A new biography of British film icon Jack Hawkins shines a light on his work in Malta during the making of a film that put him on the road to stardom.

For millions of cinemagoers, Hawkins was known as the living embodiment of ruggedness, resilience and humour, an imaged forged in classics like Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia, Zulu and Ben-Hur.

However, during 1952, the actor was in Valletta shooting Malta Story, a war epic reflecting the bitter days of the island’s siege and later triumph.

“Typically, Jack was in uniform was cast as Vice-Marshal Frank − an officer beset by all the headaches of a man trying to maintain Malta’s defence against enemy attack,” says Nathan Morley, author of Jack Hawkins: A Biography

“He was billeted at the Phoenicia Hotel in Valletta along with Alec Guinness, who had the important role of an RAF reconnaissance pilot, as the crew prepared for a seven-week shoot.”

However, shortly after filming began, the problems started. A rapid rebuilding programme across the island made it difficult to find locations typical of the battered Malta of 1942 and, on top of that, another snag was finding enough locals for crowd scenes who could be persuaded to wear their oldest clothes and look hungry, tense and frightened.Worse still, the shoot suffered from a lack of water. 

In the end, the film was a tremendous hit

“When we arrived, prayers were being offered for rain,” a cast member recounted. “I intervened with prayers to a couple of Irish saints − and we’ve had good weather throughout!”

To save money, jobs for the British army – then stationed on Malta and working for free − included the installation and firing of AA guns and the ‘bombing’ of Valletta, and the laying of charges for a spectacular ‘attack’ on the Siri airfield.

For that sequence, art director John Howell scoured the island for the remains of Spitfires destroyed in the German onslaught a decade earlier and had them carted to the airstrip to add to the scene of devastation.

In the book, Morley details how, just three weeks into shooting, events were further hampered by locals complaining that certain shots − for instance an old woman picking for food in a dustbin − were not true. 

“The reaction perplexed Jack and annoyed Guinness,” the author says. “Filled with disquiet, Guinness even made a statement to the effect that the crew were trying to convey a faithful impression of the ordeal and heroism of Malta during the war, though he said they would probably end up by displeasing not only the Maltese, but the Navy and Army and everyone in Malta.”

Guinness knew the island having served in the Royal Navy in 1941 after becoming commander of a vessel that was frequently in and out of Valletta. In fact, during filming, his evenings were spent at the Royal Navy’s officers’ mess perched over the Grand Harbour, a cozy haven affording some respite from work.

“In the end, the film was a tremendous hit,” Morley says. “Malta Story was the fourth most popular movie at the British box office in 1953 and helped put Jack firmly on the road to film stardom, and of course, it didn’t do Alec Guiness much harm either.”

Jack Hawkins: A Biography includes contributions from Virginia MacKenna, Peter McEnery, Derren Nesbitt, Michael Jayston and many others and is being published at the end of this month by Fonthill Media. 

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