The Great Escape - The True Story
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- Опубликовано: 1 июн 2024
- The True Story of the Great Escape from Stalag Luft III in 1944 (WW2)
Another history story from Chris Green (The History Chap).
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During WW2 over 170,000 British prisoners of war were captured by the Germans and Italians.
Many tried to escape but less than 1% made it home.
On the night of the 24/25 March 1944, 76 allied POWS escaped from Stalag Luft III in eastern Germany.
It was immortalised in the 1963 movie “The Great Escape” starring, amongst others Steve McQueen who tries to reach freedom in an epic motorcycle chase.
But who close to reality was the film?
This is the true story of….The Great Escape from Stalag Luft III
Chapters
0:00 The Great Escape
0:37 Stalag Luft 3 POW camp
2:36 Roger Bushell
3:39 Previous escape from Stalag Luft III
4:10 Tom, Dick & Harry
10:00 Stalag Luft III mass escape
11:35 Who escaped from Stalag Luft III
20:12 Stalag Luft III murders
22:14 Success & Reckoning
24:55 Great Escape Memorial
25:34 The History Chap
The prisoners of War (POW) at Stalag Luft III (Stalag Luft 3) were principally airmen from a variety of countries.
Contrary to the Great Escape movie, none of the escapees were American.
US POW’s were held in tow neighbouring compounds.
The Great Escape did, however, involve prisoners from over a dozen countries - only half were British. Other POW’s were from Canada, Australia, Norway, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Greece, France and Rhodesia (Zimbabwe).
The mastermind of the Great Escape from Stalag Luft III was a South African-born RAF officer, Roger Bushell.
3 tunnels were dug named Tom, Dick & Harry.
In the end only tunnel Harry was used for the escape.
The tunnel, 30 feet below the surface and stretching for 111 yards was dug using homemade implements (made from tins, cutlery etc) as well as shovels and crow bars obtained by bribing the guards.
It took 9 months of painstaking work to complete.
The mass escape took place on the night of the 24th / 25th March 1944.
Unfortunately it was only when they broke open the mouth of the tunnel that the POW’s found that they had miscalculated and they were 20 feet short of the nearby woods.
Originally, Roger Bushell had planned a breakout by 200 prisoners but in the end only 76 escaped before the alarm was raised.
3 prisoners managed to get all the way back to Great Britain.
The 73 others were captured and 50 were executed by the Gestapo in cold blood.
After the war the Gestapo officers responsible for the Stalag Luft III murders were hunted down and 13 were executed.
The Great Escape movie tries to capture the incredible mass escape form Stalag Luft 3.
Made with an eye to getting bums on seats in the USA, it gives Steve McQueen a central role, which is a deviation from the true story.
Nevertheless it captures the spirit and heroism of the men who did genuinely break out of Stalag Luft III during World War 2 (WW2).
#stalagluftiii #thegreatescape #ww2truestory
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My name is Chris Green ("The History Chap") and I am on a mission to share the amazing history of Britain so that we can appreciate where we have come from and why we are here.
History should not be stuffy or a long list of dates or kings & queens.
So rather than lectures or RUclips animations, I tell stories that bring the past to life.
My aim is to be chat as if I were having a coffee or meal with you. Jean in Maryland, USA recently wrote: "Chris, is the history teacher I wish I had at school!"
Just for the record, I do have a history degree and continue to have a passion for the subject I studied.
Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Chris Green Communication Ltd t/a The History Chap. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Chris Green Communication Ltd does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Chris Green Communication Ltd t/a The History Chap. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Chris Green Communication Ltd does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
My high school math and woodshop teacher, Larry Wolfe, was a B-17 navigator shot down over Regensburg and badly injured. After recovering in hospital, he was sent to Sagan, where he spent most of the rest of the war. Never judged physically well enough to consider for any escape, he was one of the many who did support work for the tunnelers. Near the end, he was part of the batch sent on foot to a camp near Moosburg; "the coldest I ever was in my life". One time only he collected all his personal records and pictures from that time and gave a presentation at the school. A soft-spoken man, he was one of the best teachers I ever knew.
Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for that info. He was not well enough for the escape but still worked supporting the tunnelers. That’s pretty heroic.
My father was a pilot in SAS (Scandinavian Airlines System) and he was stationed in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1968. At that time I was 12 and had to learn English as I had to go to school and one way was to (try) to read books. The crew was from Sweden, Norway and Denmark and our families often had lunches and parties. One time we went for a lunch with the captain of the crew, a Norwegian. I brought my book to read, the book was "The great escape". The captain (I can't remember his name I have to ask my father, now 93) asked me if i liked the book? I answered that it was a great book about an escape from a German prison camp. I was at the end of the book and told him that 2 tried to get to Sweden. He then surprised me and said and they made it, I was one of them! True story! He was a bomber pilot for RAF and was shot down over Germany. After the war he joined SAS in Norway. He signed my book with a dedication, a paper back book I unfortunately lost, but I still have the memories from that.
Thanks for watching my video & for taking the tie to share your family story
Amazing story.
Wow. Thanks for telling us
My father Bob McBride, was number 80 and was climbing out of the tunnel when the guard found the opening.
He and three other prisoners captured at the tunnel opening spent 30 days in the Cooler. Hitler ordered them to be shot. But the Commandant refused. He was replaced, but the lives of these escapees were spared.
Thanks for sharing. What a connection to the event.
My grate uncle Clive was number 82 made his way back up the tunnel.
Wow!!! He was lucky to be spared! What a story he had to tell you!
Kommandant Lindeiner was a brave man to refuse Hitler's order. He was probably a good officer as well. Whatever happened to him?
What amazing stories he must've had! Thank you to your father for his service
My primary school headmaster was a rear gunner in Lancasters, who was shot down and became a POW in the camp when this escape took place. My primary school Headmaster has long since gone to the Big Teacher's Staff Room in the sky - and the school has since erected a memorial to him on the grounds - and I, too, have never forgotten him. Thank you and RIP Mr Payne. 👍
Thanks so much for sharing.
Great man. The story of the tail gunners was that they were often hosed out of that position ! They had to have the eyes of a hawk for the German night fighters. A mate's father was a Lanc pilot, an Australian in the RAAF attached to Bomber Command. He kept the same crew throughout the campaign and told me a story about his tail gunner. Col said he would be flying along in the dark, in the freezing cold, yet sweating from fear, when the TG would scream dive!!! Straight down, trace going over the top from the fighter, full bomb load, flat chat engines, and corkscrewing as they went. Col said a Lanc would beat a fighter down! Imagine pulling out of that dive. Just incredible.I have told this story in other places, but I don't think people believe me. It is dead set true, and a testament to all the gallant men in their flying machines.
Funnily enough so was my Primary School headmaster. He was a Lancaster navigator. When he covered our teacher’s absence he told us the whole story of how they bailed out the plane, all the way to the forced march out of the camp as the Russians approached. God bless Mr Ingalls.
@Peter Castles Thanks. I've never forgotten Mr Payne. He was a wonderful man.
Yes, that's very true!! To escape nightfighters and searchlights, the RAF bombers' standard tactic was to "corkscrew": a diving turn followed by a climbing turn. It must have been one a hell of an experience, and also one hell of a workout for the pilot heaving a fully laden bomber about the sky.
An aged friend once told me of his mate (who did 2 tours as a Lanc pilot) who, while flying as a passenger in a 747 over Germany in the 1980's was asked if he'd like to see Germany from the cockpit. He declined, saying: "No thanks! The last time I was flying an aircraft over here [Germany], the buggers were shooting at me!" 👍
@John Wilson They are all members of that "greatest of generations". Thank God they rose to the occasion and did what had to be done to protect and ensure our freedoms today. Lest we forget!! 👍
What's very interesting is that Donald Pleasance, who played the artist in the movie, was actually in the real camp during the time of the escape. So, he was able to give specific advice to the director to make the scenes more real.
Yes he was.
@@TheHistoryChap The director at first didn't believe it, then others convinced him that Pleasance was there and then listened to his advice.
I do believe it was a different camp Donald was in but was able to give advice on life and details in camps
What i find funny is that Donald Pleasance will always be Himmler to me due to 'the eagle has landed'😅
@@shaunmcclory8117 For me it is the Soviet bad guy in Telefon - " The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep,..."
From Canada: Not a word about Wally Flood, a very experienced Canadian mining engineer who actually designed and lead the construction of the three tunnels, Tom, Dick and Harry. I met him in Toronto when the film, "The Great Escape" debut. It was his technical expertise that actually got the whole scheme off the ground in the first place.
Thanks for taking the time to share about Wally Flood.
Wally FLOODY not Flood. He was a close personal friend.
His right name is Wally Floody no Wally Flood.
Floody was also a consultant to the film directors for accuracy sake.
Mate there is someone else here claiming Tom Dick and Harry were started by Americans I thought the Canucks were with the RAF etc in Camps
Thank you! My father was a prisoner at Stalag Luft lll.
His war memorabilia is at the wonderful 100th Bomb Group Museum in Diss, England.
His grandson and great grandson will be present for the flag laying at the Bomb groups reunion this month at the 8th Air Force Museum.
Preserving this history is a gift.
Thanks for watching
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
My daughter loves the film and when she was 11 they did the great escape at school. When the teacher asked if any body knew about the great escape, my daughter started whistling the tune to the film,her teacher was so impressed with her, that he awarded her will the knowledge of the week awarded. Nice one.
Thanks fr sharing your family story & for watching my video.
My father was a wireless air gunner with 10 squadron flying Whitleys before being shot down in 1941. Dad was moved to the north compound after the great escape took place. He was there when the Germans brought back the ashes of the 50. It took me many years to get Dad to open up about his experiences during the war, but thankfully I now have his life story written by him before dementia took him from us. It is a treasured memorial.
Thanks so much for sharing. So many men from WW2 to ok years to open up about their experiences
Have you given a copy of your dad's experience to a war museum or historical society ? I am sure it would be appreciated.
@@h.stephenpaul7810I have a number of items including class and POW photos, dad's flight log, a copy of an unpublished manuscript written by one of Dad's buddies called "Goon in the Block" and other items which will be going to either the Canadian War Museum or the National Air Force Museum. I haven't made up my mind which yet.
30 ft underground,2 foot square,sandy soil,working nakedHarry was the 98th tunnel found in this section.This is the mind set of true heroes.The Germans did'nt stand a chance.They had their captors defeated.Absolute legends.Another cracking history presentation about men who any country would be proud to have.The history chap has done these soldiers justice.Incredible.
It is strange that no attempt was made by the Americans Would that have been by official direction?
@@jacktattis The Americans were transferred out before the mass escape. After the murder of The Fifty Officers no escapes were planned anymore.
Thanks for watching and commenting too
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
My Uncle was one the escape committee and was one of the men moved prior to the escape. By being moved by the Germans actually saved his life. He returned home to NZ and lived a very full life. I was one of the few people he ever spoken to about being shot down and his life in Stalag Luft III. He told me because some of them being moved they thought the Germans were onto them, but told me that it turned out to simply being a case of overcrowding.
Thanks for sharing
My father was a B-17 tail gunner stationed out of England thru 1945. He made friends with a British Lancaster crewman whose wife was knee-deep in the "smuggling" biz, sending things via Red Cross packages that escapees might need. Dad said that, according to. his Brit friend, US crewmen volunteered in the early escape efforts but were cut off from it when they were moved to separate compounds. He missed the craziness they used to do to each other on the 4th of July and Guy Faulks Day (I know I spelled that wrong 😂) But thank you for this very well done piece. Seeing it this close to our American Memorial Day, when we pause to remember all those who never made it home, is sobering. I was career Navy stationed in both Brawdy, Wales and Exmouth, Western Australia, keep the memories of all I was lucky enough to call friends before they left on their last deployment close to my heart. We remember.
Thanks for sharing.
A great story 😊 if you don't mind me asking, what did they used to do to each other on the 5th Nov and 4th July?
long live the fifty. they will never be forgotten.
Thank you for taking the time to comment.
@@TheHistoryChap not a problem.
One of the TV personalities i remember from my childhood in the 60's was named Ray Raynor. He used to do kids shows in the Chicago area. He was always dressed in a flightsuit. Imagine my surprise reading his Bio later that he was shot down over France and was a prisonor at Luft Stalag III. His bio says he was involved in part of that escape planning, but was transfered before it actually occured. Im glad he made it home. All these guys were true heros. I know we had a chance to know one of these heros daily! Thanks Ray, RIP
I had heard the US POWs were transferred prior to the escape. Did the poster tell us that the Compounds were separated? If so were there no interaction between the US and RAF
Nice story. Thanks for sharing.
The character played by James Gardiner- "The Scrounger" was actually F/lt Levesque a regular RCAF officer. He was not permitted to escape because he was too well known to the guards. He had two kills in WWII and went onto score three more while serving as an exchange pilot with the USAF in the Korean War. Cheers
Thanks for adding to my knowledge.
Cheers.
Gardiner?
Garner
I knew Omer Levesque well. He was NOT a "Scrounger" because he couldn't speak German and was not fluent in English. He was fluent in French/Canadian. He was a tunnel digger on "Harry". He WAS ALLOWED to be on the escape list and was largely UNKNOWN by the German staff. Two weeks prior to the escape, he, Wally Floody, Tuck, Harsh et al were purged to Belaria Compound.
@@TheHistoryChap the chap commenting regarding Levesque is clueless! I KNEW Levesque personally. Please read my comment.
One of the best books I ever red was about the policeman who hunted down the great escape murders. He worked on it for years, it's a story of single minded determination and I think would make a really great movie.
Totally agree, Bill.
Thanks for taking the time to post your comment.
What is the name of the book? I'd like to read that.
@@rickcroucher Allen Andrews 1976 book 'Exemplary Justice' I read a library copy in 1982
@@stephenclayton5129 thank you I have. Just added it to my reading list. And placed an order at my local library.
It’s not in their collection. But have put a call out So they are hopeful
It was made into a TV documentary and I can recommend it.
As a Frenchman, I did a little research regarding the French pilot in your story. His name was Bernard Scheidhauer. Strangely enough, he was born in 1921 in... Germany, in Landau, Rhenish Palatinate. His father was colonel Michel Scheidhauer, a WWI hero who was made himself prisoner (and wounded) in 1914 and later released because of his declining health (he would be back in duty in 1918). He would then be assigned to Brest to take command of the 2ème RIC (Colonial Infantry Regiment), in Brittany (where he had previously been assigned from 1899 to 1902). It was at this time that his son would become fascinated by the airplanes coming and going from the Lanruz air field (today Brest-Guipavas airport).
After the fall of France, and with his father's consent, he would leave Douarnenez with five friends on "La Petite Anna" (Little Anna), a pinnace, a 12 meters long boat.
Unfortunately none of them was a sailor and they did not have enough gasoline to reach England. They would run out of gas only 12 hours after their departure on october 20, 1940. Unable to man the boat, they would be lucky enough with good winds in an unlucky situation. They had to suffer one of the strongest "blows" of the years of hostilities. They were rescued on october 31 by the S.S Cairgorn.
Bernard Scheidhauer would then enlist to become a pilot with the FAFL (Free French Flying Force) and would become a patented one in april 1942. He would take part to Operation "Jubilee", the failed landing in Dieppe on august 19, 1942. On november 18, he was part of operation "Rhubarb", a straffing raid on the Bayeux railway near Cherbourg. He was shot and forced to land on Jersey.
After a bit of explaining regarding his German-sounding name and his birthplace, he was sent to Stalag Luft III where he became friends with "Big X" : Squadron Leader Roger Bushell. You know the rest.
His father would spend the war as a Resistance cell leader in charge of helping allied airmen shot above France and would be forced into hiding in march 1944. Tragically, he would then learn of his wife's death in the Sadi-Carnot underground shelter explosion on september 9, 1944. This 560 meters long shelter in Brest was used by French civilians as well as German soldiers. It was also used by the Todt organization as a warehouse for ammunitions and gasoline. At 2.30 AM, september 9, 1944, a false maneuver from a Todt soldier started a fire. For the people inside the shelter, it was like being trapped inside a gun barrel. 371 French and 500-600 Germans wered killed in the ensuing explosion.
Colonel Michel Scheidhauer died in november 1951.
Now, reading the list of the 50 executed, I first investigated for a french name. The only french sounding name would be Henri Picard. He was a Belgian pilot. He was part of a four-men group who were arrested near Schneidemühl on march 26, 1944, they were executed by the Gestapo near Prusce.
Thank you so much for taking the time to post your detailed additions.
And, the damaged spitfire he mistakenly landed on Jersey was taken back to Germany and used to create the one and only 'MesserSpit' - the Merlin engine was removed and an ME 109 engine was installed on it, creating a Frankenstein hybrid plane which was reportedly better than both the contemporary ME109 and Spitfire.
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
And it was a Frenchman that was the first to escape from Colditz
@@jacktattis Alain Le Ray.
I first viewed the "Great Escape" when I was about nine years old. What a great true story of courage and willpower.
Thanks for watching.
The first time I saw it was as a child on late night TV. The second I was 12 or 13 on Saturday Night on TVO. Elwy Yost was brilliant.
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
You forgot to mention that it was was the camp commandant was so disgusted at the actions of the gestapo. He actually funded the memorial to the 50 . I've actually been to this camp in Poland my ex partner lived not far from the camp . I enjoyed your short film brilliantly put and explained. I've been to many places over Germany and Poland. My ex said it was like travelling with a walking history book 😅😅😊
Thanks for sharing.
I thought he was executed ?
@@g.t.richardson6311 The commandant was rescued from execution by being put in a mental hospital(as I understand it) ,My father was in the camp.I have a photo of Major Dodge with dad and other Commonwealth POWs .A NZer was killed by the Gestapo.
@@geraldperyman6535 thanks I forgot about that
Good story
@@geraldperyman6535 The Commandant suffered from a heart attack and so he escaped to be court martialled.
Paul Brickhill's book "The Great Escape" is a must read because it tells not only the story of the breakout, but the story of the post war search to bring those who murdered the escapees to justice. Brickhill was himself a prisoner at Stalag Luft III.
thanks for telling this story of men that craved freedom
My pleasure.
One thing about the movie, great as it is, is that you don't get the impression that the tunnels were 30 feet down. As I recall, McQueen has a handful of grass and shows it to other characters and it looks like they were just below the surface. But, it's been a long time since I've seen the film.
The motorcycle jumps were done by Bud Ekins who was McQueen's stunt double. He also drove the Mustang in "Bullitt" Insurers would not allow McQueen to perform the more dangerous stunts.
Thanks for commenting
Steve McQueen's part was used in a US Army Laws of Land Warfare training film as they show his return to the cooler was because he still had his military rank as after he crashed, he flashed it at the Germans.@@TheHistoryChap
Knew two blokes in that camp. Ted Triffett, a stockman from Julia Creek in Queensland, Australia, and Gordon Given from Brisbane, Queensland. Ted was captured in North Africa in the Bengazi Handicap, as Rommel chased the Australians as they fell back to Tobruk, in 1941. Gordon was in the RAAF, in England , and was shot down in a plane over Germany. Two great blokes. RIP Ted and Gordon.
Thanks for sharing.
Were they among the executed?
@@jacktattis No mate, they both came back. I met Gordon in Brisbane in about 1976, and Ted in 1977. Ted joined the army with my dad , and were both in the same section , D company, 2/15th Battalion, 9th Div. Ted escaped twice, captured the first time, made it into Switzerland on the second attempt. He was quite handy with leather so he was in the boot repair shop in the camp. One day a guard was going to bayonet a little bloke from Sth Africa for some misdemeanor or other. Ted grabbed the first thing he could , a boot last, and clobbered the guard. Ted kept saying, "The blood, the blood". They both survived that , but for punishment they were both tied on a fence, upside down for two days in the snow. Bye for now, regards, Peter.
@@petercastles5978 Oh yes Charles Upham VC/Bar would never ever have anything German on his property back in N.Z.
He must have seen something when he escaped that set it off
I think he ended up at Colditz and when liberated by the US Army grabbed a weapon and was off to fight them again
The memorial was constructed by officers of Stalag Luft 111 who were permitted to construct it because they gave their parole as officers that they would not try to escape. The memorial originally contained urns containing the ashes of the murdered escapees. At the end of hostilities these were later moved to a Commonwealth War Grave cemetery in Germany. I have been to Sagan (Zagan) a few times and the camp is well worth a visit, although to be honest, there's not actually much there apart from the small museum and what was shown in the article. The reconstructed tunnel experience is for young and nimble people, not sexagenarians like me, although I did attempt it and completed it with great difficulty. Thank you for this.
Thanks you for taking the time to post.
I think all of the ashes apart from Roger Bushell's sadly. I believe in the book it says that the Germans dropped his urn in the woods. All of their families must've been devastated but especially if he never returned to a resting place for them to visit.
Bram Vanderstok's story has been published in a book called "Escape from Stalag Luft III" and tells his story from childhood to becoming a doctor in USA. Well worth a read...
Thanks for the suggestion.
Steve McQueen's character, Virgil Hilts, was a composite of several men, some of whom we know. I ran across a book (which I could not find the citation, so you may remain skeptical) by someone who claimed to be one of those men. He was actually an American OSS agent. When captured by the Germans he claimed to be a pilot in the RCAF to avoid being shot. That's how he ended up in Stalag Luft III. There were a lot of Americans that enlisted in Canada to join the fight before Pearl Harbor and American officially entered the war.
Thanks for sharing.
The Director based Hiltts on David Jones. There is an extra on the special edition DVD all about him.
In grade school in 1963..... this has always been my favorite movie, ever.
Gald you enjoyed.
I have the honor to be the step grandson of Johnny Travis. Growing up as a kid in the 1970s I had the honor of meeting and often hearing him talk (I was at the time about 11 years old). Rarely would he talk about his time in Stalag Luft 3. If I recall right a few times were he would talk about WW2 he mostly he talked about flying and the short Sterling bomber that he had flown in before being shot down and becoming a POW. There is much I could talk about of those short few years that I knew him but most is not relevant to Stalag Luft 3. The last few weeks that I knew him was spent in France in the Normandy area. I was surprised at how fluent his French was and how well he knew the area. While we were in France he started to become unwell with a heart condition and passed away shortly after we returned home.
I do remember 1 story he did tell me about being in a POW camp and that was how he would make things out of rubbish. My little brother who was sadly too young (about a year old at that time) to know his grandfather has been told a few stories about his grandfather. However I digress. From my understanding at the time WW2 broke out he was in Rhodesia as a mining engineer and made his way from there to back home where he joined the Royal Air Force.
I have hinted at things that he told me in those few short years. The reason I have not mentioned them is that over the years they have become mixed up with things from books I have read movies I have seen and other POW’s I have had the honor to meet.
Mark, thank you so much for sharing.
The sad bit is that so many WW2 veterans didn't share their stories (my grandad never talked about Anzio and my uncle only started talking about Normandy in his 90's).
If you enjoy my stories please do subscribe to my RUclips channel.
Best wishes
Chris
I read the book in grade school in the late 60s. I was fascinated by the ingenuity and tenacity it took to pull off such a tremendous endeavor.
A few years later, I saw the movie. It was entertaining, but I had that smug satisfaction of knowing that the truth was even better.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Back in the early 90s i was in cyprus on holiday. One of the paperback books the hotel had in their bookshelf was The Great Escape which i read.On each page written in pencil was ammendments and name changes to the story. Clearly done by a person who was in the camp at the time. Wish i had kept the book
Thanks for sharing.
Absolutely amazingly ingenious and so brave
May they RIP 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
Thanks for taking the time to comment
The late ,great , Peter Butterworth of carry on film fame was a prisoner in Stalag III, and while there was involved in two escape attempts including the great escape.
He was a Leiutenant in the fleet air arm and got shot down in 1940 and captured,then sent first to a PoW camp at Oberursel near Frankfurt.He and 17 others escaped in 1941 by digging a tunnel under a bed using soup spoons but was recaptured and sent to Stalag III.
While there he helped three other officers attempt and escape by digging a tunnel under a gymnastic horse.
He actually auditioned to play himself in the film 'The Wooden Horse', but the film makers thought he was 'unconvincingly heroic' and not athletic enough.Peter then asked what the problem was and was told: 'You're too fat'.
Edit: Just read that Talbot Rothwell ,a friend of Peter's was also in the camp.He would go on to write 20 of the 31 'Carry On' Films.
Great story, thanks for sharing.
Fascinating & rather poignant. Thank you for sharing that.
@@TheHistoryChap As way of acknowledging his part in the Wooden Horse escape (and having declined to use him for reasons explained in the previous comment) the lead character in the movie was called 'Pete' in Butterworths honour
Along with Peter Butterworth was another well known British actor Rupert Davies of the 1960s TV series of Maigret. Rupert was from Liverpool. I Peter was from Stockport and he was married to the Scottish impressionist Janet Brown. She was famous for mimicking Maggie thatcher.
The Brits and C/Wealth were always attempting escape The US I am not so sure For the real recalcitrant prisoners they were sent to Colditz. Were any US prisoners there?
Johnny Dodge....Never heard of him before.The giant characters all over this...Bernard 'Pop'Greene.My God...Real supermen.The detail in this video is wonderful.You have done the escapees justice.
Thank you.
My grandfather, W/Cdr David Holford DSO, DFC and Ian Cross flew their Wellington bombers against the Sharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen in March 1941. There was heavy cloud cover and extremely heavy flack, but the pair remained over their targets for over an hour. Eventually Cross’ plane was hit and forced to crash land in France. As he tried to get to the ground, several German fighters tried to finish him off. My grandfather, just 20 years old, held them at bay whilst Cross crash landed his plane. Grandpa was awarded a DSO, Cross was taken prisoner and eventually ended up at SL3. He escaped, but was re-captured and murdered by the Gestapo. Four months before the great escape, my Grandfather was killed as he returned from bombing Berlin on his third Tour. On this Remembrance Day, I particularly remember these two great friends and their almost 56,000 comrades from Bomber Command who lost their lives hitting back at Hitler the only way we could in the early years of WWII.
What a powerful post. Thank you for sharing
You have phenominal genetics within you. Your note gave me cold chills. Thank you.
The POWs did not realize it, but by March 1944, Germany by this point had so many POW Camps, Foreign Labor camps and concentration camps that the issue of all these prisoners was making the Germans very uneasy. In fact, a report was written in 1943 that some Germans civilians were becoming too friendly with foreign workers. A lot of these workers sabotaged whatever they were working on. After the riot, break out at the Sobibor death camp, the Germans leveled the site to hide it. The Great Escape was just another incident that would cause headaches for the Germans on how to control all these prisoners and slave laborers. The greatest legacy of the escape is that future generations still remember that millions of soldiers were captured and were held as POWs.
Thanks for taking the time to share that information.
Top job done by the policeman who hunted the Gestapo down....another hero in his own right.The resolve of that generation.I am 61 and grew up on these stories but never really had the details and assumed that it was so extraordinary that it must have been embellished for propaganda.Thanks again for the brilliant content and hard work.
My pleasure
Roger Bushell, Big X has his Epitaph on the War Memorial to the Fallen in Hermanus, South Africa.
Thanks for sharing
The sheer resourcefulness of the Men who planned such escapes… & everyone who played their part in providing & fashioning the extraordinary range of equipment, material, paperwork & other paraphernalia required - not only for the initial escape attempts themselves, but in order to stand any chance of navigating a path to freedom & evading capture along the way… All of it is truly mind boggling… & amounts to a magnificently Herculean & ingenious combined effort, that deserves to be remembered & celebrated - all the more so, in view of the shocking & senseless brutality that was inflicted upon many of these Men, once they were recaptured.
Well done, Chris. As with ALL of your poignantly presented & meticulously researched Historical narratives… You did these Men proud.
That's vey kind of you. Thank you.
When i was a kid in Munroe Falls, Ohio, Charles Church, S/N O-440998 and a neighbor of ours, was a POW at Stalag Luft III during this time. In an Akron Beacon Journal article from 15 September, 1967, he tells how he was 'Scrounger', played by James Garner in the movie, and he never was one of the escapees, but had a hand in multiple attempts.
Thanks for taking the time to share.
I have read the book a dozen times and watched the movie a dozen times. The movie is fantastic! The book, by Paul Brickhill is legendary. It takes you there with the inmates and follows through after the war to arrest and prosecute the officers and men responsible for the torture and murder of "The 50". Amazing.
Thanks for sharing.
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
I'm also enjoying Simon Pearson's The Great Escaper, a 2013 biography of Roger Bushell, and Bram 'Bob' Vanderstok's Escape from Stalag Luft III is a must.
Thanks for the history behind the film, great video (and a great film)! BTW, I re-watched the Great Escape on commercial channel TBS one time JUST to watch Steve McQueen do his motorcycle jump scene and they edited it out for more commercial time. After watching for at least an hour (maybe 2), I was very angry and it will always be a memory I have of this film, lol.
Thanks for watching my video, and for sharing your childhood memories
SIR, that was one of the enlightening stories I personally think I ever heard. My history reading and watching made me believe that the movie was a somewhat fabrication. As I recall, I understood that the great escape was a combination of many separate escapes, not of as you told one huge escape! I also, being that I always enjoyed the movie, I see many notable moments that actually happened, though slightly different. Excellent work on retelling the true story and the video end. It was not only entertaining but was extremely informative. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed the learning experience! God bless and I will join and look forward to more of your work.
Thank you so much for watching and for taking the time to post a comment.
My father was in Luft 3 and worked on the tunnels before the AAF crews were moved. One of the scroungers was named Kriegie Hall and was a Canadian. He was the best man at my parents wedding in Briton.
Great story, thanks for sharing
Excellent story, Thank you for posting this.
My pleasure.
Great lesson. In advanced training in the Army we were trained on how to act, passively and physically if taken prisoner. The funniest but more difficult was how to treat enemy prisoners. Serious stuff but so is war.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
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War is deadly stuff
Granddad James Parker MM was Captured February 11th 1941 between Tragino and Naples Italy during Operation Colossus No2 Commando/II SAS , he escaped by jumping off a train in Cocullo Italy convincing the station master to slow the train on a corner after being recaptured by a German Airborne division when italy capitulated and left Campo Sulmona PG 78 unguarded .. he carried his friend who was injured during the escape for weeks and being assisted by a local woman Agata DiCesare made it to allied lines and back to England then shipped off to the Pacific..
Wow, what a great story about Grandad James Parker. Thanks for sharing & I hope plenty others take the time to read it.
There was a second movie made called, The great escape-the untold story made in 1988 starring Christopher reeve and Donald pleasence. Pleasence was also in the original movie and was also a real prisoner of war.
Quite a few of the men in the film had served in either WW2 or Korea.
Thanks for sharing.
i used to have the great escape- the untold story on video. brilliant film.
Though he was most famous for his roles in the Halloween films he was great in The Great escape as the escaping with horrible vision. The cast for that film was just incredible.
This was an american made for tv movie in 2 parts it claims that a Gestapo officer called Burchardt was in charge this is rubbish it was a Gestapo chief from Breslau called Wilhelm Scharpwinkel who was put in charge of hunting down the escapees ,the film the untold story was in parts correct and not correct as some of the prisoners were sent to sachsenhousen concentration camp, this films aload of absolute rubbish as it also shows john dodge heading the investigation this is ball it was a full on british investigation this once again is the Americans trying to get all the credit for a British story.
Do you mean Christopher Reeves? The original film had Steve McQueen and Donald pleasence and Richard Attenborough but I'm not sure who Christopher Reeve is. I'm not saying he wasn't in that movie but not Christopher Reeves who played Superman obviously.
Excellent! And I really enjoyed your energy in this account.
Glad you enjoyed it
An excellent report. I would only offer one correction via Paul Brickhill who wrote the book on The Great Escape. The penguin dispersal of the yellow sand was by bags MADE FROM LONG UNDERWEAR LEGS held in by a pin, dropped down pant legs. Brickhill reports that the prisoners "gleefully cut the legs off the long underwear" for sand dispersal. It was a celebration of revenge against the long underwear.
Thanks for sharing.
I remember that too.
To the 50!!!
Thank you.
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Amazing! Still getting my head around people serving in both World Wars.
Thanks for watching.
My dad would always talk about Steve McQueen. Never really knew much about the great escape before this. Thanks
My pleasure. Thanks for watching.
NO AMERICANS INVOLVED IN THE GREAT ESCAPE!
Charles M. Shaw, a very well known criminal defense attorney in the St. Louis Missouri area (now deceased) was the American who Steve McQueen played. He wrote an unpublished book “Unguarded Moment” that documents his experiences in Stalag Luft III and his eventual successful escape from it. He was friends with Clark Gable due to them serving together in the 351st Bomb Group out of England. Shaw gave the book to Gable, who then gave it to a movie studio and it was used to help make the movie. Mr. Shaw became a criminal defense attorney because his experiences as a prisoner taught him how precious freedom is and he didn’t want others to experience prison. Shaw was never paid for his book, nor did he want to be, and he showed me proof of these things. I knew Charlie and considered him a friend.
Thanks ever so much for sharing.
I appreciate your excellent channel. The truth is much more interesting than the movie. Of course there were no Americans in the great escape. I guess the movie studio thought that adding Steve McQueen as one would increase interest. Mr. Shaw wasn’t one of the escapees in the great escape, but he attempted escape from Stalag III several times and succeeded on his fifth attempt. Some of the things depicted in the movie by Steve McQueen really were based on Mr. Shaw’s experiences however. He was “The Cooler King” due to being caught several times attempting escape.
God Bless the 50.
Steve McQueen's character was entirely fictitious, and did not represent anyone. There was only one American involved in the escape, and that was Major Johnnie Dodge.
It’s my understanding that originally at Stalag Luft III Americans shared the compound with the British. Originally. Major David Jones, USAAF, a member of The Doolittle Raiders, was the security officer for the escape until the Americans were put in their own compound.
That’s correct. Hence why no US prisoners escaped on motorbikes 😂
@@TheHistoryChap That’s Hollywood for you. In 1963, the big audiences were in the USA and it was believed that Americans wouldn’t see movies without Americans in it. Non-American filmmakers thought the same thing. There are many British films released in the postwar period that have an American character in it played by American actor usually a well-known or bankable star.
I suspect a reason why real names weren’t used in the movie was it easier and bankable to fictionalize the historical facts.
@@flyingwombat59 Well not in Ice cold in Alex, Battle of the River Platte , the wooden horse, Operation Mincemeat [ a recent movie] Dunkirk etc etc It was just post war and we knew what had happened
@@flyingwombat59 Read Paul Brickhill's book, he said the Americans were involved. It stands to reason that they were because Briton couldn't do anything right without the Americans helping. In fact, we won the war for Britain.
@@jacktattis the older movies mentioned were made for a British and Commonwealth audience. The Great Escape was made for an American and international audience.
Thank you for setting the record straight I had read thebook The Great Escape while still at school. I was disappointed that the film makers added a Motorcycle escape.
I enjoy your vidoes, Thank you for separating fact from fiction
Thanks for watching my video, glad you enjoyed it.
No one attempted to escape in a plane.
A unique motorcycle created for the 2011 Great Escape 2 - a charity motorcycle ride across Europe to commemorate the 50 RAF officers who met their demise after the so-called “Great Escape” from the German prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III in March 1944 - is to be sold in Bonhams auction of Collectors’ Motorcars and Motorcycles on Thursday, Dec. 1, at Mercedes Benz World, Weybridge, Surrey.
I’ve read the book, seen the movie, and met several people who were WW2 airmen. This was a good, detailed and interesting tale of a very difficult time.
Thanks for watching my video, glad you enjoyed it.
Thank you so much I really enjoyed listening to this, you packed in so much information in under half an hour
Thanks for your kind words.
Large difference, U.S. troops got paid while POW. The U.K. refused to pay POW, they HAD to escape to resume getting paid.
Thank you for adding your thoughts.
I had a good friend who was a prisoner at Stalag Luft 3 American section. I still have the diary he wrote while in prison and his Caterpillar membership notice. I named my place of business in his honor " Stalag 85" in the Florida Keys .
This was better than the movie! Well told and thank you.
My pleasure.
I used to serve a Welsh Survivor of the Great escape while I worked in Tesco on Anglesey North Wales ,his name was Ken Rees .He wrote a book which I got a copy from him Personally.He Signed it and put in a few words for my dad (a Birthday present for him) in reality he was due out next as the man in front was Caught .He lost many friends who where in the group of 50 who were executed .He was also recorded in a programme about the Great Escape that went back to Poland to th3 actual camp site.He had been Shot down early on in the war when his Wellington bomber was hit. He was a very Polite man .
Phil, thank you so much for sharing that story. I guess he had bad luck in being that close to escaping, but on the other hand, had he done so he might have been executed. Strange old world.
I knew Ken personally.
Very interesting, History Chap. Frank MacKenna's hunt for the Nazi executioners seems a separate story in itself. Perhaps you can do another on MacKenna and his efforts.
Thanks for watching and also for the idea about a separate video about Frank McKenna.
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
Loved ❤the movie as teenager. Thanks for a bit of history.
My pleasure.
Fantastic as usual Sir!
Despite the disclaimer at the end of the credits on Hogan's Heroes about it being entirely fictional, there were a few elements in the show based on the Luft Stalag III escape, such as the tunnel entrance under a hot stove. The dumping of dirt and sand from trouser legs was also used in at least one episode. As to the executions, I read in a book about the RAF that "it was only fair to point out that the Luftwaffe had nothing to do with it."
Mt Grandfather was the Master Forger for the Great Escape- he loved Hogans Heroes- said it wasnt too far from the Truth!! These Boys were wild. My GF was a Squadron Leader- they were Cowboys. Absolutely Brave. My GF was also Commander of the last POW camp in Scotland after he was repatriated. He was respected as a very Humane and Wise Commander who treated the POWs with Respect. and he certainly still had Luftwaffe friends after they were repatriated in 1947.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Brilliant, loved it.
Thank you.
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As was related in the book THE GREAT ESCAPE upon which the movie was based, the American and British prisoners shared the same compound for a long time before the Germans segregated them. The book mentions that the UK and US prisoners kept up contact afterwords by semaphore. In my home town of Altoona, PA (from which many of the men who assaulted Point Du Hoc on D-Day came), was one airman who had been an American at Stalag Luft III. A local television station interviewed him the night the movie was first broadcast in the US. I only remember one comment; the Allied prisoners in the camp were under strict orders to never use the word “escape” in conversation. They knew of the German eavesdropping.
Thanks for sharing that titbit about the word “escape “
I still have the motion picture soundtrack (vinyl record). But I made a cassette tape decades ago, and that's what I listen to. Great Elmer Bernstein score. Of course McQueen, Bronson, Coburn were all in 1960's "Magnificent Seven", also scored by Bernstein. John Sturges also directed both films.
Thanks for commenting
I once interviewed an ex-Stalag Lift III POW. He was transfered out of the camp before the Great Escape. He told me that one day in his new camp the Germans ordered all the POWs to parade. As they did this a lorry pulled up, and its tailgate was dropped to reveal a machine gun levelled at the them. The senior POW then told them (they were all RAF) the news about the deaths of the Great Escapers. The Germans were clearly expecting trouble, hence the machine gun.
How interesting. Thanks for taking the time to share.
That of the machine gun is NOT true. I interviewed dozens of ex.-p.o.w.'s of Stalag Luft 3 and NO ONE mentioned the machine gun.
@@TheDutchCommentator aTo quote him: 'If it hadn't been for the machine gun there would have been a riot.' Should stress he was not at SL III at the time of the incident.
It was a big mistake to break out so many men, imagine the death toll if all 200 had broken out☠ The sensible option having
completed the tunnel would be to break out 4 men most likely to make a home run and cover for them for as long as
possible. With no national hysteria their chances would have been vastly improved. After a week or two another 4 and so
on. By breaking out so many they were laying down the guantlet to a regime that, to put it mildly, was not noted
for its sportsmanlike behaviour. The Steve McQueen character in the film summed it up perfectly:
"Anybody that can carry a pitchfork will be out looking for you. Why they'll swoop down and scoop you up so fast
it'll make your head swim."
Of course they did. Alas with tragic consequences.
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
It was not possible because at the escape there was snow on the ground. To cover up the exit without leaving trace was not possible. Moreover the trapdoor of the tunnel was getting wobbly because of its intensive use. Also the Germans knew that "something big" was coming up.
Very bad idea to have so many men escape at the same time. Too many germans were put on alert to look for them. Things were turning ugly by 1944, the war was already lost by Germany. Hitler had already issued an order for commandos to be shot. It was a direct Hitler order for 50 of the recaptured POWs from The Great Escape to be shot.Three men got home from The Wooden Horse escape from Stalag Luft III, the first to escape from that camp. Only three got home from The Great Escape. My father was a POW in Stalag Luft III, and the first ( of the first 3 ) to reach neutral Sweden. Read his book Stolen Journey. RIP the fifty.
Roger Bushell's intent was to tie up as many of the enemy as possible in a hunt for the escapees, thus draining resources for the German war effort. Bushell realized, I think, that this was a relative pin prick, but it was the krieges way of fighting back. And once the Germans had a sniff that there was a tunnel somewhere, life would become unbearable for the POWs while the tunnel was hunted down.
Thank You So Very Much for making and posting this video. i Loved watching it.
My pleasure.
Great very informative video - thank you so much.
My pleasure. Thanks for watching.
As usual the facts are more telling than that depicted in the film The Great Escape. Once again Sir kudos for producing another excellent video. Kudos!
Thanks for your ongoing support.
This episode is riddled with errors.
List the errors!
@@stevemartin6144 list the errors!
Biggest puzzle for me is how, given the meticulous planning, the tunnel ended so short of the cover provided by the woods.
Can't answer that one.
Any deviation adds inches and over 100 yards that turns into feet It is not as if they had a theodolite to accurately measure it.
I loved your video....and I have seen that fabulous movie "The Great Escape" several times....I must say; so many famous actors came out of that movie....when the movie was made most of them were not famous ...this movie contributed to their fabulous careers!
Thanks for watching.
All these years and I’ve only just discovered the real story. It was a brilliant film but I don’t understand why they didn’t stick to the facts which are equally heroic and nail-bitingly dramatic. The intelligence, courage and ingenuity of the men behind the great escape are all mind boggling. Thanks for putting together this really interesting video.
Glad you found it interesting.
The movie was based on the book by Paul Brickhill which is partly fiction much like The Dam Busters which he also wrote . The screen play for the Great Escape was written to appeal to the American market hence the casting of so many Americans . I have read a few well written books on the Great Escape and are far better than Brickhill's book or the movie which is total rubbish .
As a student in a mid ranked colonial high school in the West Indies I read this book in the late 50's in my school library. I infer that it was therefor to be found in most school libraries in the British Commonwealth. No small achievement. I suspect the Colonial Office played a role. Thank you. Very well presented.
Many thanks.
98 tunnels! OMG!! the ground must have been like swiss cheese
The mind boggles!
A really great connection with one of my absolute favorite movies. Thanks, Chris.
My pleasure. Thank you for watching
I must be the only person whose teacher...dad..uncle..grandfather... mother...aunty wssnt in the tunnel
Very sad story well told..I will check more of your clips
Thanks for watching my video. If you haven't already, please subscribe to my channel so you don't miss future videos.
I’ve seen the movie and played the PC game that was inspired by the movie (with a rather more “happy” ending) but the real story was indeed far more interesting.
Thanks for watching.
Thie escape from Stalag luft 3 is quite ironic as it was also at the same camp that 3 prisoners escaped by using a wooden horse to dig a tunnel.
Thanks for sharing
Eric Williams and Mike Codner came up with the idea of The Wooden Horse escape.They escaped with Oliver Philpot. Eric Williams wrote the book The Wooden Horse. Oliver Philpot wrote the book Stolen Journey. They were the first escapers from Stalag Luft III. The escape kit - jacket,compass, ID pass- of Oliver Philpot were donated to The Imperial War museum in London UK.
Another great story from you and you told it with such enthusiasm.
One of my earlier videos.
The best account of the Great Escape i have ever heard.Thank you.
My pleasure, glad you enjoyed it.
Did you know where they got the name KLIM tins? 'KLIM' - is 'MILK' backwards.........
Well, I never knew that!
Thanks for sharing.
ruclips.net/user/TheHistoryChap
thanks never noticed that
I recall reading that the instruction to execute '50' was originally written as '50%' but the % was accidently cut, erased or made illegible. Can anyone confirm?
Not sure about that but I hope someone else can add.
Liked and subscribed. This is GREAT 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Thanks for your support
A dear family friend, Richard, was a contract worker on Wake Island when the Japanese invaded. His fellow workers were all butchered by the Japanese Soldiers, Richard asked to be sworn in and helped the Marine gun crews by stevedoring ammunition. He was taken to Japan and was force laboured in a coal mine until liberation in 1945.
wow, that's a fascinating (& sad) story. Thanks for sharing.
I just subscribed and yes I appreciate the truth in this matter. As a side I am related to Jenny Jerome from Randolph Churchhill fame.
I didn't know that they were shot. Shockingly evil. It brings tears to my eyes. The wives that would never see their husbands again and the kids that would never see their dads again. Man's inhumanity towards their fellow man.
Thanks for your support and for posting your comment.
What an amazing story these heroes lived. A great movie made of an even greater real life events. Thank you for giving us real story
My pleasure.
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
I loved the movie and this video was just as incredible in telling the story. Thank you!
My pleasure.
It was certainly different from what the film put out, but thank you for telling the truth.Kind regards
My pleasure, I hope that you enjoyed it.
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Fighting jack aka mad jack Churchill deserves a mention and credit as a 4 the man who made a home run after the Great Escape.
While you mentioned Dick Churchill you left out Jack Churchill a Scottish Col. Number 19 out of the tunnel. He and another man made it to the North coast but we're arrested by Gestapo 5 miles from the docks. They had planned to hop a cargo or fishing boat to Sweden. While the man with him was shot his name also shielded him as he was believed to be the nephew of Churchill. He was not but he was then sent to Dachua where he escaped again under the fence next to a drainage pipe.he was recaptured same day and sent to Austria after the D day landings.
Then in Nov. 1944 an allied bombing knocked out the power and he just walked out of the camp after hopping the simple wire fence. He walked 150 miles through Switzerland over the Alps into northern Italy until he met allied troops whom he was able to convince he was a Brittish officer. He deserves a mention in the story of the Great escape as the 4th home run.
Gregg, thanks for sharing all that extra information. I hope people enjoy reading it.
@@TheHistoryChap there's a lot more to mad jack. He went into battle playing bagpipes and wielding a sword and longbow. He holds the record for the last kill in combat history with a longbow.
1 reason he was cut from the movie the Great escape is the Steve McQueen character. The great escape was in Mar 1944 before the D day landings. There were no Americans in the camp.
Mad Jack would even go on to fight in is real in 1948 rescuing over 700 civilians captured by the Arab League.
He truly deserves credit as the 4th home run.
This was fantastic, thank you
Thanks for watching.
Just information that is so important. Thank you and kudos.
Thanks, & thanks for watching my vdeo.
I used to love to dig holes when I was a kid, so I can really appreciate what a feat that tunnel actually was. Just digging down the first 30 feet is an amazing accomplishment in of itself, but to then go over 100 yards as well? For nine months under close watch without ever getting caught? What an awesome accomplishment. And I find their determination a wonderful thing. It would have been so easy to have just given up and accepted your fate in a situation like that. But not those men. Not even for a moment it seems. This restores my faith in what we as human beings can accomplish when we really set our minds to it.
Thanks for watching
These reviews may be of interest. “The Great Escaper” ruclips.net/video/FwEXxXcxjMo/видео.html. And 50th anniversary of Operation Escape 200 in London at ruclips.net/video/3SxYmvhSCSw/видео.html. Phillip Taylor MBE
I sometimes wonder if Bushell would have called off the escape if he knew what would happen. In Simon Pearson's The Great Escaper, a 2013 biography of Roger Bushell, we learn he had an affair in Prague with the beautiful daughter of the family who took him and his fellow escaper in. She casually mentioned his presence to an old classmate who, unknown to her, had turned informer and the Gestapo arrested the two POWs and executed her and her family. Bushell was interrogated in Berlin for months afterwards and only brought to SL3 through special pleading from a Luftwaffe officer there who had a relative in the high command. No wonder Bushell cursed everything German and was ready to give them hell. I think he backed himself to get home regardless of being a marked man and knowing the risks, but if he had known the final toll I'm not sure he would've gone ahead.
I know one cannot expect strict historical accuracy in war films and grudgingly accept it. As such, the Great Escape has been a favourite since childhood. One thing that always annoys me from a national perspective is the seemingly deliberate plot to almost completely ignore the Canadian contribution to the war. The Longest Day is a great example. So is the Great Escape.
As the presenter admits in this video, much of the tunnel digging was done by Canadians. In fact the 'tunnel king' was a Canadian (not Charles Bronson). Ironically, the actual Canadian 'tunnel king' was head tech advisor on the film. So what does that say about our own people failing to correct the lack of mention of Canadians when we can't make it happen despite being involved? Of the 50 prisoners executed, the second largest nationality represented was the Canadians at 6 (first largest were approx 20 Brits). Yet there's no Canadians in the film nor are they mentioned. We're too busy watching the antics of Steve McQueen and Jim Garner etc. Don't get me wrong, Steve McQueen is always great as is Garner. They just should not have been there.
One of the most egregious parts of the film involves Australia. Specifically James Coburn attempting to play one. It's a crime that went unpunished until his death. Again, I'm a big Coburn fan. Coburn as an Aussie, though? Hard no! Generally, Americans cannot manage accents. It was even worse back then. Ironically, in the present, Australian actors play Americans all the time and do it well. But seriously, Coburn needed an honest assistant to look him in the eye and say, "Jim, no. It's not happening. Don't ever try that again." Obviously that didn't happen as he tried out his Aussie accent again in Dead Heat on a Merry Go Round a couple years later. It wasn't any better.
Some great observations.
I am always humbled when I look at the number of Canadians (& Newfoundlanders) who died in both world wars.
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Sorry but the inclusion of Americans was because of financial issues. Financing and American box office reasons , was it fair ? Maybe not , but how many of us would know about the great escape without the film? A lot less I would wager . A half truth many times inspires us to learn the whole truth.
@@philvanderlaan5942 Oh yeah, I know. It's all business. Film making is a gamble. Success requires certain criteria. Big American stars is part of that. Gregory Peck in Guns of Navarone, for example. Clint Eastwood in Where Eagles Dare.
I don't like the game, but, I understand it. However, with a minimum of effort, a WW2 story can be told that honours the Canadian commitment while still padding it with big US stars... or even use big Canadian stars at the time: Christopher Plummer in the Battle of Britain or Donald Sutherland in the Dirty Dozen (although he wasn't playing a Canadian).
Americans have even played Canadians like Cliff Robertson (and others) playing Canadians in the Devil's Brigade (albeit with a cheesy Irish accent for some reason).
@@lib556 in defense of Where Eagles dare having an American there was a key plot point of the book it was based on . Unless Alistair MacLean wrote the book with the understanding that it would immediately be turned into a movie , that could be plausible and fit both our viewpoints.
@@philvanderlaan5942 Apparently, McLean wrote the screenplay. The book came after. It's also a childhood favourite of mine. Since it is fictitious, I'm not too worried about some of the business decisions. The helicopter stuff irks though. 😁
This was a fascinating story! Many thanks!
My pleasure.
This was excellent ! Thank you !
My pleasure.
I had 2 cousins in Stalag 13 , of all places and 2 were in Colditz . all Captured in North AFRICA . 9th Division AIF
Thanks for sharing.