Secret Origins of the SAS

<p>In 1974, a pioneer of the SAS and master of military deception, Dudley Clarke, passed away. His death went almost entirely unnoticed by the British public, despite the fact that he carried out some of the most dramatic deception campaigns of World War Two. He waged a covert war of trickery and misdirection across Europe, which ended up getting him arrested by Spanish authorities while dressed as a woman. He also helped to found one of the world's preeminent special forces; the Special Air Service, or the SAS. His contribution is often overlooked, but without it, the SAS may well have never existed.</p><br><p>So who was Dudley Clarke? What were some of the most audacious acts of subterfuge he carried out? And why is he not better known? Dan is joined by former SAS Troop Commander and author of <em>Speed, Aggression, Surprise: The Secret Origins of the SAS</em>, Tom Petch, to answer these questions and more.</p><br><p>Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.</p><br><p>Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world-renowned historians like Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Matt Lewis, Tristan Hughes and more. Get 50% off your first 3 months with code <a href="http://access.historyhit.com/checkout?code=dansnow&plan=monthly" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DANSNOW</a>. Download the app or sign up<a href="https://historyhit.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> here.</a></p><br><p>PLEASE VOTE NOW! for Dan Snow's History Hit in the British Podcast Awards Listener's Choice category <a href="https://www.britishpodcastawards.com/voting" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. Every vote counts, thank you!</p><br><p>We'd love to hear from you! You can email the podcast at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[email protected]</a>.</p><br><p>You can take part in our listener survey<a href="https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> here</a>.</p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>