The Man Who Never Was facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Man Who Never Was
DVD cover
Directed by	Ronald Neame
Produced by	André Hakim
Screenplay by	Nigel Balchin
Starring	Clifton Webb Gloria Grahame Robert Flemyng Stephen Boyd
Music by	Alan Rawsthorne
Cinematography	Oswald Morris
Editing by	Peter Taylor
Studio	Sumar Film Productions
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	15 March 1956 (1956-03-15) (UK)
Running time	103 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

The Man Who Never Was is a 1956 British spy movie. It was produced by André Hakim and directed by Ronald Neame. The film stars Clifton Webb and Gloria Grahame.

This movie is based on a real-life event from World War II. It tells the story of Operation Mincemeat. This was a clever British plan in 1943. Its goal was to trick the Axis powers (Germany, Italy, Japan) during the war. The British wanted them to think the Allied invasion of Sicily would happen somewhere else.

The film was shown at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. The writer, Nigel Balchin, won an award for his screenplay.

The Story of the Film

In 1943, during World War II, a British naval officer named Ewen Montagu (Clifton Webb) comes up with a secret plan. He wants to trick the Nazis about where the Allies will attack next. The Allies were countries fighting against the Axis powers.

Montagu's idea is to put a dead body into the sea. This body would have a fake identity. It would look like a plane crash victim. The body would wash ashore in Spain, where German spies were active.

The fake identity would be a Royal Marine officer named Major William Martin. He would carry fake secret documents. These papers would say the Allies planned to invade Greece. The real target was Sicily, an island in Italy.

Montagu gets approval for his plan, called Operation Mincemeat. Even Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister, agrees to it.

They find a body of a man who died from pneumonia. This makes it look like he drowned. The body is put in a special container with dry ice. Then, it is taken by a submarine.

The body is released off the coast of Spain. It washes ashore just as planned. Spanish officials find the body. German and British spies watch closely.

The briefcase with the fake documents is sent to London. Experts confirm that the main letter was opened, photographed, and then sealed again. This means the Germans fell for the trick.

Adolf Hitler, the leader of Germany, believes the documents are real. However, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, who leads German intelligence, is not so sure.

The Germans send an Irish spy, Patrick O'Reilly (Stephen Boyd), to London. He is to investigate "Major Martin." O'Reilly finds Lucy Sherwood (Gloria Grahame), who is Martin's fake "fiancée." She lives with Montagu's assistant, Pam (Josephine Griffin).

O'Reilly pretends to be Martin's old friend. He visits Lucy on the day she learns her real boyfriend died in the war. Her sadness convinces O'Reilly that she is truly upset.

As a final test, O'Reilly gives Lucy his address. He tells her to contact him if she needs help. He then sends a message to his German contacts. He says if he doesn't send another message in an hour, he has been arrested.

Montagu and police officers are on their way to arrest O'Reilly. But Montagu realizes O'Reilly's trick. He convinces the police to let O'Reilly go.

When O'Reilly is not arrested, he sends a message: "Martin genuine!" This means he believes the fake story. Because of this, the Germans move most of their troops from Sicily to Greece. This helps the Allied invasion of Sicily succeed easily.

After the war, Montagu receives many awards for his service. He visits Spain and leaves one of his medals at the grave of "Major Martin." This is for "the man who never was."

Who Was in the Movie?

Is the Story True?

Further information: Operation Mincemeat

The film is based on a real event called Operation Mincemeat. In this operation, a dead body was dressed up as "Major William Martin, R.M." It was then placed in the sea near Huelva, Spain.

Attached to the body was a briefcase. It held fake letters. These letters falsely said the Allies would attack Sardinia and Greece. The real target was Sicily.

When the body was found, Spanish spies shared copies of the papers with German spies. The Germans then sent them to their military leaders. The trick worked so well that the Germans still believed the fake plan weeks after the real invasion of Sicily began.

The true identity of "the man who never was" has been a mystery for a long time. Some people say "Major William Martin" was a homeless man from Wales named Glyndwr Michael.

However, in 2002, authors John and Noreen Steele wrote a book. They suggested the body was actually a sailor named John Melville. He was one of the people who died when a ship called HMS Dasher exploded.

In 2004, the Royal Navy reportedly confirmed this claim. A special service was held for Melville. He was remembered as someone whose "memory lives on in the film The Man Who Never Was."

But another researcher, Professor Denis Smyth, argues that Glyndwr Michael was indeed the real "Major Martin." He found secret documents written by Ewen Montagu himself that support this.

Even though the identity of Major Martin is debated, the film's script tried to stay close to the truth. However, some parts of the movie were made up for drama.

For example, the part about the Irish spy, O'Reilly, never happened. The British secret service, MI5, actually controlled German spies in the UK. This was a secret at the time the film was made.

Ewen Montagu, the real person the film is about, said he was happy with the made-up parts. He felt they could have happened, even if they didn't.

During the filming, the real Ewen Montagu even had a small role in the movie. He played an Air Vice Marshal. This character had doubts about the plan. It was a unique moment to see the real Montagu acting with the actor playing him.

Making the Movie

The movie cost about £212,274 to make. This amount did not include the money paid for the story rights or to the main actors.

A Funny Radio Show

The BBC radio comedy show, The Goon Show, made a funny version of The Man Who Never Was. This was based on the book, before the movie came out.

The show's creators, Spike Milligan and Larry Stephens, wrote different versions. One was broadcast in 1953, and later, full-length versions were aired in 1956 and 1958.

Interestingly, Peter Sellers, one of the Goons, provided the voice of Winston Churchill in the film. However, the Churchill character did not appear in the Goon Show version.

More to Explore

• Operation Mincemeat (film)