Churchill's Great Escapes: Seven Incredible Escapes Made by WWII Heroes

by Damien Lewis

From #1 internationally bestselling author, war reporter, and award-winning historian Damien Lewis, the thrillingly-told stories of the seven most daring WWII escapes executed by the legendary British fighting force known as the Special Air Force or SAS, a unit that specialized in raids and answered to Churchill.


No food. No water. Out of ammo. Hunted and on the run. The dreaded certainty of discovery looming between recapture and safe haven. What would you do? Give up? For the seven heroes of Churchill’s Great Escapes the answer was keep moving against all odds. These are the extraordinary stories of the bravery and endurance of the men of SAS, legendary pioneers of escape and evasion who, through the darkest of days and nights of World War II, endeavored and succeeded in slipping through the clutches of the enemy.

From the earliest years of the war to its explosive closing stages readers are plunged into the dark heart of Mussolini’s Fascist Italy, held captive in a heavily fortified POW camp in Greece and in the coastal fortress of Tobruk in Occupied Libya. Whether scaling the treacherous war-torn Vosges Mountains in France or crossing one hundred and fifty miles of sun-blasted Sahara Desert crawling with General Ernst Rommel’s fearsome Afrika Korps, it took cunning, incredible courage and die-hard fearlessness to pull off these exhilarating escapes. Based upon in-the-moment personal diaries and notebooks, mission reports, debriefings and letters, Damien Lewis recounts the most terrifying and adrenaline-fueled days and nights in the lives of men for whom survival was the only option. We follow every desperate step, facing unknowable threats and death around every corner, and share in the breathtaking endurance that brought them freedom against the most formidable of the seemingly invincible Nazi war machine.

An authentically gripping roller-coaster ride , Churchill’s Great Escapes extols the uncommon bravery of these heroes who epitomize the esprit de corps and daring of Britain’s finest elite fighting forces. It is true-life white-knuckle adventure of the highest caliber.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Military Fiction, Military History, Audiobook, War, World War II

352 pages, Hardcover

Published April 26, 2022

About the author

Damien Lewis became an author largely by accident, when a British publisher asked him if he'd be willing to turn a TV documentary he was working on into a book. That film was shot in the Sudan war zone, and told the story of how Arab tribes seized black African slaves in horrific slave raids. Lewis had been to the Sudan war zone dozens of times over the past decade, reporting on that conflict for the BBC, Channel 4 and US and European broadcasters.

His slavery documentary told the story of a young girl from the Nuba tribe, seized in a raid and sold into slavery in Khartoum, Sudan's capital city, and of her epic escape. The publisher asked Lewis if the Nuba girl would be willing to write her life story as a book, with his help as co-author. The book that they co-wrote was called 'Slave', and it was published to great acclaim, becoming a number one bestseller and being translated into some 30 lanc guages worldwide. It won several awards and has been made into a feature film.

Over the preceding fifteen years Lewis had reported from many war, conflict and disaster zones – including Sudan, Sierra Leone, Eritrea, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Iraq, Syria, Burma, Afghanistan and the Balkans (see Author's Gallery). He (and his film crew) traveled into such areas with aid workers, the British or allied military, UN forces or local military groups, or very much under their own steam. He reported on the horror and human impact of war, as well as the drama of conflict itself. Often, he worked alone. Often, he filmed his own material over extended periods of time living in the war or conflict zone.

During a decade spent reporting from around the world Lewis lived in deserts, rainforests, jungles and chaotic third world cities. In his work and travels he met and interviewed people smugglers, diamond miners, Catholic priests 'gone native', desert nomads, un-contacted tribes, aid workers, bush pilots, arms dealers, genocidal leaders, peacekeepers, game wardens, slum kids, world presidents, heroin traffickers, rebel warlords, child prostitutes, Islamist terrorists, Hindu holy men, mercenaries, bush doctors, soldiers, commanders and spies. He was injured, and was hospitalised with bizarre tropical diseases – including flesh-eating bacteria, worms that burrow through the skin and septicemia – but survived all that and continued to report.

It was only natural that having seen so much of global conflict he would be drawn to stories of war, terrorism, espionage and the often dark causes behind such conflicts when he started writing books. Having written a number of true stories, in 2006 he was chosen as one of the 'nation's 20 favourite authors' and wrote his first fiction, Desert Claw, for the British Government's Quick Read initiative. Desert Claw tells of a group of ex-Special Forces soldiers sent into Iraq to retrieve a looted Van Gogh painting, with a savage twist to the tale. That fiction was followed up by Cobra Gold, an equally compelling tale of global drama and intrigue and shadowy betrayal.

Damien Lewis's work, books and films have won the Index on Censorship (UK), CECRA (Spain), Project Censored (US), Commonwealth Relations (UK), Discovery-NHK BANFF (Canada), Rory Peck (UK), BBC One World (UK), BBC-WWF Wildscreen (UK), International Peace Prize (US), Elle Magazine Grande Prix (US), Victor Gollanz (Germany), and BBC One World (UK) Awards. He is a Fellow of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Reviews

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

When talking about the Special Air Service it's hard to avoid superlatives. And the crimes of the Third Reich are so many and so abhorrent that an order issued by Hitler to summarily execute any captured member of the SAS may not seem like much in the context 6,000,000 murdered Jews.

But that order perhaps more than anything else illustrates the price the SAS exacted from their foes. They were the ghosts that every German soldier feared. In fact they were so feared that there are cases where units of the German army avoided engaging the SAS despite vastly outnumbering them.

This book doesn't focus on their operations, their daring raids, rather it paints a more human picture of soldiers escaping capture and through determination and occasionally stubbornness returning to friendly lines.

It's entertaining and informative. The perfect combination.

[Jared Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book ✌ read the hardcopy but can't find it on here 😂

[Rabspur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a few Damien Lewis Books in my Library and this is the first one I have managed to read it, the book contains seven separate true stories of members of the SAS escaping from the clutches of the Nazis, all the stories were intriguing describing how the SAS through adversity managed to make their escapes, they were all highly trained and Brave, lots of narrow escapes. I have SAS great escapes two, which I shall be reading very soon and there is a SAS great escapes three which has just been released a book I will be adding to my collection. Highly recommended great read for all Book enthusiasts.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

As one comes to expect with Lewis a rip roaring retelling of daring escapes from the Nazis. It also chronicles the establishment of the SAS and is quite an interesting counterpart to ‘Rogue Heroes’. I had feared that 7 stories from the same era might be a big repetitive but they were far from it. Each character was larger than life in his own way and each journey was an extraordinary chronicle of determination in the face of enormous adversity. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Synclaire Wysinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made WW2 WAAAY more interesting for me. At first, I thought the Third Reich’s crimes were as crazy as It got. Now I’ve read this and plenty of historical fiction and just wandering how much insane stuff can be in one war? Aside from that, this book was awesome and always kept me wandering ‘what’s happening next?’ Or ‘what’s he gonna do now?’. In conclusion, I was satisfied.
P.S., what is with Patterson’s random crushes in the beginning?

[Mary Montgomery H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

These escapes are testimonies of the miraculous strength and resilious of extraordinary men determined to overcome evil. Well worth a read or listen. The reason for the 3-star rating is certainly not the content but only the delivery. There are certain nonfiction authors gifted with their method of narration that is captivating and lyrical. I didn't feel this way about "Seven Great Escapes..." Nevertheless these are still incredible stories of perseverance and heroics that should be celebrated..

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book by Damien Lewis, definitely worth the time to read

[Neil Lacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional human feats and the will to carry on. Simple language used, enjoyable read.

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good content, interesting stories but avoid the audiobook. The narrator is dull, accents are poor and had to speed it up just to make it tolerable.

[Medusa · Rating 4 out of 5]

For reasons that should be obvious in a maggat usa 2.0, I’m focusing on books about those who resist and defeat fascism. The stories of these men demonstrate resilience, toughness, and grit in the face of a powerful foe who could wear, at times, a genial or banal face, sometimes even showing kindness, while at the same time wanting to exterminate those opposed to their power and control. In that sense this is an excellent book. I do think at times it goes a bit easy on Germans and Italians and French collaborators who were ‘only following orders’ and that the myth of ‘clean Germans’ who fought for hitler’s Germany, serving hitler’s goals and agenda, and unleashing the most murderous war in history is unfortunately present here. That almost makes me rate this at 3 stars, but the stories of these SAS men are too valuable and too well told for that, so I’ll call it 3.5.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stirring accounts of bravery, persistence, and resilience mark each narrative in this rousing piece of non-fiction. The determination of the protagonist in each chapter (each chapter recounts a true-life story of escape and evasion from enemy forces) highlights just how elite this unit was. Some of them endured unbelievable suffering - some multiple times! And all of them exhibited a deeply rooted commitment to their country and the cause of freedom. Fun, yet thought-provoking, read.

[Mr Michael R Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible Feats By Extraordinary People.

Thoroughly researched and with access to the Regiments War Diaries each of these seven escapes could be a book in their own right.
The individual stories grip you from the outset, the detail of operations and characters is extraordinary.
Hugely recommended.

[Jon Athan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book that details accounts, records and Information to bring to life the events, people and their stories.

A highly enjoyable, inspiring and informative book that wastes no time at getting straight into the incredible yet true stories of many heroic people.

[David Lillico · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 really, great stories, I did the audio book and kept getting distracted by the sound quality changing so you could tell every session of recording. A bit too much repititiob about back ground, I guess you're not supposed to listen to each chapter back to back

[Frank BC · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable read which was very different to my usual books. I would recommend if you have an interest in war time of the past and/or the armed services and how they operate. Some incredibly interesting stories about war heroes and their heroic escapes!

[Ivan Valev · Rating 5 out of 5]

So rewarding

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was only able to read one of the stories while at a library … but well researched and written.

[bryan fothergill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Damien Lewis has done it again.
A fascinating read detailing the missions and escapes of men who gave everything without thought to wreak havoc on the German war machine

[Brian Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another excellent and interesting read about SAS in WW2 from DL. Incredible bravery and ingenuity as individuals from the special forces escape from AXIS forces. Well told as ever.

[Damon JONES · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good read, found like 6 spelling mistakes though bit weird

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this , on my ISO Ralph
It was the book though I read )

[Cellmcpherson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sad escapes .

[Annebel Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing. I couldn't put it down, just like all the other works of Damien Lewis. The stories seemed mythical but are all 100% true, pure, amazing history.

[Gareth Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable enough but frustrating that some material is found (at least in part) in his other books.

[Marike Stander · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly didn’t think bravery like this existed! Loved reading this book. It was a rollercoaster of sad, happy, inspired, shocked, and amazed.

[Simon Crunden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly readable and exciting account of 7 word war ii escapes. Really helps to shine a light on the reality of SOE/ SAS style operations and risks in that war. At times reads like a thriller.

[Harry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy read.

[Will Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

[Russell Wardle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting

[Marcus Mckeag · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing collection of short stories.