Flying machine (The War of the Worlds) far been depicted once on screen in Pendragon Pictures "H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds", where it makes an appearance after the battle with , which is later recounted from the perspective of the artilleryman. However, it appeared briefly in the live adaptation of "Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds", though the album itself does not make any reference to the flying machine. Many more of them appeared in the "New Generation" version of the stage show. Viewed edge on, the roughly boomerang-shaped war machines of George Pal's 1953 film, which bear no resemblance to
The War of the Worlds the time. In the 1870s the Germans were the most common invaders. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a period of strain on Anglo-French relations, and the signing of a treaty between France and Russia, the French became the more common menace. There are a number of plot similarities between Wells's book and "The Battle of Dorking". In both books a ruthless enemy makes a devastating surprise attack, with the British armed forces helpless to stop its relentless advance, and both involve the destruction of the Home Counties of southern England. However "The War of the Worlds" transcends the