SBS – Silent Warriors: The Authorised Wartime History

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McNab tells me he "didn't want it to sound like a History Channel documentary", and it is certainly as refreshingly informal and compellingly immediate as his other books.

A terrific book … It really is one of the most enjoyable histories I’ve read in many a year’ JAMES HOLLAND There were, however, lighter moments. Determined to train his men how to live off the land, Courtney invited an elderly eccentric called Jim Branson, the great-uncle of Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson, to show his men how to survive on plants. A week later, a "gnome-like old gentleman" arrived at Ardrossan on an ancient bicycle. The operation is recounted in a superbly detailed way. Nicols focuses on several key characters and the reader follows them through the battle. Excellent maps and photos. I only wish more had been told about operations in the Aegean and less on Mark Clark's attempted negotiation with the Vichy French to not resist the Operation Torch Allied landings (as the SBS played basically a transport role here). Good accounts of the role British subs played in the Med (a topic that gets little ink vis-a-vis the role of U-Boats in the North Atlantic) This is the story of the Special Boat Service in World War II. It spans 5 years from 1941 to 1945 and ranges across the Mediterranean to Normandy to South East Asia.

A hard man to replace, Wilson has been a model for SBS operators ever since: small-framed but deceptively strong, a team player but capable of independent action, an intelligent problem solver, eager to embrace new technology and as brave as a lion. Another prominent early SBS man was Major Gerald The first problem is the mission. The SBS has historically specialized in coastal reconnaissance. A vital task that is also done quietly. Successful recces involve slipping onto a coastline, assessing the beach, then slipping out unnoticed. A vital task, but not one that makes for terribly exiting stories (excluding those from WWII). The second problem is the vagueness of stories. Parker explains that SBS units deployed to certain regions (usually alongside other units like the SAS) but rarely provides mission details, often stating that they were “involved” with missions like intelligence gathering. Killing Rommel is a fictionalized story, based on real events of World War 2. Told in the style of a first person memoir, the story features a mission by the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) to assassinate the German general before his Panzer divisions could sweep into the Middle East oil fields.

Falconer continues to write books and screenplays. In 2017 the film Stratton, [4] based on the main character of his books, was released. It stars Dominic Cooper as Stratton as well as Connie Nielsen, Derek Jacobi and Thomas Kretschmann. The book is a fascinating and compelling insight into the men of the LRDG and much is revealed in the tale's telling of both their tactics and their character. It's evident that the author has really done his homework. What does he mean? He answers by telling me about the time he went incognito with Kevin Dutton to Broadmoor: "He [Kevin] was asking this serial rapist about whether he felt confined. And he replied: 'No, you're the one who's in prison, Doctor. I'm free in here' - pointing at his head. And then he looked at me and said: 'Ask him, he knows.' It's true some psychopaths can just spot one another." Although I'm not terribly keen to get on the wrong side of McNab, for obvious reasons, I do feel obliged to mention claims he only carries on with the anonymity stuff all these years on because it's become his trademark. SAUL DAVID was born in Monmouth in 1966 and educated at Ampleforth College and Edinburgh and Glasgow Universities (History MA and PhD). We discover recommendations for the best books to read in all sorts of places, whether it’s our bookworm friends, a Saturday morning spent browsing our favourite bookshop, the Richard & Judy Book Club, a new book-to-screen adaptation, or BookTok! The authors we find, the books we fall in love with and even the genres that we immerse ourselves in all have an impact and accompany us through life.Books introduce us to new worlds, exciting characters and possibilities that ignite our imagination. Whether it’s a dangerous Thriller that gets your heart racing, or a quirky debut with a distinct voice you just can’t put down; a great book can whisk you away somewhere new and stay with you for a lifetime. Britain’s SBS – or Special Boat Section – was the world’s first maritime special operations unit. Founded in the dark days of 1940, it started as a small and inexperienced outfit that leaned heavily on volunteers’ raw courage and boyish enthusiasm. When it comes to more detailed stories of operations or training (again, excluding WWII) the book frequently comes up short. Oddly, two of the most detailed stories in book, the disappearance of Commander Crabb, and the disaster at Fortuna Glacier, didn’t even involve the SBS. Partly as a result of the Coppists' report, the number of invasion beaches was raised from three to five. Nervous about giving the game away, the Americans chose not to accept the Coppists' offer to signpost their beaches ‑ Omaha and Utah ‑ on D-Day.

It would become one of the most effective fighting forces of the Second World War – and has served as a model for Special Forces ever since. The Special Boat Service is perhaps less well known than its special forces cousin the SAS. Both were formed due to the requirements of the second world war. In the SBS's case to sabotage ships and coastal installations and to survey beaches ahead of landings. Paddling flimsy canoes, and armed only with knives, pistols and a few sub-machine guns, this handful of brave and determined men operated deep behind enemy lines in the full knowledge that if caught they might be executed. Many were.Struggling against a strong tide and headwind, they took more than an hour to reach the outer harbour where they paddled in a prone position to avoid being spotted. A party was in progress and they were almost hit by a beer bottle thrown into the water.