Peter Butterworth beyond the camp grounds. He was subsequently sent to Stalag Luft III, near Sagan, the scene of "The Great Escape". Whilst at Stalag Luft III he met Talbot Rothwell, who later went on to write many of the Carry On films in which Butterworth was to star. Rothwell and Butterworth formed a duet and sang in the camp shows, where booing and catcalls covered the sounds of an escape tunnel being dug by other prisoners. Butterworth was one of the vaulters covering for the escapers during the escape portrayed by the book and film "The Wooden Horse". Butterworth later auditioned
Ray Rayner down over France April 3, 1943. During years as a POW in Stalag Luft III, he helped prepare the escape depicted in the film "The Great Escape"—though he was transferred to another camp before the escape took place. It was during his time as a POW that he discovered his talent for entertaining, namely through his fellow prisoners and his German captors. He was interviewed in a documentary titled Stalag Luft III, produced by RDR Productions of Glenview, Illinois. After briefly working in radio in Grand Rapids, Michigan on WOOD Radio as well as New York and Dayton, Ohio radio