Under The Wire

(Paperback)

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The Spitfire pilot, PoW, escape artist and 'Cooler King', William Ash tells his own extraordinary story in this bestselling account of his wartime exploits - also recalled in a new biography - The Cooler King - by Patrick Bishop. Determined to take on the Nazis, Texan Bill Ash joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1939 and in so doing sacrificed his citizenship. Before long, he was sent to England wherehe flew Spitfires. Shot down over France in March 1942, he survived the crash-landing and, thanks to local civilians, evaded capture for months only to be betrayed to the Gestapo in Paris. Tortured and sentenced to death as a spy, he was saved from the firing squad by the Luftwaffe who sent him to the infamous 'Great Escape' POW camp, Stalag Luft III. It was from there that Bill began his 'tour' of Occupied Europe. Breaking out of a succession of camps, he became one of only a handful of serial escape artists to attempt more than a dozen break-outs - over the wire, under it in tunnels, through it with cutters or simply strolling out of the camp gates in disguise! They were years of extraordinary hardship, frustration and brutality - the penalty for escaping was a long spell in solitary - but throughout it all Bill Ash displayed not just remarkable courage but also an anarchic sense of humour, great humanity and an unstoppable desire for freedom. Honest, funny and exciting, Under the Wire is both a riveting war memoir and a tribute to the bravery and resolve of an entire generation.

Reviews

A story of bravery in the face of brutality, of comradeship, of a never-say-die attitude; and running through it is a sense of humour that cheers up the grimmest situation * THE TIMES *
A life of adventure that will inspire and astonish... Ash is a writer who makes his readers feel as if they're right there beside him through it all -- HOMER HICKAM, author of THE ROCKET BOYS
A remarkable story... brilliantly told and with all the authentic sights, sounds and smells of the World War 2 prison camp -- TONY RENNELL, author of THE LAST ESCAPE
Well written and exciting... in this remarkable book...there are passages...that make the reader want to stand up and cheer -- CHARLES ROLLINGS, author of WIRE AND WALLS
An astonishing tale - totally spellbinding. I always knew Bill Ash was a special guy but never realised how special... Perhaps his greatest achievement was to emerge from the horrors of the war with his faith in ordinary people enhanced -- ALAN PLATER

Author Bio

Bill Ash was born in Texas in 1917. On the outbreak of war in 1939 he left America and joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. From there, he went to England and flew Spitfires. He was shot down over occupied France in 1942 and became a PoW. Awarded an MBE for his wartime exploits, he joined the Communist party and was involved in sheltering Hollywood exiles in the '50s. He worked for the BBC as their India correspondent and subsequently as senior producer of BBC Radio Drama. He also became Head of the Writers' Guild and wrote a number of plays. William Ash died in April 2014 (http-//www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/29/bill-ash ) Brendan Foley grew up in Belfast. He divides his time between London and California. An award-winning features journalist, he ran a successful communications consultancy and now writes full-time, including fiction, biography and screenplays. He first met Bill Ash in the 1980s and, inspired by the Spitfire pilot's life, wrote a screenplay of his wartime adventures. He encouraged Bill to tell his story to a wider audience, through Under the Wire.