Occupied Paris, 1942.
In a secluded office at Fort de Romainville prison, German military intelligence chief Captain Stephan von Gröning hears a knock at the door. In walks a rakish man who greets him with a charming smile from below a pencil moustache, and a “Guten Tag” in a strange accent. He’s here to interview for a job like no other.
The man doesn’t know it yet, but von Gröning is looking for a saboteur who can parachute into England and destroy the de Havilland factory where the infamous wooden Mosquito bomber is produced.
The buttoned-up German officer eyes the man up and down. He’s a long way from his idea of a soldier.
But as von Gröning starts listening to the candidate’s credentials, his eyes widen in perverse fascination. It’s clear the man’s prison uniform has been well earned: Nightclub thief. Safecracker. Confidence trickster. Explosives junkie. Fugitive.
Best of all, he’s British…
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24 Comments
It would be enjoyable to watch, but the commentary is over dramatised and annoying.
Why was this story secret for so long?
I think the British public knew about Eddie chapman fyi watch triple cross a 1966 movie and its all star cast
Its an AEROPLANE.
The MI-5 Interegation Practice Guy at 22:37 looks like Popeye The Sailor Man while he is squinting his left eye with the cigarette in his mouth!!! "…….when I eats me spinach, 'cause I'm Popeye The Sailor Man, AAArrrrrrrhhh!!!!!!!"⚓🚢🛳
Ich habe Angst am Holz Flugzeug!!!!!!!🪵🛩✈
If the allies had built only Mosquito variants for all of their aircraft, the war would have been over in two years.
Imagine the skies filled with Mosquitos that could outrun the NAZI fighters and drop as big a bomb load as a B25.
I wouldn't want to go head-to-head with those 20mm cannons either.
Cheaper, faster, heavier bomb load… Doesn't need fighter escort… Lots of good reasons to only build Mosquitos.
The wooden wonder weapon.
What a fabulous story. An excellent video ❤
Now we've the 'slowest' wooden knights with no intelligence — slowest trains in Europe — and rent the rain — shame we lost
Showing lots of misleading footage, for example of construction of the Wellington
This would make for a great movie.
In 1966 Triple Cross was made with Christopher Plummer on the life of Eddie Chapman
The ingenuity of the plan of Chapman and Maskelyne was outstanding. Truly audacious… not many people today would willingly return to occupied territory like Chapman did.
MR DARK SKIES HOW HAVE YOU NOT DONE A VIDEO ON THE F104 STARFIGHTER?
This straight up 007 stuff. Insane 👍
I’ve just done a search to locate Chapmans post war health farm. One suggestion states it was located ant Manor lodge Shenley (now a school) if so it is right next to Salisbury Hall where they developed the Mosquito and is now the DeHavilland Museum.. nice symmetry
Them dam Tommys! 😂
Superb, thank you!!!! 👏👏👏👏👏
This could be a very good script for an awesome movie if directed correctly . Triple Cross 1966 is old movie and many documents declassified after Chapman passed . Also a very good actor would be needed .
what sort of Hollywood opening was that???
Were not the Germans rather puzzled by the ongoing production of Mosquitos in spite of the alleged damage? Or did the Brits also curtail putting new Mosquitos in service for a long enough time to convince the Germans that there had truly been serious damage to the factory?
If you hadn't highlighted it in the thumbnail, I would never have spotted it!
German abwehr were plain incompetents or plain fools.
The Nazis did not lose the war, they just changed venue. Now we see them running Ukraine, and this time our government wants us to support nazis and the people are going along with it. Lessons of history eh…