Fooling Hitler

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Charles
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Fooling Hitler

Post by Charles »

Aaaargh ! Missed it !

Someone rang me this morning to ask if I saw 'Fooling Hitler', a one-and-three-quarter-hour drama documentary on ITV4 about the Deception Planners and how they fed fake information to the Nazis about - among other things - the sites and timings of the D-Day landings. Among the cast according to the listings was one Peter Pacey as Dennis Wheatley.

Apparently it was first shown in 2004.

It was completely off my radar (hope you like the analogy !)

Has anyone seen it ? Even better, has anyone got a recording of it ?

All best as always !
Charles
Steve Whatley
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Post by Steve Whatley »

Drat! (Can I say 'drat' in the Library?) Looks like we missed an interesting programme there Charles. Why didn't the someone ring you before it was shown? Guess they didn't realise DW was going to make an 'appearance'.

If we could get hold of a recording, it might be a good item for inclusion on the schedule of the next Convention....
Stevie P
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Post by Stevie P »

Do channel 4 not do an equivalent of the BBC i player on the internet where you can catch up on missed programmes?
I'm not sure how long ago it was that the programme was shown.

Steve
Charles
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Post by Charles »

All is not lost ! :D :D :D

I struggled to find a replay online looking at all the usual websites, but an excellent colleague in the office tracked one down for me. I'm truly grateful on all our behalves to him.

To access it, click on the link below :-

http://noolmusic.com/google_videos/ww2_ ... r_full.php

I'm just off to watch it myself .... will look forward to comparing notes afterwards ...

All best !
Charles
Charles
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Post by Charles »

Well, I've watched it, and will certainly watch it again.

Hugely enjoyable, if inaccurate in significant places.

The whole thing is centered around David Strangeways for dramatic effect, and in the early stages the programme is very disparaging of DW, treating him as something of a buffoon.

It ignores the fact that he was 'recruited' because the papers he wrote as a civilian got an important and very influential following, and the fact that he was recruited before almost all of the others.

It doesn't mention his important role in a variety of crucial operations such as the deception planning for 'Torch' (the Allied invasion of North Africa), and somewhat surprisingly there is no mention of the famous deception plan involving 'Monty's Double'.

On the other hand it does capture beautifully the moment when DW persuades Johnny Bevan to re-write his paper on 'Bodyguard' - the most crucial plan of them all, which successfully fooled Hitler into thinking that the Normandy landings were a side-show - on the grounds that it was too long and too negative. Some of the dialogue here is taken almost verbatim from page 163 of The Deception Planners.

It may ridicule him a bit, but the fact is it still shows that DW was one of the tiny handful of people who knew what the Allies' real plans were, and that he had a hand in planning deceptions that quite literally changed the course of history.

It shows DW was far more than a novelist and it could have been far worse.

As I say, I'll watch it again, and enjoy it.

I agree it could be one for the 'Convention'.

All best !
Charles
Garry Holmes
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Post by Garry Holmes »

Just a little thought. Did anyone else see Harry Hill's TV Burp mercilessly sending up the prog shortly after it was originally shown, with shots of the other Nazi leaders fooling Hitler with whoopee cushions, false hands and other joke shop tricks?
Charles
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Post by Charles »

Unfortunately not, but it sounds marvellous !

Re the original 'Fooling Hitler' programme, the production company Tiger Aspect have very kindly given me permission to do a 'one-off' showing at the Convention, so we're proposing to slot in an early evening viewing.

I know many attendees haven't see it before. I hope those few that have won't mind seeing it again !

All best !
Charles
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