The great escape - Paul Brickhill

This is the compelling true story of how more than six hundred men in a German prisoner-of-war camp came together to achieve an extraordinary break-out. With only bare hands and the crudest of tools they dug tunnels, forged passports, faked weapons and tailored German uniforms to wear once they had escaped. The operation was as delicate and as deadly as a ticking bomb and was conducted under the noses of the increasingly suspicious guards. It demanded absolute commitment and nerves of steel from every man, every minute, every hour, every day, for more than a year.

When the night came, the actual escape itself was timed to the split second – but of course, not everything went according to plan . . .