English Channel latter part of the 19th century when Captain Matthew Webb made the first observed and unassisted swim across the Strait of Dover, swimming from England to France on 24–25 August 1875 in 21 hours 45 minutes. In 1927, at a time when fewer than ten swimmers (including the first woman, Gertrude Ederle in 1926) had managed to emulate the feat and many dubious claims were being made, the Channel Swimming Association (CSA) was founded to authenticate and ratify swimmers' claims to have swum the Channel and to verify crossing times. The CSA was dissolved in 1999 and was succeeded by
The Man Who Never Was of the proposed plan. It was described by Ben Macintyre in "Operation Mincemeat" as a "surreal" moment when the real Montagu addressed his fictional persona, played by Webb. The film earned an estimated $1.1 million in North American rentals in 1956. The "Radio Times" wrote, "the picture may appear overly reverent by today's standards. But this is still a crucial wartime spy tale that is well worth watching." The BBC's popular radio comedy show, "The Goon Show", made a send-up of the story of "The Man Who Never Was" (based on the book) and incorporated most of the regular "Goon