Product Details

• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Homevision
• VHS Release Date: June 13, 2000
• Run Time: 60 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: 0780021673
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #429,143 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

What begins as a slow pseudo-halftime show turns into a daredevil display of British tradition that might astound even the most dedicated Anglophile. The BBC documentary of the 1996 annual Royal Tournament, which dates back to 1880, is majestic and oddly fascinating. Among the wildest acts is that of the White Helmets Motorcycle Stunt Team, which balances 22 men in a pyramid on 6 moving machines, in addition to other bold tricks. Among the most bizarre is the Royal Navy Field Gun Competition, in which 18-man teams race field guns with 900-pound barrels through an obstacle course that demands the guns be broken apart and reassembled during the competition. Near the end, commando brigades reenact war scenes after soldiers parachute from the ceiling to "secure the beachhead." All of this machismo is rounded out by a bit of culture, including Irish dancing and performances by the Massed Bands of the Royal Marines. It's enough to make the Queen Mum do the royal wave. --Valerie J. Nelson

Product Description

Once a year, each branch of the British military goes into action purely for the entertainment of the public in the Royal Tournament. This exciting BBC documentary captures every highlight of the 1996 tournament, featuring the Royal Navy re-creating dram

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Royal Tornament as it was from 1880-1999, August 1, 2002

By 

Roger Kennedy (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Royal Tournament [VHS] (VHS Tape)

The last Royal Tournament was held in 1999, thus ending a tradition in Britain since Queen Victoria's Day in 1880. This video presents highlights of the 1996 Tournament. Each year a different service in the British Military was highlighted. 1996 was the Royal Navy's turn with the massed bands of the Royal Marines taking the center stage. The huge arena at Earl's Court, London had been the home of this spectacle for many years.
The Tournament combined displays of massed bands, the Royal Signals Motor Cycle display Team, the Royal Navy Gun Run, and the Kings Troop Royal Horse Artillery Musical Ride. All of these were standards at the Tournament over the years and can be enjoyed in their full luster and glory here. With the demise of the Royal Tournament the British public no longer has the direct means to enjoy their military on display as they did for 109 years. The viewer has the means here to enjoy a spectacle which had few if any equals. No tattoo today comes close to the size of the Royal Tournament. Srongly recommended for those who enjoy martial spectacles and feats of strength and derring-do.