The Colditz Story

The Colditz Story

Company type	Film
Industry	Film industry
Founded	1955
Headquarters	United Kingdom
Products	Film

The Colditz Story is a 1955 British film depicting the experiences of prisoners of war, featuring performances by John Mills and Eric Portman, under the direction of Guy Hamilton. The narrative is adapted from the 1952 autobiography of Pat Reid, a British Army officer held captive in Oflag IV-C, also known as Colditz Castle, during the Second World War, who served as the Escape Officer for British POWs.

Plot

During the Second World War, the Germans repurposed Colditz Castle as Oflag IV-C, a high-security detention center for Allied officers who had previously attempted to flee. The camp accommodated officers from Poland, Britain, the Netherlands, and France. Among the British detainees were Pat Reid and Colonel Richmond, the Senior British Officer. Despite explicit warnings from the Kommandant that escaping was strictly forbidden, Richmond intended to challenge this prohibition. The prisoners remained wary of Priem, the camp’s rigorous chief security officer.

Reid and several British officers endeavored to lift a manhole cover but were unsuccessful after a concurrent escape attempt by French prisoners alerted the guards. This incident heightened tensions between Reid and French officer La Tour due to insufficient collaboration. Subsequently, a British tunnel collapsed after intersecting with one excavated by Dutch officers. In response, Richmond suggested appointing an escape officer from each nationality to oversee coordinated efforts; these appointed officers would abstain from participating in actual escape attempts. Reid accepted this position on behalf of the British.

Richmond formulated an escape strategy based on impersonating a feldwebel nicknamed "Franz Josef," owing to his resemblance to the former Austrian emperor. The plan ultimately failed when German guards arrested all participants at a critical juncture. Harry Tyler, disguised as a German sentry, was shot while attempting to flee. Richmond, Reid, and others were confined in solitary cells amid suspicions of an informer within the camp.

After their release, Jimmy Winslow concealed himself among mattresses to exit the castle but was eventually apprehended. A Polish officer who collaborated with guards under Gestapo coercion was transferred following Richmond’s intervention despite disapproval from fellow prisoners.

While confined in solitary, Winslow witnessed La Tour successfully escaping over barbed wire during exercise. Richmond voiced his frustration that no British officer had yet managed a complete escape.

Reid’s comrade 'Mac' McGill proposed a new plan requiring Reid’s removal from the escape officer role so they could attempt an escape together. Richmond consented to this arrangement. McGill contended that previous failures resulted from escapees approaching from incorrect directions; their new approach would involve posing as German officers entering from the mess hall side during a revue attended by high-ranking German officials.

Richmond grew concerned over McGill’s conspicuous conduct and urged him to withdraw for a better chance at success. Devastated by this request, McGill later attempted to scale the fence in daylight and was fatally shot. Initially reluctant to continue, Reid was persuaded by Richmond that McGill’s sacrifice must not be in vain.

The escape unfolded during the revue: Reid, Winslow, Tyler, and Dutchman Lutyens managed to break out, although Tyler and Lutyens were soon reapprehended. Several days later, Richmond informed the prisoners that Reid and Winslow had successfully reached neutral Switzerland.

Cast

Details obtained from the BFI database.

• John Mills portraying Pat Reid
• Eric Portman as Colonel Richmond
• Frederick Valk in the role of Kommandant
• Denis Shaw playing Priem
• Lionel Jeffries as Harry Tyler
• Christopher Rhodes cast as Mac McGill
• Richard Wattis in the role of Richard Gordon
• Ian Carmichael portraying Robin Cartwright
• Bryan Forbes as Jimmy Winslow
• Theodore Bikel playing "Vandy", Machiel van den Heuvel
• Eugene Deckers as La Tour
• Anton Diffring in the role of Hauptmann Fischer
• Guido Lorraine as a Polish officer
• Witold Sikorski portraying a Polish Officer
• A. Blichewicz as Polish Officer
• B. Dolinski appearing as Polish Officer
• Leo Bieber cast as German Interpreter
• Rudolph Offenbach playing Dutch Colonel
• Keith Pyott as French colonel
• Arthur Butcher portraying Polish Colonel
• David Yates in the role of Dick
• Douglas Argent as British Officer
• Terence Brook playing British Officer
• Frank Coburn as British Officer
• Eric Corrie cast as British Officer
• John Corrie appearing as British Officer
• Anthony Faramus portraying British officer
• Eric Lander in the role of British Officer
• Kenneth Midwood cast as British Officer
• Peter Myers playing British Officer
• Claude Le Sache acting as French Interpreter
• Zygmunt Rewkowski appearing as Polish Interpreter
• Carl Duering in the role of Hauptmann Wagner
• Ludwik Lawiński portraying Franz Josef
• Peter Swanwick (credited as "Swannick") cast as Lutyens
• John Heller playing German Guard
• Jean Driant as French Orderly
• Jean Bacon portraying French Orderly
• Frederick Schiller appearing as German Soldier
• Guy Deghy cast as German Soldier

Production

Near the film’s conclusion, a theatrical revue is staged to conceal Reid and Winslow's breakout. This segment includes a spoof of the Will Fyffe tune "I Belong to Glasgow," renamed "I Belong to Colditz." Additionally, Guards officers played by Ian Carmichael and Richard Wattis perform a comedic act inspired by "Underneath the Arches."

Reception

In 1955, the movie achieved the position of fourth most popular film at the British box office and was labeled a "money maker" by Kinematograph Weekly. Within five months, it recovered its production expenses domestically.

Conversely, its performance in the American market fell short, a trend common among British war-themed films during that era.

A BBC television adaptation titled Colditz aired from 1972 to 1974, drawing from Reid's memoir. The series featured actors including David McCallum, Robert Wagner, and Jack Hedley.

See also

• List of British films of 1955