Forest Oddities #3. Laurence Olivier abandoned in the forest.

During World War II the Forest of Dean became strategically important as a place where men and materials could be hidden away in relative safety. The granddaddy of them all was Acorn Patch, which became the second-largest open-air ammunition dump in the UK.

Troops began to mass in the forest in preparation for D-Day and the 144th Field Artillery Group, 3rd Army, found themselves stationed at Wigpool, near the end of my 'Walk 11' from the book Exploring Historic Dean. Here the forest bears the scars of extensive mining for iron ore. In one of the shallow iron workings (scowles) the resourceful Field Artillery Group set up an open-air cinema. The SunGreen website (a great source for local history) has this fascinating account by Terry Halford:

"A large white sheet was hung up at the face and wooden seats were put in on the rear slope. These seats were said to be made out of the wooden vehicle crates which were present in their hundreds on the common. A local told me that the cinema was used several times a week both by locals and by the US servicemen stationed there. He also said that new films were being shown, he can remember watching Rebecca with his girlfriend."

 This place is still known as Yankee Cinema. (Left) The rock face, against which the screen was hung

(Right) A view back up the slope where the wooden seats had been.

The troops left suddenly just before D-Day, exchanging the peace and camaraderie of the forest for the horrors of the Normandy beaches, and leaving their wooden seats and film cases lying around. One wonders how many of those troops survived to tell the story. But that is how, most probably, Laurence Olivier (and the rest of the Rebecca cast) came to be abandoned in the Forest of Dean.

At this point I hope that no forest wardens are counted among my readers, for if you follow in my footsteps you will discover that Health & Safety has left its mark. In order to protect the public from their presumed stupidity, a barb-wired fence has been erected around the Yankee Cinema. I walked the perimeter in search of gaps and thankfully discovered that some other rebellious soul has placed two heavy branches against the fence, creating a relatively easy crossing point.

I'll concede that some sort of fence is needed to stop animals and children wandering over the edge, but the slope is perfectly safe.  Or would these same people fence off every cliff edge and deny access to every castle wall and river bank in the land?