AN AWARD-winning film about the life of a Trinidadian World War II RAF pilot, who went on to support African leaders gain independence from their colonial masters in the 1960s, is to be shown on BBC Two on the eve of Windrush Day.

HERO- The Extraordinary Life Of Mr Ulric Cross which sheds a light on Ulric Cross’ heroism, war service and Pan African convictions was an eight-year labour of love for its director Frances-Anne Solomon.

She only agreed to work on the film at the request of her mother. A friend of the family had called Solomon’s mother  before he died and told her he wanted to get a film made about Ulric Cross. As she knew Cross she took the request seriously and got her daughter involved with the project as well as raising some of the money needed to make the film.

HERO was finally completed in 2018 after a long battle to get funding. Since then it was met with international critical acclaim and won a host of major film awards followed by a 50-city tour of the UK the following year.

Now the film will air on BBC Two this Wednesday (June 21) as the UK prepares to celebrate the 75^th anniversary of the SS Empire Windrush arriving in Britain. 

Prior to the television broadcast the film will have an in-person screening at the Harbour Lights Picture House in Southampton on the same day  as part of the 2023 Windrush Caribbean Film Festival.

Films such as Red Tails and Wings For This Man have popularised the exploits of the Tuskegee Airmen, the African American pilots who fought in World War II.

While these films have captured the imagination of millions of people around the world, relatively less is known about the heroism of the hundreds of Royal Air Force (RAF) crew recruited from the Caribbean to fight for Britain during World War II.

Overcoming the legacy of the official British Colour Bar in the armed forces they not only served as pilots, but as navigators, flight engineers and air gunners.

Among these pioneers was a young man from Trinidad called Ulric Cross. Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Cross made the decision to leave his home on the island, where he worked on the railways, to train as a navigator with the RAF.

Cross rose through the ranks to become an officer and was selected to join the elite Pathfinder Force, a group of personnel who were responsible for marking targets prior to bombing raids.

He emerged from the war as the RAF’s most decorated Caribbean pilot receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Distinguished Service Order.

HERO – The Extraordinary Life of Mr Ulric Cross not only tells Cross’ inspiring story but helps to reveal the contribution made by Caribbean armed forces personnel to Britain’s efforts to defeat Hitler and the role they played in helping to get newly arrived Windrush Generation arrivals get a foothold in this country.

However, the film doesn’t just focus on his distinguished RAF record. His life and work after leaving the RAF spanned key moments in 20^th Century history.

In the 1950s and 60s Cross was one of a generation of Caribbean professionals who worked to support African leaders liberate their countries from colonialism.

He was a key ally of people like Kwame Nkrumah, the first prime minister and president of Ghana and Pan Africanist journalist and author George Padmore who were passionate about creating a united Africa.

After leaving the RAF, he trained as a barrister. Cross would go on to work in Ghana, arriving there one month after it gained independence going on to become a judge.

Continuing his journey on the continent he became an Attorney General in Cameroon and a High Court judge in Tanzania.

Filmed across the UK, Trinidad, Ghana, and Canada, HERO features a host of celebrated black British actors including Joseph Marcell of Fresh Prince of Bel Air fame, who plays the role of writer CLR James; Fraser James, who starred in Terminator Salvation, plays George Padmore and British-Nigerian actor Jimmy Akingbola, formerly of BBC hospital drama Holby City, plays Nkrumah.

Speaking about the film’s BBC Two screening Solomon said: “The momentum that continues to be for HERO has brought us to this moment.  To appear at the 2023 Windrush Film Festival and to air on BBC Two is an honour…. an affirmation on the importance of this film. I am so pleased to see the reaction of people from all walks of life around the world.”                          

The acclaimed director admits that before working on the film it wasn’t a story she would have been interested in.

In an interview with The Voice before embarking on the film’s 2019 UK tour Solomon said: “Originally I knew that Ulric was highly decorated in the RAF and I knew very vaguely that he had spent some time in Africa. But to be honest it wasn’t a story that would have grabbed me initially until I began to research his life.

This narrative emerged of Caribbean professionals who went to Africa to help with the emerging independence movements. I just found it incredibly compelling

Frances-Anne Solomon, director of HERO- The Extraordinary Life Of Mr Ulric Cross

“I interviewed him and this narrative emerged of these people, these Caribbean professionals who were recruited by people like George Padmore to go to Africa to help with the emerging independence movements. I just found it incredibly compelling for a number of reasons.”

The director continued: “I am myself a child of independence. My grandfather was one of the architects of independence in Trinidad and Tobago. There was also this idea that we in the Caribbean who have been taken from Africa in chains would return hundreds of years later to help liberate the continent. I found that incredibly moving.

“But ultimately Ulric’s story is one of ordinary people doing extraordinary things.  Anybody can identify with Ulric’s journey. He threw himself into some extraordinary situations and was always putting himself where the action was and taking the right decision.”

HERO- The Extraordinary Life Of Mr Ulric Cross will be broadcast on BBC Two at 23.45 pm on Wednesday June 21. It will also be available on BBC iPlayer.