BBC TV's film about a nuclear attack on Britain
A hypothetical Chinese invasion of South Vietnam triggers a new world war between East and West. In Rochester, Kent, the anticipation of a nuclear attack leads to mass evacuations. When a stray missile explodes, the ensuing firestorm blinds all those who see it. It's not long before the fabric of society is ripped apart from radiation poisoning, a lack of infrastructure and rioting for food and other necessities.
The War Game (1966) is a war and tv movie film directed by Peter Watkins, released on April 13, 1966 with a runtime of 48m. It stars Michael Aspel, Kathy Staff, Peter Watkins and Peter Graham. Viewers rate it 7.7 out of 10 across 195 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The War Game before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for The War Game.
Trailer
Clip
Clip
Michael Aspel
as Commentator
Kathy Staff
as Interviewee (uncredited)
Peter Watkins
as Documentist (uncredited)
Peter Graham
as Commentator
Dave Baldwin
as Schoolmaster / Interviewer (uncredited)
Directed by Peter Watkins, written by Peter Watkins, produced by Peter Watkins.
Average viewer score of 7.7/10 from 195 ratings.
Great, genuinely hard to watch, eminently memorable and absolutely no fun at all. But that's really important I think, so much media really tries to sort of paint this candy-coated filter over subjects like war, when in reality, war, especially nuclear war, is pretty fucked. There's nothing wrong with making those other movies, the ones where the heroes win the day and good guys triumph, those will never go away,…
Reviewed on April 5, 2020
I couldn’t decide which was the scarier prospect from this docu-drama? Finding somewhere safe to shelter from the eye-watering megatonnage of uranium enriched warheads or to emerge afterwards to a society that is truly dog-eat-dog, survival of the fittest, with no power or food or water or just about anything else - except, perhaps, some semblance of a military dictatorship run by the few lucky enough to be fifty…
Reviewed on August 2, 2025
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The War Game (1966) is currently available to rent or buy from Fandango At Home. No subscription streaming option is listed right now, so availability may change.
The main cast of The War Game (1966) includes Michael Aspel, Kathy Staff, Peter Watkins, Peter Graham and Dave Baldwin. The film was directed by Peter Watkins. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The War Game was released on April 13, 1966 and runs for 48m.
The War Game (1966) holds an average rating of 7.7 out of 10 from 195 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy war and tv movie films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The War Game trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
