Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
      • Playlists
    • Television
      • Shows by Decade
        • 1950s Television
        • 1960s Television
        • 1970s Television
        • 1980s Television
        • 1990s Television
      • Shows by Genre
        • Comedy
        • Drama
        • Kids TV
        • Variety
        • News & Sport
        • Advertisements
      • Shows by Country
        • UK TV
        • USA TV
        • Australia & NZ TV
        • Canada TV
        • Europe TV
        • Japan TV
      • Shows A to K
        • Shows A
        • Shows B
        • Shows C
        • Shows D
        • Shows E
        • Shows F
        • Shows G
        • Shows H
        • Shows I
        • Shows J
        • Shows K
      • Shows L to Z
        • Shows L
        • Shows M
        • Shows N
        • Shows O
        • Shows P
        • Shows Q
        • Shows R
        • Shows S
        • Shows T
        • Shows U
        • Shows V
        • Shows W
        • Shows X
        • Shows Y
        • Shows Z
      • Shows 0 to 9
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • 1950s Music
        • 1960s Music
        • 1970s Music
        • 1980s Music
        • 1990s Music
      • Music A to K
        • Music A
        • Music B
        • Music C
        • Music D
        • Music E
        • Music F
        • Music G
        • Music H
        • Music I
        • Music J
        • Music K
      • Music L to Z
        • Music L
        • Music M
        • Music N
        • Music O
        • Music P
        • Music Q
        • Music R
        • Music S
        • Music T
        • Music U
        • Music V
        • Music W
        • Music X
        • Music Y
        • Music Z
      • Music 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • 1950s Movies
        • 1960s Movies
        • 1970s Movies
        • 1980s Movies
        • 1990s Movies
      • Movies by Country
        • UK Movies
        • USA Movies
        • Australia & NZ Movies
        • Canada Movies
        • Europe Movies
        • Japan Movies
      • Movies A to K
        • Movies A
        • Movies B
        • Movies C
        • Movies D
        • Movies E
        • Movies F
        • Movies G
        • Movies H
        • Movies I
        • Movies J
        • Movies K
      • Movies L to Z
        • Movies L
        • Movies M
        • Movies N
        • Movies O
        • Movies P
        • Movies Q
        • Movies R
        • Movies S
        • Movies T
        • Movies U
        • Movies V
        • Movies W
        • Movies X
        • Movies Y
        • Movies Z
      • Movies 0 to 9
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Radio
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Movies»Movies by Decade»1960s Movies»Movies 1963
    Movies 1963 Movies G 6 Mins Read

    Great Escape, The (1963)

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    In March 1944, the German High Command has selected a group of their most escape-prone British, American and Canadian prisoners of war and placed them in a camp called Stalag Luft III (located in the province of Upper Silesia) which has been specifically designed to foil any attempts at escape.

    The commandant, Luftwaffe Colonel von Luger (Hannes Messemer), tells the Senior British Officer, Group Captain Ramsey (James Donald), “There will be no escapes from this camp”.

    But as soon as they arrive, the prisoners begin work on a series of tunnels under the direction of Squadron Leader Roger “Big X” Bartlett (Richard Attenborough), a master escape organiser.

    The plan is to break out  250 to 300 prisoners and have them scatter all over Germany so that massive numbers of German soldiers will be relegated to searching for escapees rather than being deployed at the front.

    Bartlett assigns the POWs to jobs according to their specialities, and for more than a year 600 prisoners – most of whom won’t be leaving – work toward the escape.

    greatescape_025

    Flight Lieutenant Robert Hendley (James Garner) is “the scrounger” who obtains needed materials.

    Australian Flying Officer Louis Sedgwick (James Coburn), “the manufacturer”, makes tools for digging and bellows for pumping air into the tunnels.

    Flight Lieutenants Danny Valinski (Charles Bronson) and William ‘Willie’ Dickes (John Leyton) are “the tunnel kings” in charge of the actual digging.

    Flight Lieutenant Andrew MacDonald (Gordon Jackson) acts as intelligence officer and Bartlett’s second-in-command.

    Royal Navy Lt. Commander Eric Ashley-Pitt (David McCallum) is in charge of dispersal (spreading the soil from the tunnels over the camp grounds undetected), Flight Lieutenant Griffith (Robert Desmond) acts as tailor, creating civilian outfits out of military uniforms and Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe (Donald Pleasence), in charge of forging German identity documents, almost goes blind from the strain on his eyes from all of his detailed work by candlelight (Hendley becomes Blythe’s guide).

    To ensure a reasonable chance of success, the prisoners work on a trio of tunnels all at once, naming them Tom, Dick and Harry.

    Meanwhile, USAAF Captain Virgil Hilts (SteveMcQueen) – the “Cooler King” – persists in badgering the guards by trying to escape again and again while displaying an uncooperative attitude.

    Hilts and RAF Flying Officer Archibald Ives (Angus Lennie) devise a plan to flee through a shorter tunnel near the edge of the camp, one that Bartlett agrees to, realising that he can’t prohibit all individual escape attempts if he hopes for his grand scheme to succeed.

    Hilts and Ives are promptly caught and punished and when Hilts is released from the ‘cooler’, Bartlett asks him to use his next escape attempt to reconnoitre the area around the camp. Hilts turns Bartlett down but helps the collective escape effort by becoming another ‘scrounger’.

    Meanwhile, Hendley becomes friendly with a German soldier named Werner (Robert Graf) and steals his ID documents in order to blackmail the hapless guard into securing materials necessary to the escape.

    As ‘Tom’ nears completion, Bartlett shuts down ‘Dick’ and ‘Harry’, but while the POWs celebrate the July Fourth holiday, the guards find ‘Tom’. It’s a major, morale-crushing setback.

    Ives, driven mad by isolation in the cooler, attempts to climb the camp’s barbed-wire fence in full view of the guards. He is killed as a result.

    Not to be deterred, the POWs set back to work on ‘Harry’.  Hilts finally agrees to do some reconnaissance outside the camp grounds, be recaptured, and report on his findings so that the group can make maps to guide escapees.

    The final section of the tunnel is finished on time but is 20 feet short of the woods which were meant to provide cover. Bartlett proceeds with the escape, and Hilts devises a system for signalling the prisoners so that they can leave the tunnel and sprint to the woods in between patrol sweeps.

    76 men manage to get away before the escape attempt is discovered, and the film then follows their attempts to get out of Germany.

    Hendley and Blythe steal a plane to fly over the Swiss border, but the engine fails and they crash. Hendley surrenders, but Blythe, now blind, doesn’t put his hands up and is shot dead. Bartlett is discovered at a busy railway station, but Ashely-Pitt overpowers the Gestapo agent and shoots him, only to be killed while attempting his own escape.

    In the commotion, Bartlett and MacDonald manage to escape but are captured getting on a bus when MacDonald mistakenly replies to a Gestapo agent in English. MacDonald is quickly arrested but Bartlett manages to escape, though he is soon recognised and arrested by SS Lieutenant Steinach (Karl-Otto Alberty).

    Hilts steals a German army motorcycle and is subsequently chased by a large contingent of German soldiers on an unforgettable fence-jumping ride.

    He passes over the German-Swiss border and makes it into the Neutral Zone, but gets entangled in barbed wire and is captured.

    Trucks containing captured POWs split in different directions with the first vehicle – carrying MacDonald, Cavendish, Haynes and others – stopping in a field where the drivers ask the captives to exit the truck to “stretch their legs”. They are then machine-gunned to death en masse.

    In total, 50 prisoners are killed and only Hendley and nine fellow captives are returned to the camp, where Kommandant Von Luger has been discharged.

    Only three POWs make it out of Nazi Germany: Danny and Willie row a boat to the Baltic coast and then stowaway on a Swedish vessel; Sedgwick pilfers a bicycle and hides on a freight train that takes him to France, where he is taken to Spain by the French Resistance.

    Hilts is brought back to the camp alone in handcuffs and ends up back in the cooler. USAAF Lt. Goff (Jud Taylor) grabs Hilts’ baseball and glove, tossing them his way when he walks by with the German guards. The guard locks Hilts in, and we hear him throwing his ball against the cell wall. The end.

    The Great Escape was the longest (173 minutes), most expensive, and biggest money-making POW film of all time.

    The movie combines superb casting, a great story and a top musical score with a memorable stunt-filled climax. Though the plot was similar to many other barbed-wire-tunnel-digging pictures, this was directed with greater gusto and offered some ingenious variations on the familiar theme.

    Sadly, the film is based on actual events during World War II and the majority of escaped Allied prisoners were actually executed by the Germans after their re-capture.

    Virgil Hilts, “The Cooler King”
    Steve McQueen
    Flight Lieutenant Robert Hendley, “The Scrounger”
    James Garner
    Squadron Leader Roger “Big X” Bartlett
    Richard Attenborough
    Flight Lieutenant Danny Valinski, “Tunnel King”
    Charles Bronson
    Flight Lieutenant William ‘Willie’ Dickes, “Tunneler”
    John Leyton
    Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe, “The Forger”
    Donald Pleasence
    Group Captain Ramsey, “The SBO”
    James Donald
    Flying Officer Louis Sedgwick, “Manufacturer”
    James Coburn
    Flight Lieutenant Andrew MacDonald, “Intelligence”
    Gordon Jackson
    Lt Commander Eric Ashley-Pitt, “Dispersal”
    David McCallum
    Flight Lieutenant Griffith, “Tailor”
    Robert Desmond
    Cavendish, “Surveyor”
    Nigel Stock
    Kommandant Von Luger
    Hannes Messemer
    Werner
    Robert Graf
    Flying Officer Archibald Ives, “The Mole”
    Angus Lennie

    Director
    John Sturges

    Video

    Related Posts

    • Guns of Navarone, The (1961)
      Guns of Navarone, The (1961)
      A stalwart band of Blighty's finest heroes risk life and limb during WWII to destroy huge German gun emplacements threatening…
    • Silent Playground (1963)
      Silent Playground (1963)
      Mentally ill young Simon Lacey (Roland Curram in the performance of his life) gives out his prescription barbiturates to children…
    • Yesterday Machine, The (1963)
      Yesterday Machine, The (1963)
      Young college student Howie Ellison (Jay Ramsey) is trying to fix his broken-down car in the middle of nowhere while…
    • Gambit (1966)
      Gambit (1966)
      This charming caper film teams Michael Caine with Shirley MacLaine as unlikely thieves in pursuit of a priceless sculpture. Caine…
    • Party's Over, The (1963)
      Party's Over, The (1963)
      Enigmatic young Melina (Louise Sorel) is the runaway daughter of an American magnate who has fallen in with a group…
    • V.I.P.s, The (1963)
      V.I.P.s, The (1963)
      Made principally to cash in on the Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor romance - the movie raced Cleopatra into the cinemas -…
    • Dr Strangelove (1963)
      Dr Strangelove (1963)
      "I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to…
    • Green Berets, The (1968)
      Green Berets, The (1968)
      One of the first Vietnam War action pictures presented anachronistic World War II-style heroics of the American Special Forces, featuring…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleGrease (1978)
    Next Article Greatest Show On Earth, The (1952)

    Comments are closed.

    A Labour of Love

    Nostalgia Central has been a labour of love for me since 1998.

    If you find the site informative or enjoyable, please consider a donation – no matter how small – to help me with the running costs of the site and ensure I can keep Nostalgia Central running for your entertainment and education.

    Thank you so much, and please enjoy your trip in the time machine!
    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    You May Also Like
    • Young Savages, The (1960)
      Shot on the streets of East Harlem, Frankenheimer’s […]
    • Deathsport (1978)
      In the year 3000, a thousand years after the Great Neutron Wars […]
    • Astro Boy
      1 9 6 3 – 1 9 6 6 (Japan) 51 x 30 minute episodes When his […]
    • Nine Inch Nails
      Despite being referred to as a ‘band’, Nine Inch Nails was […]
    • Doo-wop
      1955 saw the rise to prominence of several black vocal groups in […]
    • Traffic
      Traffic formed in 1967 (after Steve Winwood left The Spencer […]
    Comments Box SVG iconsUsed for the like, share, comment, and reaction icons

    OUR LATEST FACEBOOK POSTS

    60 years of Billy Liar: how the Bradford locations have changed today ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    60 years of Billy Liar: how the Bradford locations have changed today

    theb.fi

    Not everything is at it seems about the shooting locations for this classic story of a Yorkshire daydreamer.
    3 days ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 7
    • Shares: 2
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    “I’ll tell you what Charlie, there’s always been a Holroyd at Holroyd’s mill and by god there always will be” Love this film.

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-65006801 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Terry Hall: Coventry scooter ride-out pays tribute to singer

    www.bbc.co.uk

    Hundreds of people ride through Coventry on what would have been the singer's 64th birthday.
    1 week ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 12
    • Shares: 2
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    metro.co.uk/2023/03/13/the-whos-roger-daltrey-thinks-theres-no-point-releasing-an-album-18434779/ ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    The Who's Roger Daltrey thinks there's 'no point' releasing another album

    metro.co.uk

    Bad luck.
    1 week ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 1
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-64963359 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Sir Michael Caine's first Rolls Royce sells at Duxford for £120K

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The Italian Job actor hired a chauffeur to drive the 1968 Silver Shadow, with its doors still intact.
    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-64900348 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Mystic Meg: Astrologer dies aged 80

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The TV star, whose real name was Margaret Lake, was a well-known TV figure in the 1990s.
    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 1
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    Do you think she know it eas going to happen

    PlayTalk Teletext (1976) | BFI Replay

    Talk Teletext (1976) | BFI Replay ... See MoreSee Less

    3 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 8
    • Shares: 2
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Gary Rossington: Lynyrd Skynyrd's last founding member dies aged 71.
    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Gary Rossington: Lynyrd Skynyrd's last founding member dies aged 71

    www.bbc.co.uk

    Guitarist Gary Rossington had survived a 1977 air crash that killed several of his bandmates.
    3 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 2
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    What a talented man. Lucky enough to see original band in concert. BRILLIANT.

    Rest in peace Dickie Davies. An absolute giant of British sports broadcasting.

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Dickie Davies, World of Sport presenter, dies at 94

    www.theguardian.com

    The broadcaster became something of a cult figure after fronting the ITV show for 20 years
    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 4
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    Yes, one of the great presenters. R.I.P.

    For fans of the radio series Round The Horne (1965 - 1968) - starring the inimitable Kenneth Williams - there are several full episodes on Spotify. Some of the humour is still pretty close to the edge, even by modern standards. Bona! 

https://open.spotify.com/show/7DIM1wfGKwDis0uzsjHeP7?si=pG0_U0TjRKGzVDvrePs4vA

    For fans of the radio series "Round The Horne" (1965 - 1968) - starring the inimitable Kenneth Williams - there are several full episodes on Spotify. Some of the humour is still pretty "close to the edge", even by modern standards. Bona!

    open.spotify.com/show/7DIM1wfGKwDis0uzsjHeP7?si=pG0_U0TjRKGzVDvrePs4vA
    ... See MoreSee Less

    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 12
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 2

    Comment on Facebook

    For those interested, the complete “Jules and Sandy” is available on Audible…

    Bona to vada your jolly old eek. Lovely riah....

    RIP the beautiful Stella Stevens, who has died at the age of 84.

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Stella Stevens: Nutty Professor and Poseidon Adventure star dies at 84

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The co-star of Elvis Presley also worked in TV on series such as Murder She Wrote and Magnum, P.I.
    1 month ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 0
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Load more
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Tag Cloud
    Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games British Invasion Britpop Bubblegum music Canada Civil rights Cold War Computer games Crime Disc Jockeys Disco Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Folk rock Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen James Bond JFK Kraütrock Labels Madchester Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave New Zealand Nixon Northern Soul NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Politics Power Pop Prog rock Pub rock Punk Radio Reggae Rolling Stones Scotland Ska Ska revival Skiffle Soul music Space Race Sport Surf music Video games Vietnam war
    Copyright © 1998, 2023 Nostalgia Central. Run by volunteers. Funded by donations.
    • About Nostalgia Central
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.