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Wish Me Luck
''Wish Me Luck'' is a British television drama about the exploits of British women undercover agents during the Second World War. The series was made by London Weekend Television for the ITV network between 17 January 1988 and 25 February 1990 and created by Lavinia Warner and Jill Hyem, who had previously produced and written the BBC women prisoner of war series '' Tenko''. The series was filmed on location in England and France. ''Wish Me Luck'' is similar to '' Tenko'' and the 1970s BBC drama '' Secret Army'', in that it deals with strong female characters coping under extreme conditions in wartime. The organisation for which the series' women agents worked, the Outfit, was based on the real-life Special Operations Executive. Season 1 and 2 were based on the exploits of SOE agent Nancy Wake and much of the dialogue was copied from her autobiography ''The White Mouse''. The series also addressed social issues and divisions under wartime conditions. A great deal of atte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jill Hyem
Jill Hyem (8 January 1937 – 5 June 2015) was a British actor, and radio and television writer. Early life and acting career Jill Hyem was born in 1937 in Putney, London, England, to Hilda (''née'' Gladwell) and Rex, a solicitor, and was raised in Devon and East Sheen. From the age of ten, Hyem attended Farlington School, a boarding school in West Sussex, and studied at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. Her early acting experience saw her perform at the Connaught Theatre Worthing, where one of her roles was Eliza Doolittle in ''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion''. Her film roles include ''The Trunk'' (1961) with Phil Carey. In 1962, Hyem made her West End (London), West End debut in ''Goodnight Mrs Puffin'' with Irene Handl. Hyem's television appearances include ''Richard the Lionheart (TV series), Richard the Lionheart'' (1962) with Dermot Walsh, ''Dixon of Dock Green'' (two episodes 1959 and 1960), and ''Sergeant Cork'' (one episode, 1964). She also starred as Peggy Brigg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Undercover Agent
To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization in order to learn or confirm confidential information, or to gain the trust of targeted individuals to gather information or evidence. Undercover operations are traditionally employed by law enforcement agencies and private investigators; those in such roles are commonly referred to as undercover agents History Law enforcement has carried out undercover work in a variety of ways throughout the course of history, but Eugène François Vidocq (1775–1857) developed the first organized (though informal) undercover program in France in the early 19th century, from the late First Empire through most of the Bourbon Restoration period of 1814 to 1830. At the end of 1811 Vidocq set up an informal plainclothes unit, the '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeremy Nicholas (writer)
Jeremy Nicholas (born 20 September 1947) is an English actor, writer, broadcaster, lyricist and musician. Born in Wellington, Shropshire, he was raised in Stafford and educated at Flash Ley Primary School, Stafford (1952–57); Wycliffe College in Gloucestershire (1957–65) and Birmingham School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art (1966–69). Nicholas's first job between leaving school and going to drama college was as a trainee manager in Beatties department store in Wolverhampton (1965–66) from which he was sacked for rehearsing on the shop floor his lines for an amateur production. During his time at drama college he appeared in pantomime with Jimmy Jewel and Donald Peers, and survived a summer season as a Redcoat at Butlins Skegness. Actor Nicholas began his career with the Prospect Theatre Company (1969–70) in ''Richard II'' and ''Edward II'' starring Ian McKellen and Timothy West. He then joined the Citizens Theatre (1970–72) for the first two seasons under th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catherine Schell
Catherine Schell (born Katherina ''Freiin'' Schell von Bauschlott, 17 July 1944) is a Hungarian-born actress who came to prominence in British film and television productions from the 1960s. Her notable roles include the Bond girl Nancy in '' On Her Majesty's Secret Service'' (1969), Lady Claudine Litton in '' The Return of the Pink Panther'' (1975), Countess Scarlioni in the ''Doctor Who'' serial ''City of Death'' (1979), and a regular role as Maya in Series Two of the television series '' Space: 1999'' (1975). Early life Schell's father, Baron Paul Schell von Bauschlott, was a Hungarian diplomat of three-quarter Magyar ancestry; her mother was Countess Katharina Maria Etelka Georgina Elisabeth Teleki de Szék. "Schell" is the family name, while "von Bauschlott" indicates the place in Germany where the Schell family owned its main estate. Fleeing Hungary in advance of the Soviets and communism, the family lived in poverty until 1948, finding asylum in Austria: first in Vien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warren Clarke
Warren Clarke (born Alan James Clarke; 26 April 1947 – 12 November 2014) was an English actor. He appeared in many films after a significant role as Dim in Stanley Kubrick's ''A Clockwork Orange''. His television appearances included ''Dalziel and Pascoe'' (as Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel), ''The Manageress'' and ''Sleepers''. Early life Clarke was born in Oldham, Lancashire. His father worked as a stained-glass maker and his mother as a secretary. He left Barlow Hall Secondary Modern School, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, aged 15 and began work at the ''Manchester Evening News'' as a copy boy. He later moved on to amateur dramatics and performed at Huddersfield Rep before working as an actor full-time. During this period he also decided to change his first name to Warren, a name he chose as his girlfriend of the time had a crush on Warren Beatty. Career Clarke's first television appearance was in the long-running Granada soap opera ''Coronation Street'', initially ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shelagh McLeod
Shelagh McLeod'', sometimes credited as Shelagh MacLeod or Sheleigh McCleod, is a British-based Canadian film and television actress. Early life and education McLeod was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. At the age of five and a half years old, she immigrated to the United Kingdom. At age 14, McLeod started training at the Corona Stage Academy in London, United Kingdom. Career In the U.K., her first television appearance was as "Young Jean" in ''Cream in My Coffee'', written by Dennis Potter. She then appeared in various television series including ''Wish Me Luck'' and ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'', before relocating to work in Canada and Los Angeles, California. where she appeared in series such as The A-Team and Almost Grown. In 1990s she did commercial for whiskers. Since returning to the U.K., McLeod has appeared in recurring roles on various television series including as Dr. Kate Preston in ''Peak Practice'', Sally Campbell in ''The Bill'', and Jenny Clayton ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeremy Northam
Jeremy Philip Northam (born 1 December 1961) is an English actor and singer. After a number of television roles, he earned attention as Mr. Knightley in the 1996 film adaptation of Jane Austen's '' Emma''. He has appeared in the films ''An Ideal Husband'', ''Gosford Park'', '' Amistad'', ''The Winslow Boy'', ''Enigma'', '' Cypher'', ''Dean Spanley'', and ''Martin and Lewis'', amongst others. He also played Thomas More in the Showtime series ''The Tudors''. From 2016 to 2017 he appeared as Anthony Eden in the Netflix series ''The Crown''. Early life and education Northam was born in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, the youngest of four children. His mother, Rachel (née Howard), was a potter and professor of economics, and his father, John Northam, was a professor of literature and theatre, as well as being an Ibsen specialist and lecturer (first at Clare College, Cambridge and later at Bristol). He has described his upbringing as not wealthy, but warm. Northam was educated at King's C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gracie Fields
Dame Gracie Fields (born Grace Stansfield; 9 January 189827 September 1979) was an English actress, singer, comedian and star of cinema and music hall who was one of the top ten film stars in Britain during the 1930s and was considered the highest paid film star in the world in 1937. She was known affectionately as ''Our Gracie'' and ''the Lancashire Lass'' and for never losing her strong, native Lancashire accent. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and an Officer of the Venerable Order of St John (OStJ) in 1938, and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1979. Life and work Early life Fields was born Grace Stansfield, a daughter of Frederick Stansfield (1874–1956) and his wife Sarah Jane 'Jenny' Stansfield née Bamford (1879–1953), over a fish and chip shop owned by her grandmother, Sarah Bamford, in Molesworth Street, Rochdale, Lancashire. Her great-grandfather, William Stansfield (b.1805), of Hebden Bridge, Y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wish Me Luck As You Wave Me Goodbye
"Wish Me Luck as You Wave Me Goodbye" is a song by Phil Park and Harry Parr-Davies, made popular during the Second World War by Gracie Fields. It appeared in Fields' 1939 film ''Shipyard Sally''. Its use in the film is patriotic, Stephen C. Shafer argues, although the song in this context did not reference the war, as the film was released prior to its outbreak. Over the years it has been performed and recorded by many artists, including Vera Lynn, Elsie Carlisle, Chas & Dave, Cyril Grantham and Jack Hylton. It also featured in the film ''The History Boys''. The song is also used in movie ''Mera Naam Joker'' of ''Bollywood'' directed by ''Raj Kapoor'' while the student Raju was saying goodbye to his teacher after her wedding. This song was chosen by Dame Edna Everage as one of her Desert Island Discs. Laura Wright and Collabro performed the song at VE Day 70: A Party to Remember at Horse Guards Parade in London. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nancy Wake
Nancy Grace Augusta Wake, (30 August 1912 – 7 August 2011), also known as Madame Fiocca and Nancy Fiocca, was a nurse and journalist who joined the French Resistance and later the Special Operations Executive (SOE) during World War II, and briefly pursued a post-war career as an intelligence officer in the Air Ministry. The official historian of the SOE, M. R. D. Foot, said that "her irrepressible, infectious, high spirits were a joy to everyone who worked with her". Many stories about her World War II activities come from her autobiography, ''The White Mouse'', and are not verifiable from other sources. Born in Wellington, New Zealand, Wake grew up in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. By the 1930s, Wake was living in Marseille with her French industrialist husband, Henri Fiocca, when the war broke out. After the fall of France to Nazi Germany in 1940, Wake became a courier for the Pat O'Leary escape network led by Ian Garrow and, later, Albert Guérisse. As a member o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its purpose was to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in occupied Europe (and later, also in occupied Southeast Asia) against the Axis powers, and to aid local resistance movements. Few people were aware of SOE's existence. Those who were part of it or liaised with it were sometimes referred to as the "Baker Street Irregulars", after the location of its London headquarters. It was also known as "Churchill's Secret Army" or the "Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare". Its various branches, and sometimes the organisation as a whole, were concealed for security purposes behind names such as the "Joint Technical Board" or the "Inter-Service Research Bureau", or fictitious branches of the Air Ministry, Admiralty or War Office. SOE operated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Secret Army (TV Series)
''Secret Army'' is a British television drama made by the BBC and the Belgian national broadcaster BRT (now VRT) created by Gerard Glaister. It tells the story of a fictional Belgian resistance movement in German-occupied Belgium during the Second World War dedicated to returning Allied airmen, usually having been shot down by the Luftwaffe, to Great Britain. It was made in the UK and Belgium and three series were broadcast on BBC1 between 7 September 1977 and 15 December 1979. Fay Weldon said of the series: "There is, in the making of such programmes, a level of professionalism, and sheer patient, largely unacclaimed, hard work from producer to script editor to writer to designer to vision mixer to editor by way of sound and lighting engineers that is probably equalled only in a heart transplant theatre". Series overview Series One Lisa Colbert runs Lifeline, a Brussels-based evasion organisation. It helps Allied aircrew to evade capture and return to Britain via neutral Sw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
