SAS Rogue Heroes is a new drama on BBC One about the true story of David Stirling and the formation of the Special Air Service.
At the height of war, a bored and radical British army officer, David Stirling, put together a band of specialised soldiers, the SAS.
The SAS was a unit in Cairo that skilfully attacked the Germans behind enemy lines using parachutes, Jeeps and machine guns.
After his great efforts in the World War II, David went on to be knighted and named a war hero.
But what is his background and what happened to him?
David Stirling founded the SAS
In the BBC One drama, we meet David Stirling, the founder of the SAS, played by Connor Swindells.
David Stirling was born in Keir House, in central Scotland, on November 15, 1915.
His father, Archie Stirling, was a veteran of the Boer War and World War I.
So it was only right that David followed in his father’s footsteps in World War II.
During the Second World War, David served in North Africa.
However, he became frustrated when most of the units were either cancelled or unsuccessful.
So, after David Stirling got into a serious parachuting accident, he decided to put his ideas to good use and formed the SAS.
David Stirling wanted to form a team of strong and specialised soldiers, who would attack behind enemy lines.
Despite being on crutches, David went to the Middle East headquarters to see General Ritchie about his ideas.
This resulted in the formation of L Detachment, the Special Air Service Brigade in 1941, which eventually went on to be called the Special Air Service.
The Special Air Service’s first mission was to parachute behind enemy lines in Libya.
However, the mission turned into a disaster when only 21 out of the 57 men who took part returned.
Eventually, the SAS started to become more successful in their operations and they would often return from their missions with few or even no casualties.
We see many of their radical operations in SAS Rogue Heroes, including the mission where they joined forces with the Long Range Desert Group.
David Stirling was captured in 1943
In January 1943, David was captured during a mission in Tunisia.
By this time, David had become a legend in the desert.
He even earned the nickname ‘The Phantom Major’ by the Germans.
After his capture, David undertook many escape attempts.
He escaped four times, until he was transferred into Colditz Castle in Germany.
This was where he spent the rest of the war.
Colditz Castle was a Prisoner of War camp that was said to be escape-proof.
It was also where Winston Churchill’s nephew, Giles Romilly, was imprisoned.
At the end of the war, David was promoted to Colonel and was made Deputy Commander of the SAS Brigade.
He was then tasked to track down members of the SS and the Gestapo who were responsible for shooting Special Forces prisoners.
SAS founder David Stirling retired
Eventually, David retired and settled down in Zimbabwe.
David also got involved with the Capricorn Society which was a scheme to unite Africa without regard to racial, political and religious divisions.
In 1967, he also founded an organisation called Watchguard.
Watchguard helped place retired SAS soldiers with security, army and training groups around the world.
In 1990, David was knighted, before passing away later that same year.
Read more: SAS Rogue Heroes on BBC One: How many episodes is it, is it based on a book and start date
SAS Rogue Heroes will start on Sunday, October 30, on BBC One.
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