Escape From Colditz

[mrs_emma_peel]

Escape From Colditz
Channel 4 ... Monday 13th August 2012 ... 9.00-10.35pm

Not to be confused with any other programmes of a similar name - this is a brand new documentary charting the incredible attempt to construct a glider and fly out of Colditz Castle ... The glider-project was superbly portrayed on screen by Jeremy Kemp - his character: ace-pilot Sq. Ldr. Tony Shaw becomes fanatically obsessed with the design and construction of the glider in the BBC TV series Colditz. Looking forward to this new documentary.
Emma

Colditz Castle, one of the most notorious prisoner of war camps in Nazi Germany, was supposed to be escape-proof. But in the dark days at the end of World War II, a group of British officers dreamt up the most audacious escape plan in history. In a secret workshop in an attic in the castle they constructed a two-man glider out of bed sheets and floorboards.

They were going to fly to freedom from the roof of the castle, but the war ended before they could put their plan into action, so no one knows if it would have worked. Now the Brits are back in Colditz to finish the job. Cambridge engineer Dr Hugh Hunt leads a crack team of aeronautics engineers and carpenters to rebuild the glider in the same attic using the same materials ...
to find out if they could, just possibly, have done it ...
Source: DigiGuide

[billy farmer]

I recorded the above Documentary last night and will watch it when i transfer it from VHS to DVD, i always find Documentaries about the Second World War interesting, i can remember watching a very interesting 3 part Documentary on Sky which had the same title as the above Documentary, earlier this year i watched all 28 episodes of the 1970's series Colditz on DVD (a great series).

[Steve Crook]

It was very good, especially with the connection with the uncle who was a prisoner in the castle & painted the false wall in the attic. Although I wouldn't have fancied crawling through the French tunnel under the chapel. They missed out a bit of that. It didn't start in the wine cellar, it started in a tower and they dug their way through to a shaft that let them down to the wine cellar

Steve

[billy farmer]

[INDENT] Escape From Colditz
Channel 4 ... Monday 13th August 2012 ... 9.00-10.35pm

I watched the above Documentary yesterday (while transferring it from VHS to DVD), and i found it to be a very interesting Documentary, it was a shame that the prisoners were never able to find out if the glider would have worked and flown two more prisoners to freedom, judging by the test at the end of the Documentary there is no doubt that had the prisoners been able to try out their escape plan before the Second World War ended

  Spoiler:

two more prisoners would have escaped from Colditz Castle

there were a lot of escapes (more than any other POW camp during the Second World War) from Colditz Castle during the Second World War.

[Edward G]

Saw this Billy and was rivetted. The fact that they managed to biuld the glider in the first place is astinishing.

[Steve Crook]

two more prisoners would have escaped from Colditz Castle

The intention was never to do a full escape with glider. Not to do a "home run" and get the prisoners back home. It was just to get word to the approaching allies that there were PoWs in the castle if the Germans started aggressively defending the castle and the town. Especially if regular German troops took it over as a defensive position. If the allies got as far as the town and saw strong defence from the castle then they probably would have started shelling and bombing it. It was always known that the glider wouldn't take anyone very far and that it would be obvious once it was launched. No prisoner trying to escape that way would last very long

Steve

[Edward G]

So why did they build it?

It was always known that the glider wouldn't take anyone very far and that it would be obvious once it was launched. No prisoner trying to escape that way would last very long

Steve

[Steve Crook]

So why did they build it?

For the reasons I carefully explained in the rest of the post that you only partially quoted

Steve

[billy farmer]