Original subtitles

I wanted to meet a member of the unit

who so infuriated Hitler.

I have a nephew, about his age.

Bang! Bang!

Any one of you who surrenders is to be executed.

So this was a kind of a Last Supper.

Bill Stirling ordered me not to let you go

anywhere near the front line.

Welcome to the SAS.

I gave you one extra day of life.

Since you're not SAS, I guess you can give this one to me.

I don't think so.

First-ever engagement of 2SAS...

Speed up! Get out of the way!

..will be one of the most important engagements of the war

in Europe so far.

Fighting beside some of the best soldiers on Earth.

Come on!

Yeah!

Go!

Reg! Matteo!

He's got no chance, Reg.

Raus!

HE EXHALES HEAVILY

HE EXHALES HEAVILY

HE EXHALES HEAVILY

HE SINGS SOFTLY TO SELF

MAN SPEAKS IN GERMAN

MAN SPEAKS IN GERMAN

I know the last words of a lot of people are rather heroic,

but, um...

Look, never mind. All right? MAN SPEAKS IN GERMAN

Fuck you.

And your mothers, your fathers, and your fucking boyfriends,

they can all fuck off.

All right, look, just give me another swig of that schnapps.

MAN SPEAKS IN GERMAN

SOLDIER SHOUTS IN GERMAN

SHOUTING AND GUNSHOTS

THEY SHOUT IN GERMAN

THEY TALK IN GERMAN

TALK IN GERMAN

TALK IN GERMAN

VOICES GROW QUIETER

CHURCH BELLS TOLL IN DISTANCE

CHURCH BELLS TOLL LOUDLY

Squad.

Squad. ..tion!

Stand easy.

Where is Cooper?

Hospital, sir.

Concussion, broken rib.

Right.

Here are the accounts from our recent exchange

in the defence of the town of Termoli.

21 men of the Special Air Service lost their lives

during our successful engagement with the enemy.

Many have sustained injuries.

McLachlean critically.

Others are missing or taken prisoner.

We who are gathered here are what remains of us.

Those taken prisoner will be dead now.

Dead by the rising sun,

blindfolded and shot.

Because our enemy is too afraid of us to let us live.

So now we are indeed liberated to be the dogs we are.

Paddy.

We're here to bury comrades.

We will now share the privilege...

..of reading the names of those who fell.

Parachutist G Cassidy.

Lance Corporal L Crisp.

Parachutist S Davison.

Parachutist A Duncan.

Lance Corporal JW Faversham.

HE CLEARS HIS THROAT Sergeant JS Findlay.

Lance Corporal CM Grant.

Parachutist E Grimster.

Parachutist WH Hearne.

HE BREATHES HEAVILY

No. No, I can't.

Sergeant JB Henderson.

Lance Corporal JO Hodgkinson.

Parachutist WM McAlpine.

Good man.

Lance Corporal J McDonald.

Sergeant B McNinch.

Sergeant O'Dowd.

Parachutist Pocock.

Lance Corporal Scherzinger.

Silifants.

Skinner.

Stewart-Johnson.

Wilson.

And also Sergeant Seekings.

Sergeant Reginald Seekings.

Don't you dare put your name on that list, Reg.

Staff Sergeant Jim Almonds.

Riley.

Cooper.

Kershaw.

Pull yourself together, will you, Reg?

Paddy Mayne. Show some respect, lad.

Say my name again. Major Paddy Mayne.

Skinner.

Seekings.

Riley.

Cooper.

Fraser.

Kershaw.

Say my name again. Mayne.

Put me at the front.

Put me in first. Put me where I won't last a day.

Every night lasts ten years. I can't live that long.

Now you're making sense.

Send me with a bayonet, Paddy.

Here we see the final stages of a process, men.

The living soldier who wants to be on that list.

Now you're truly unstoppable.

I hereby promote you to the rank of Staff Sergeant.

All those in favour say aye.

We are not human any more, Paddy.

Soldier's Bible.

And you can keep it, since I know it by heart.

Now piss off while we sing a hymn.

Go.

Abide With Me, lads.

SOLDIERS CONTINUE SINGING

HE GROANS

West.

South.

Sunshine, decent boots.

And very good company.

Everything a Boy Scout could possibly need, eh?

Ah...

320 miles.

Piece of cake.

I thought I'd give you time to pay your respects.

But now I'm afraid it really is time for you to go.

Who packed my things?

A nurse tending to some of our wounded.

My driver will take you back to Bagnara.

Eve, you really don't have a choice.

You can't stay here.

Last night, I used a transceiver to radio London.

I spoke to my editor. Your editor?

Who had spoken to President de Gaulle,

who had recently spoken to the Minister for War,

who had spoken to General Montgomery,

who is the Supreme Commander of all British forces.

Yes, I know who General Montgomery is.

What I don't think you know is that he's on his way to Termoli

right now to congratulate the SAS on resisting the German advance.

I had London send a coded transcript to confirm de Gaulle's instruction

to me to stay in Termoli, to speak with the important visitor

as official representative of the Free French forces in Italy.

What Free French forces?

The ones that will be sent to join you in preparation

for the liberation of France.

I understand Lieutenant General Dempsey is

going to tell you all about it when he gets here.

He's coming along with Montgomery.

Classified material.

I will burn it.

Change of plan, unforeseen.

Return to your duties.

Lieutenant Colonel Stirling, I am not leaving the front line

until we reach Paris, where I will buy you a bottle of champagne.

HE GROANS

HE PANTS

HE SNIFFS

HE RETCHES

PLATE CLANGS AGAINST DOOR

AEROPLANE ENGINES HUM

MEN SHOUT

of Erin's green isle

SINGING BECOMES DISTORTED

The song dies when you stop singing.

of fame and renown

I could order you to sing, but you sound like a fucking camel.

I am a camel, Paddy.

Carrying a great weight.

You mean me?

You mean my mortal soul, is that it?

I mean I'm carrying a great weight, Paddy.

Oh, fucking not you as well!

like gentlemen's sons

and their carbine guns

she observed them full soon

I am on a tour of my men, hoping to boost morale.

How is your morale?

No English. Riley!

Translation required.

Vaffanculo!

I am on a morale-boosting exercise, and I sense there might be an issue

that is affecting the morale of our wee Italian friend here.

MEN CONTINUE SINGING

What, do you want me to translate that?

It is a moral issue involving you, Sergeant Major.

HE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN

I think you might have gotten his goat.

Yeah, I think I might have gotten his goat, too.

HE SPEAKS SOFTLY IN ITALIAN

Alessia is not your wife.

Yeah, she's free to choose.

And she chose Yankee Doodle Doo.

Whoa! Drop it!

MEN CHEER AND LAUGH

Go on, mate! Come on!

MEN CHEER

get crazy now, baby

got hazy now, baby

hot, quick and tight

Anything serious?

Pretty hilarious actually.

Couple of bones broken.

This is about that woman.

Whoa!

How was the burial? Everyone was buggered except for me.

The Lord is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

General.

Welcome to Italy SAS headquarters.

Major Paddy Mayne.

I have a delivery for you and your men.

There's been an order from GHQ to all SAS personnel.

By order of GHQ, not me...

..these are the new...

..the new berets that 1SAS and 2SAS will now wear at all times

while on active and ceremonial duty.

The old sand-coloured berets will now be...

..forbidden.

What?! Good Lord.

And you will all, without exception, be required to wear the new beret,

as of, well, as of right now.

Lieutenant, as you can see, my men and I are grieving.

So we are in no position to do anything right now,

let alone sell our souls.

I appreciate that, but... Now...

..I respectfully urge you to reconsider your interruption

and save this futile discussion regarding headwear

for a more suitable time.

What say you, sweet pea?

I say that, in three or four minutes' time...

..Lieutenant General Dempsey,

Commander of 13th Corps, Eighth Army,

and General Montgomery, Commander of British forces,

will be walking into the monastery courtyard

for an inspection of the troops. Fucking hell!

MEN MUTTER

And General Montgomery will be expecting all SAS soldiers

to be wearing the maroon beret.

Anyone disobeying the order...

..will face being put on a charge, sir.

Fortunately, the monks who once lived here were very self-contained.

There's a well here, which produces clean, fresh water.

And there's a legend that this is a holy well,

that if you drink from it, you have your wish fulfilled.

General, this is Eve Mansour, a French war correspondent.

A representative. She is on the itinerary, sir.

For much later.

General de Gaulle sends his congratulations

on the success of Operation Devon.

Apparently, you were on the itinerary for later.

And yet here I am at the well, making a wish.

And what is your wish?

That Free French soldiers in southern provinces of France

receive training from SAS soldiers

in advance of the invasion and liberation of my country.

Her country is actually Algeria, sir.

And when France is liberated,

I will work just as hard for the liberation of Algeria.

Eve Mansour? Yes.

I will see you...later.

Next. This way, sir.

Thank you. Thank you.

To the left, please, gentlemen.

This was once the refectory where the monks dined,

but now we use it for a mess...

Now it is where your men relax?

Yes. Oh, look.

A rear molar.

Excellent.

Take me to meet these wild beasts.

This way, sir.

GLASS CRUNCHES AND SMASHES

Parade!

Parade! ..tion!

Staff Sergeant Jim Almonds, sir,

won the Military Medal in North Africa.

How are you coping, Sergeant?

Coping very well. Thank you, sir.

What do you think of the new beret?

I think it's very elegant, sir.

Wasted on a head like mine. Ah.

Oh, well, Jim's head could be improved by a bucket, sir.

In my opinion.

Er, Sergeant Kershaw, sir.

A sergeant with opinions.

You don't wait to be spoken to before you speak?

In our unit, we're encouraged to speak

if you think you've got something to say that'll, er,

that'll improve the mood, sir.

And if you all speak at once?

Then we decide who's right, by fighting each other, sir.

With fists and cutlery. Isn't that right, lads?

HE BELCHES

Pardon me, sir. Just popped up.

The mood is indeed improved.

Staff Sergeant Reg Seekings, newly promoted.

Won the Military Medal in Sicily.

Encounter after encounter.

How are you coping?

I'm coping extremely well. Thank you, sir.

Good.

But, sir...

..I'm coping extremely well.

Thank you, sir.

Major Robert Blair 'Paddy' Mayne.

So...

..the famous Paddy Mayne.

I'm not sure how I could be famous, sir,

when I am not sure myself of who I am.

You appear to be wearing the wrong beret, Major Mayne.

No, actually, I don't think I am, sir.

Every single one of these men smells of alcohol.

They've just attended the funeral of 21 comrades, sir.

Though, in all honesty,

we'd have taken a drink by now, anyway.

And the reason I personally object to the maroon beret

is that it makes us look the same as every other parachute regiment

in the British Army.

But we are not the same as ANY unit in the British Army.

As this parade has probably already proven to you, sir,

we are slightly drunk, opinionated,

and borderline insubordinate delinquent. Paddy...

And our unique ability is to operate behind enemy lines

without regulation, in any way we see fit,

inflicting the maximum amount of damage on an unsuspecting enemy,

without being directed by Central Command.

If I hadn't made that wee speech to your face when I had the chance,

sir, I would have regretted it.

And being an impulsive man, I cannot afford regrets.

Men like these...

..should not be ordered to simply run at machine guns.

It is an abuse of their courage.

You have my personal permission

to carry on wearing your sand-coloured beret.

And for the avoidance of doubt,

as far as High Command is concerned...

..we do not care about the mental health,

psychological conditions,

or the levels of insubordination amongst your men.

Just so long as you keep winning.

Await further orders, Major Paddy Mayne.

Sir.

Next.

The SAS working alongside the Free French,

just as they did in North Africa, is our best chance of survival.

And I have witnessed first-hand how the SAS can work

alongside local resistance and partisan soldiers.

Actually, now you mention his name, I do remember meeting your father.

He was a colonel.

He led the North African Brigade at Ypres.

That's where I met him.

I wonder what your father would make of you being amongst this rabble.

CHUCKLING

Ha, fucking, ha.

He would admire the bravery they display

and the results they achieve. More tea?

Sir, according to the itinerary,

General Montgomery should have left ten minutes ago.

Yes, I know.

The delay is being caused by the Commander of British forces

being briefed on how to liberate France

by a fucking journalist.

Go and tell them politely that their time's up.

And, er, invite the journalist

to join me for a glass of wine later.

Yes, sir.

LIGHTNING CRACKS

GOATS BLEAT

Ah!

Oh!

Oh.

HE SIGHS

Oh, God.

GOATS BLEAT

HE SIGHS

Well, never milked a goat before, but...

..I'm going to learn.

A warning - my hands are rather cold.

FOOTSTEPS APPROACH

Inglese! Inglese! Inglese!

Inglese.

I was about to milk your goat.

Another hour and I would have eaten the fucker.

HE CHUCKLES TO SELF

Where is your husband?

I saw him walk off in the rain.

Where did he go?

MAN SPEAKS IN ITALIAN

D'accordo.

MAN SPEAKS IN ITALIAN

Mussolini, eh?

Bad man.

Yes?

Il Duce.

JOHN BLOWS RASPBERRY

Ah.

You went to a neighbour's, perhaps.

What is the going rate for an escaped Allied soldier?

10,000 lire is what I heard.

VEHICLE APPROACHES

10,000 lire.

KNOCK AT DOOR

SHE SHOUTS IN ITALIAN Shh-shh!

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.

Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!

Stop!

Partisan.

The farmer fetched us.

We are here to help you.

Well, I am sorry.

Madre mia.

Oh.

So, where exactly are you taking me?

LIGHTNING CRACKS

Someone will be coming? Yes? CAR ENGINE REVS

Hey! Hey! Hey!

MAN SHOUTS

SHOUTING

How was your discussion of military strategy

with the General?

Polite.

Ah.

Of course they're lying to me about their plans,

but at least now I'm someone they lie to.

What exactly is it that you want Montgomery to do?

To not lie to me.

To not be lied to by the French because I'm Algerian,

to not be lied to by the British because I'm French.

I can't think of a single occasion when I've lied to you.

Hmm.

No.

But there is always a first time.

Tell me,

what do you think of me?

What do I think of you?

Goodness.

You get angry with me as if I matter.

You think I'm a spy.

You arrange cars to take me away.

And yet...

And yet what? I asked you a question.

What do I think of you?

The truth.

Er...

Think I love my wife.

I miss my children.

And as regards you,

there's nothing I can do about what my own stupid self

allows me to feel.

You have no idea how much I admire you.

What do you admire about me?

Today, General Montgomery was persuaded to make a decision.

For the rest of the Italian campaign and during the liberation of France,

the SAS will return to its former way of operating.

They will be working behind enemy lines without GHQ command.

Montgomery was also persuaded

that they should once again be called SAS.

SRS will no longer be used.

And the person who persuaded him to make those decisions was you.

"Throwing men like these at machine guns

"is a waste of their courage," you said.

I listened in on you just as you listened in on me.

And Montgomery repeated what I said, word for word, to Paddy Mayne.

Why don't you tell Paddy Mayne that you are actually on his side?

David gave me some advice.

For Paddy Mayne to function, he needs someone to rebel against.

And that someone is you?

I'm perfect for the job, don't you think?

Landed, entitled, titled,

slightly serious.

Not one of them at all.

Celebrate the fact that you are not one of them.

KNOCK AT DOOR

General Montgomery left this. New orders, apparently.

Oof!

HE GROANS

HE GROANS

MEN SHOUT

Ah!

What a fucking nuisance!

Argh!

Argh!

HE GROANS

Argh.

Any of yous in any way nostalgic

for the days of well-defined strategies?

I would like a vague idea about where we are,

what the fuck we're doing and why we're doing it.

Am I being picky?

This is an officially designated 2SAS operation.

This is 2SAS standing on their own two feet.

We will, for the first wee while, be holding their hand.

GREVILLE- Happy landings, gentlemen?

POPPING AND CRUNCHING

What is that noise?

Oh, that. It's my ribs scraping together.

Listen. POPPING AND CRUNCHING

I've broken three of them.

But anyway, we divide into two groups.

Captain Dudgeon will lead his party east towards La Spezia.

My party will head north and concentrate

on the Genoa-Bologna line.

I will take you 1SAS scoundrels and show you how it's done.

No-one in 2SAS speaks Italian,

so the chap with the nice hat who looks annoyed about something

will go with Dudgeon, and the lady will come with us.

With respect, can I suggest that both partisans go with Dudgeon?

Something about Anglo-Italian relations.

We should keep Romeo and Juliet apart

while some of us try to win a war.

OK.

Let's blow up some trains.

You'll be all right.

TRAIN HORN BLARES

RIBS CRUNCHING

Doesn't that hurt you, lad? Oh, I played a lot of rugby.

On the field of play, you never show pain.

Oh, right.

TRAIN HORN BLARES IN DISTANCE

RUMBLING

METALLIC ECHOING

Right, we're OK.

Two and a half miles away, travelling roughly 40mph, Jim.

Can you really do that?

Yeah, well, in Liverpool, I didn't play rugby,

I played truant, messed about on the train tracks as a kid, like.

I was always the lookout, you see.

That's very impressive, Kershaw.

Ah, you're welcome.

TRAIN APPROACHES

Bloody hell! Kershaw! Sorry, lads. I was 20 seconds out.

What the fuck were you thinking? Jesus Christ! Move!

TRAIN HORN BLARES

Take cover!

ECHOING RINGS

Bloody hell.

the speed of sound

THEY CHEER

Yeah, let's get some more!

Going through!

Two wee boys, and all yous want is to go home.

Tut-tut-tut-tut-tut.

Paddy, you know what they would do to us if it was the other way round.

Reg! Fuckers would line us up and shoot us!

Hey?

Paddy, give the order.

Tell him to put the fucking gun down. Geneva Convention, Reg.

Fuck the convention!

You tell him right now, Paddy. You order him to stop now.

Go ahead, Staff Sergeant.

You're no use to me with all that hate in you.

Get it out of your system.

Blow the boy's brains out.

When you get home to England, you can tell your wife, Monica,

and your nieces and nephew...

..you tell them exactly what you did.

And when you're just good old Reggie,

back from the pub on a Saturday night...

..you'll look into the fire,

you'll see that boy's face, that wee boy there.

And the way you look into the flames,

your own wife will be terrified of you.

Go ahead, Reggie.

Do unto them as they would do unto us.

Amen.

GUN CLICKS

GUNSHOT

Billy...here. Get him up.

Give them a drink of whatever the fuck we have left.

Let's get on to the rendezvous.

CAR ENGINES REV

Sir... It's all right.

When we get to France, they will say, "C'est la guerre."

Jump on, let's go.

MEN SPEAK IN DISTANCE

Oh, my God.

Daphne Reece-Williams?

Uh...

I might not look much like him now, but...

..I'm John Tonkin.

My, uh...

My sister used to ride in show jumping competitions

with you, in the Pony Club, Guildford.

You always won, she always cried.

Horrid Johnny?

Yes. Horrid Johnny.

Uh... Are you real?

Yes. I married an Italian.

Are you real?

Yes. Uh, you married an Italian...

..I've been killing Italians.

Goodness, how odd this is.

Yes, I'm with a regiment where odd things tend to happen

rather a lot.

I don't know if this is God or fate.

What with the war and everything, I've got myself in rather a pickle.

Can I come in?

But of course.

I will make tea.

Tea would be nice.

What's happened to the lads that went to La Spezia?

They ran into a German camp.

Foster, Shortall, Dudgeon and Brunt were captured.

Foster and Shortall were taken to Ponzano Magra.

Dudgeon and Brunt were picked up at La Cisa.

The new command from Hitler regarding SAS prisoners...

..was carried out to the letter.

SHOUTS AND GUNSHOTS INAUDIBLE

GUNSHOTS INAUDIBLE

And what about the partisans?

The lady took a bullet and was lying wounded.

Chap in the hat dashed in to save her.

They were both killed.

Sorry, lad.

I'm glad we're us, Dave.

I'm glad we're us, Reg.

Right. Listen up.

Ahem.

Mission completed.

We have a new task to prepare for.

We leave Italy to the ordinary soldiers now.

We...

..the men of the Special Air Service,

1st and 2nd...

..we're going home.

MEN SHOUT

DOOR BANGS

BANGING ON DOORS

DOOR BANGS

KEYS JANGLE IN DOOR

David! Stirling, it's me!

The Allied troops are moving north.

The Italian government has fallen.

The Italian guards have left the camp.

DAVID GROANS

The guards have gone, David!

I still have 15 days left.

No, no, no, no, you don't.

We all have 20 minutes to get the hell out of here.

The Italian guards are gone,

but the German troops are coming up the mountain to take their place.

David.

Did you hear me?

We have 20 minutes to get free.

Come on, David!

MEN SHOUT

they must be the same

into the heart of the crowd

into the heart of the crowd

what was allowed