Mark Ryan

Maurice Mayne

Maurice 'Moggy' Mayne was a cricket-loving air gunner in the Second World War, with a pretty girlfriend back home in rural England. His turret was in a Bristol Beaufort and his pilot had to fly with almost suicidal bravery at giant German warships before releasing the torpedo. No wonder Moggy's first pilot cracked up and his second liked to drink. When he was shot down, Moggy miraculously survived – unlike his best friend Stan. Moggy was sent to Stalag Luft VIIIB, an infamous German POW camp near the Polish border, where he was badly treated. Fearing losing his beloved girlfriend Sylvia forever, and risking recapture and execution, he saw the chance to escape alone, thus beginning an epic journey through Nazi-occupied Germany. As the Gestapo shot other escaped British servicemen, Moggy Mayne came agonisingly close to lasting freedom. Instead, as the war neared its end, he had to face the horrors of the 'long march' west – and he felt his life slipping away. Would he ever see his Sylvia again?