The bank takes a direct hit during an air-raid, but the bomb fails to explode, leaving Mainwaring and Wilson stuck in the vault with it. When the bomb disposal officer leaves to collect the right tools, the platoon members take matters into their own hands.

The platoon is given a heavy naval artillery piece but the town's bandstand, a rare example of Victorian ironwork, stands in its field of fire. The town council insists it must be preserved but Mainwaring reasons that a demonstration of the gun's capabilities will quiet any protests.