Vampire bats fly silently and suck blood. I assume thats why. These jets were not silent and didnt suck blood.

[@kath2934]

my dad is in this film albeit his voice is dubbed with ridiculously posh accent.

[@james9311]

What was his name?

[@PhilWood82]

Thank him for his service for us.

[@pappap1702]

Nothing ever goes according to plan after the 1st shot even if they aren't real bullets.

[@robertatkinson7501]

Bless the nails, only 500 metres to go lads

[@sichere]

It's only pain

[@marksteven6116]

good

[@user-mb1cu4vv8k]

ดีใจ.ใจดี.ดูพีพีทหาร.สบายใจ.เฟส.วิสุทธิ์.กองพิมพ์.โชคดี.ครับ.ทุกทุก.ท่าน.ครับ.ผม

[@Kurzula5150]

Looks like a rare wheeze and a bit of a whizz by my liking.

[@14Claude]

👏👏👏👏👏👍👍

[@flukedogit]

Yomanry1....it is Snake Eyes not Snake's Eye as you insist....hear him say it at 1:28 :-)

[@IsaacOLEG]

great victory on an enemy vastly superior in number and equipment, congrats!

[@SpadgerMcTeagle1]

Malta?

[@kusnoalex5790]

Film good operation

[@loonytbom7843]

@ 25:14 Can anyone say who was the "toff" doing the inspection? Was it the Greek or Mountbatten? @wardogs489 I saw this too when I was 15. I joined the IRA when I was 15. This film was designed to tempt the likes of me, and it worked. Would do it all again. Thanks for the memories ...

[@RichardWilliams-kf5vw]

IRA? I presume you meant RA?

[@operator5352]

what was the song at 24:40?

[@standeasy6571]

It might be 'Sarie Marais[Commando March]

[@sumvs5992]

7:35 sounds like Eric Idle

[@cjgangi0123]

Why are they all using SMLEs? Weren't they replaced with the SLR in the 50s?

[@RiflemanMoore]

The SLR came into service proper in 1958 but replacement wasn't instantaneous and the RM tended to be slightly behind the times compared to the Army kit wise. Likewise with the 1937 Pattern webbing. The rifle they're using isn't the SMLE though it's the No. 4, the two are not one and the same though of course very similar.

[@cjgangi0123]

+Rifleman Moore thanks very much for your thorough answer!

[@RiflemanMoore]

CJ Gangi Most welcome.

[@anglo6248]

Based

[@nickjung7394]

Picnic hamper in the boat around 7.26?

[@JammyDodger45]

🤣 it's the rope box. Old Hemp based ropes used to rot when wet so wicker baskets gave them the best opportunity to dry out.

[@dkoz8321]

The 'fictional island' looks suspiciously like Azores. Perhaps Morrocco.

[@guycalabrese4040]

No helmets? Just berets? It was all about style back in the day...😁

[@seanfire7679]

Not just style back then. The RMC wears no helmet in combat. They earned the green beret in a very hard way.

[@lextalionis5539]

¿ 1982 ?

[@jericchua8]

Curious where the fictitious Mediterranean island nation was.

[@JammyDodger45]

It was shot in Malta.

[@davidprichard5736]

Smoking!

[@RobMcGinley81]

Still alot of the Troops using the SMLE, sad they could of all had EM-2 by then if it wasn't for politics

[@james9311]

EM-2 better than SLR?

[@johngoodfellow168]

@@james9311 It was.

[@thomaseland3136]

I was in the REME as an armourer and stationed as permanent staff at Sandhurst. We also ran the armoury and they had many foreign and old weapons including an EM-280. Brilliant weapon and the .280 round was far superior to the American 5.56mm but politics prevailed. The modern version of the bullpup is not as good as the EM-280

[@cesarfernandez96]

@@james9311 w we q we

[@kitspackman3994]

They're not SMLEs, they're the later No 4s, with the exposed muzzle, a much more accurate weapon, specially in the No. 4T version used for target shooting. I did that too. :-)

[@GB-mu9ue]

It’s “snake’s eye” not “snake eyes”

[@parappasan]

Apparently everyone in the RN spoke posh back then.

[@HayashiShirou]

WW2 rifle in 1960?? There should be submachine gun existed. 🤔

[@kath2934]

R.I.P "Plum"

[@instruktorAvto]

У англичан оказывается тоже зелёные береты

[@georgeatkinson759]

Mind your backs...Naval officer...😊

[@malpreece5008]

This is fantastic! I wish the military would get back to making promotional films like this. These days it’s all “equality and diversity” bollocks! In 1960 it was join the Army and storm the enemy beaches with your regiment! Now it’s join the Army and share a fox hole with a gender neutral feminist, while your Muslim radio operator fails to call in air support because he’s too busy praying! 🙄

[@vito7428]

Oh you just reek of class do you. It's almost like people don't want to die for dumb reasons disguised as'national pride'anymore. I'd rather storm a beach with someone of whatever fucking gender or religion they are than share a foxhole with someone as'classy'and'civilized'as you

[@murrayeldred3563]

Spiffing. Wizard.

[@magna4100]

Isn't it "Four Oh" Commando, not For-TEE? Likewise "Four ONE," not Forty One? Great documentary though, love all the period hardware especially the British aircraft carriers (hey, remember them?) and those Sea Venoms. It would be interesting to re-run that exercise today just to see what could still be done. Not much, eh viewers?All Tories and Labourites to be hanged for treason?

[@JohnoO_O_]

no. four-two cdo, four-five, but with 40 cdo its forty

[@MrJazzflute]

Correct Im ex 40cdo Forty

[@neildahlgaard-sigsworth3819]

magna4100 the governments of all countries have to set their spending plans in line with their tax income. When this was being filmed the Pound was under a lot of pressure due to falling productivity levels which those foreign currency traders were selling off the Pounds they had and were moving into better performing currencies. The Conservatives had created the problem with their economic policies that kept more people in employment than the economy could realy support. In the early 1960s Labour inherited the mess and tried to solve it, but they failed and the Pound was devalued by 14% in relation to the US$. The public wanted the NHS, education, railways, buses, etc and so the military budgets had to be cut (and as the Empire shrank we didn't need such a large military).

[@progx8679]

Very sad than even in modern 1960 more than half the RM are still using No.4 Enfields for main battle rifles MBR and during this period Soviet/Warsaw pack used AK-47s and US troops used M-14s both at that time very modern also old H-19 type helos and old Sea Vemons. The USN/USMC flew F-8s,A-4s and in 1961 F-4s helos were UH-34s, by 61' Sea Kings and 64' CH-46, very sad the Brit. Gov. was so short sighted and still is !!! it's a good thing they just had "Colonial brushfires" to put out !! Semper Fi

[@progx8679]

dynmicpara2 ? Clueless !

[@MrBandholm]

I think the real sadness is, that if the British hadn't done as they were told, by the US, those commandos would have been using EM-2s

[@nickjung7394]

Prog X have you ever fired an AK47? Given that all ammunition had to be carried and it only takes one well aimed bullet to stop someone, I think I would have preferred an SMLE or SLR.

[@nickjung7394]

Mad Jack Tramper same, it seems, in the Falklands with the SA80

[@alexread9838]

Though back in 1960 the Navy had 8 aircraft carriers, of various sizes. Quite different than half a century later.

[@juancarlosazaro1293]

Británicos hasta para pelear, ... Is not picnik...

[@alekseyevich8749]

thought this is falklands

[@roysimikin9644]

alekseyevich the Falklands is in the South Atlantic, not the Mediterranean. It’s actually Malta that the exercise was filmed on

[@magna4100]

Durrh

[@yomanry1]

hehehe It's Snake's Eye not Snake Eyes! ~spelling nazi coming through!~

[@williamfitch1408]

Sterling stuff, but imagine having to cope with those upper-class clipped accents. I'd rather face machine guns and mortar bombs.

[@user-jy6yk9wy4d]

Jesus is lord

[@wearetomorrowspast.5617]

Back when propaganda serviced a perpose.

[@horsebattery9243]

From a bygone era. Capabilities long since lost. Britain is no longer a great power, no longer capable of significant independent action. She might be able to invade somewhere small like Malta but that would be about all the UK would be capable of, she couldn't then occupy or subdue the island.

[@malpreece5008]

We have the funds to raise and equip a large military, but at the moment the government prefer to spend it on trying to achieve ‘Net Zero’ and housing illegal migrants to the tune of £4.5 million a day! It’s ridiculous.

[@user-dn6xz9wi6y]

😡☠️🤮🤮U S A

[@adelarsen9776]

Rule Britannia. God Save The Queen.

[@magna4100]

Half right.

[@adelarsen9776]

@@magna4100 considering there is actually no invisible man....

[@huyvuong2334]

Phim cái qq gì toàn bên tấn công ko, bên phòng thủ méo có mấy người 😅😅😅😅😅😅.

[@padfa3939]

@christhrall