Signallers of 36th Division seen laying telephone wires from a Brigade HQ to a forward battalion in the Hopin area of Northern Burma.

A sign reads 'Signals' and is marked with the 36th Division insignia of two overlapping circles. Two signallers emerge, one of them carrying a drum of telephone cable with a Thompson submachine gun slung on his back. The drum is fitted to a mounting on a modified jeep. The jeep drives slowly forward and two men lay the cable. They run the cable through nearby foliage to prevent it being snagged by men or vehicles. Close-up of a signaller sitting by the cable drum. A signaller tests the line using a small field telephone. Close-up of the signaller. View from the moving jeep as cable is paid out behind. Thick undergrowth; a signaller passes through carrying a drum of cable which pays out behind him. A second signaller follows and runs the cable through foliage.

Notes

A short but well directed film of a routine but nonetheless important task. For film of other signallers doing a similar job in action, see related items.

At this point 36th Division (commanded by Major-General F W Festing) was part of Northern Combat Area Command (NCAC) under the American Lieutenant-General Daniel Sultan. NCAC was a multi-national force comprising American and Chinese troops in addition to 36th British Division.