Stalag Luft III Williams, the book "Stolen Journey" by Philpot and the 1950 film "The Wooden Horse". There had been escape attempts (one of which inspired the film "The Wooden Horse") and many tunnels had been started and discovered before completion. In March 1943, Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Roger Bushell conceived a plan for a mass escape from the North Compound, which took place on the night of 24/25 March 1944. He was being held with the other British and Commonwealth airmen and he was in command of the Escape Committee that managed all escape opportunities from the north compound. Falling back
Tom Leigh (RAF officer) I, in Barth. At Stalag Luft I he met Roger Bushell during various escape attempts, Bushell later masterminded the Great Escape. Leigh, Edgar Humphreys, Jack Grisman, Leslie George Bull and several other prisoners were part of the group with Bushell who were sent to Stalag Luft III in the province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan (now Żagań in Poland). On 2 August 1942, Leigh was promoted to flying officer, and exactly one year later he was promoted again to flight lieutenant. Allocated an escape queue position in the 40s he was one of the 76 men who