My Boy Jack

Several scenes were shot at the actual Rudyard Kipling estate, Bateman's, where Kipling lived from 1902 until his death.

In the movie the soldiers are taught to fire the Lee-Enfield rifle using their index finger on the trigger. This is incorrect. Guards regiments in the early part of the war were taught to fire 20 aimed rounds per minute. This fast rate of fire was achieved by virtue of the close proximity of the bolt mechanism and the trigger mechanism on the .303 Short Magazine Lee-Enfield rifle. Soldiers in Guards regiments were trained (like the Old Contemptibles) to fire the Lee-Enfield using the middle finger to fire the weapon while the index finger and thumb worked the bolt. The index finger and thumb would keep hold of the bolt THROUGHOUT the firing procedure, thus speeding up the rate of fire considerably. In the movie soldiers are clearly shown releasing the bolt on every shot in order to use the index finger to fire the weapon.

Featured in Masterpiece Theatre: My Boy Jack (2008)