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'Without these three men it might never have been possible to have D-Day in June 1944. It's hard to think of three individual servicemen who did more to hasten the Allied victory' - Robert Harris, author of ENIGMA.
'They played a pivotal part in bringing the Battle of the Atlantic to an earlier close' - Prince Andrew.
'A contribution to the winning of the war that few could match' - Tony Blair.

 

For almost sixty years after their deaths, three men, whose brave actions shortened the Second World War by as much as two years, remained virtually unknown and uncelebrated - even in their home towns.

Two of the men lost their lives retrieving vital German codebooks from a sinking U-boat. The third survived the war only to die in a house fire, when still just a teenager. But it was the precious documents they seized on October 30, 1942, that enabled Bletchley Park codebreakers to crack the Nazis' Enigma cipher and so win the Battle of the Atlantic.

The incident is now recognised as a pivotal moment in world history. Three British servicemen had paved the way for peace, but not even their families could be told of the importance of their mission.

Cloaked in secrecy for decades, this is the amazing story of the selfless individuals who helped unlock the key to Enigma... and the story of a newspaper's five-year fight to win them the recognition they deserve. The campaign led to a clash with Hollywood over the controversial movie U-571, which credited fictional Americans with capturing the ultimate prize from a U-boat.

This book is written in memory and in celebration of Able Seaman Colin Grazier GC, Lieutenant Tony Fasson GC, and NAAFI canteen assistant Tommy Brown GM - the REAL Enigma heroes.