British Celebrities In The British Military, Post Them As You See Them.

[patches]

22 hours ago, Salvage Sailor said:

 

Tony Rolt, the British WWII hero who won Le Mans

 

Major Anthony Peter Roylance Rolt, MC & Bar, (16 October 1918 – 6 February 2008) - British racing driver, soldier and engineer.  At his death, he was the longest surviving participant of the first ever World Championship Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1950. He was one of the last pre-war winners remaining too – he won the 1939 British Empire Trophy, aged just 20 in 1939 – this was after he started his career in 1935, as a 16-year-old, in a 3-wheeler Morgan in speed trials.

 

 

He won the 1953 24 Hours of Le Mans and participated in three Formula One World Championship Grands Prix.

 

 

He entered the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and in 1939 received a commission in the Rifle Brigade. During the Second World War, Rolt was a lieutenant in the Rifle Brigade and in 1940 was sent to France, where he was in charge of a reconnaissance platoon. He was soon in the thick of the fighting and helped defend Calais. The men defending Calais held for three days trying to stop the 10th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht) from advancing, and in doing so delaying their attack on Dunkirk. He was captured and taken prisoner of war at the end of the battle for Calais, just before the Dunkirk evacuation. For his actions, he was awarded the Military Cross: his exploits included helping a wounded comrade while firing his Bren gun at the advancing German troops.

 

 

Rolt escaped seven times from German prisoner-of-war camps including Laufen (Oflag VII-C), Biberach (Oflag V-B), Posen (Stalag XXI-D), Warburg (Oflag VI-B) and Eichstätt (Oflag VII-B), before eventually being sent to the maximum security prison, Oflag IV-C in Colditz Castle on 14 July 1943. In one attempt to escape, he got within yards of the Swiss border before being recaptured – which accounted for his transfer to the East German fortress. For his determined escape attempts, Rolt was awarded a Bar to his Military Cross. In early 1944, he was one of the masterminds behind the audacious glider escape plan, but in spring 1945, the US army liberated the castle, obviating the need for it.  After the war Rolt resigned his commission with the rank of Major to develop advanced automotive technologies.

 

 

Jolly Good Show!

[patches]

 

 

Peter Butterworth Comedic Actor, was in a whole lot of Carry On movies from 1965 on.  Lieutenant in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, Fairey Albacore, shot down off the coast of Holland in 1940, his two crewmen were both killed, POW, he was escaped once from a  transit camp but was captured, sent to the famous Luft Stalg III, he was involved in the Wooden Horse operation. More on him later.

 

Here he is in one of my favorites, as a Roman Soldier in A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum.

He passed in 1979.

[patches]

On 4/15/2022 at 9:45 PM, patches said:

 

 

Peter Butterworth Comedic Actor, was in a whole lot of Carry On movies from 1965 on.  Lieutenant in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, Fairey Albacore, shot down off the coast of Holland in 1940, his two crewmen were both killed, POW, he was escaped once from a  transit camp but was captured, sent to the famous Luft Stalg III, he was involved in the Wooden Horse operation. More on him later.

 

Here he is in one of my favorites, as a Roman Soldier in A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum.

He passed in 1979.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8634761/Peter-Butterworth-rejected-playing-Wooden-Horse-fat.html

[earlymb]

 

RAF Flying Officer Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, Rome 1944.

[patches]

 

Michael Goodliffe Actor, there's one. in a lot of movies,  like The Wooden Horse, Von Ryan's Express etc etc Goodliffe in 1940, The 2nd Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, 2nd Lieutenant, was wounded and captured at Dunkirk, the government got the wrong info on him, listed him as Killed in Action, an Obit was even published on him back home. Dies tragically in 1976, depression mental illness and all that.

 

http://www.mgoodliffe.co.uk/killed.htm

 

A wartime painting of Goodliffe done by a Brother Officer in his POW Camp, Goodliffe playing Hamlet in a camp show.

[patches]

On 6/22/2022 at 11:04 PM, patches said:

 

Michael Goodliffe Actor, there's one. in a lot of movies,  like The Wooden Horse, Von Ryan's Express etc etc Goodliffe in 1940, The 2nd Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, 2nd Lieutenant, was wounded and captured at Dunkirk, the government got the wrong info on him, listed him as Killed in Action, an Obit was even published on him back home. Dies tragically in 1976, depression mental illness and all that.

 

http://www.mgoodliffe.co.uk/killed.htm

 

A wartime painting of Goodliffe done by a Brother Officer in his POW Camp, Goodliffe playing Hamlet in a camp show.

 

As Thomas Andrews in A Night To Remember, the 1958 classic on the Titanic, Andrews was the builder of the ship, this scene with Goodliffe is the one where he is going over the ships blue prints and drawings  in a room on the ship to jot down improvements and changes he makes  note of as he takes the maiden voyage of the ship, he dozes off and doesn't hear or feel the ship when it scrapes the iceberg apparently, and this still is the exact moment he wakes up, and immediately realizes the ship is stopped.

[patches]

Here's one I just discovered, George Gaynes American actor, most will know him from the Police Academy comedy movies. 

 

WWII, Free Dutch Navy seconded to the British Royal Navy, born George Jongejans  in Russian Finland of mixed ethnicity, Iya Grigorievna de Gay, a Russian artist/model was his mother, de Gay being their professional name, real family name was Ge, just Ge, her father was Russian actor Grigory Ge, . His father, Gerrit Jongejans, a Dutch  business man living in Finland. they all got the hell out of dodge when the Russian Civil War started, went to France.

 

George Gaynes,, more here on his interesting story. (As per most cases. can not find service photo of him).

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Gaynes#Early_life

 

 

[patches]

22 hours ago, patches said:

Here's one I just discovered, George Gaynes American actor, most will know him from the Police Academy comedy movies. 

 

WWII, Free Dutch Navy seconded to the British Royal Navy, born George Jongejans  in Russian Finland of mixed ethnicity, Iya Grigorievna de Gay, a Russian artist/model was his mother, de Gay being their professional name, real family name was Ge, just Ge, her father was Russian actor Grigory Ge, . His father, Gerrit Jongejans, a Dutch  business man living in Finland. they all got the hell out of dodge when the Russian Civil War started, went to France.

 

George Gaynes,, more here on his interesting story. (As per most cases. can not find service photo of him).

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Gaynes#Early_life

 

 

Here he is in the 1982 movie Tootsie