Colditz: Who's Who

Colditz was the sort of place no one ever entered voluntarily, whether you were a prisoner or a guard. But, once there, its inhabitants helped to write one of the most fascinating chapters in the history of World War Two. So, who were the men thrown together by fate in the television series inspired by the conflict's most infamous prison camp?

Flight Lt Simon Carter (David McCallum)

Tough and determined, Carter embodies the true spirit of the Colditz internee. An experienced bomber pilot who is also capable of seeing the bigger picture, Carter is a keen absconder who later takes on the difficult role of Escape Officer. Golden-haired David McCallum was at the peak of his popularity in the UK when he starred in Colditz. Famed for his role as Ilya Kuryakin in The Man from U.N.C.L.E., McCallum had also appeared in the legendary POW movie, The Great Escape. He went on to star in another 1970s TV favourite, The Invisible Man.

Kommandant (Bernard Hepton)

Every inch the correct Wehrmacht officer, the Kommandant (we never learn his full name) is an honourable man who is privately aghast at the excesses of the Nazi regime. He fights hard to keep Colditz under regular army control when the SS threaten to take the castle over. Bernard Hepton needs little introduction for Yesterday viewers. A reliable turn in scores of 1970s television dramas, from The Six Wives of Henry VIII (Thomas Cranmer) to I, Claudius (Pallas), Hepton enthralled the nation as the stoical Albert Foiret in Secret Army.

(Picture: Hepton in Secret Army)

Capt Tim Downing (Richard Heffer)

The dashing Tim Downing is more than just a pretty face. He has a keen mind and can often see what other, rasher officers miss when they are cooking up crazy escape schemes. He sometimes becomes frustrated with the leadership of Lt Col Preston (see below). Another golden-haired Adonis, Richard Heffer was a familiar sight on British TV screens during the 1970s. In addition to his long run in Colditz, he guest-starred in Department S, Jason King, Father Brown, Survivors and Dixon of Dock Green.

Lt Col John Preston (Jack Hedley)

Preston has a difficult job. He has to keep up morale and encourage escapes but at the same time he has to ensure the overall safety of the British contingent – a tall order when his men are constantly baiting their German captors. As the series unfolds, he builds up a relationship with the Kommandant. Jack Hedley was a well-known character actor of his time and popped up in all sorts of shows, from Play for Today to Return of the Saint with Ian Ogilvy.

Capt George Brent (Paul Chapman)

As an escape artist, Brent is a rather hit or miss individual. He has plenty of brains but lacks the killer instinct when it comes to seizing the nettle and executing an escape plan. But he does possess a dogged courage, demonstrated during his time as a 'ghost', hiding in a secret compartment for weeks. Another familiar face in British living rooms at the time, Paul Chapman guest-starred in Survivors, A Family at War and Wings.

Hauptman Franz Ulmann (Hans Meyer)

A dedicated officer responsible for security at Colditz, Ulmann is always on the prowl and manages to scupper several of the British officers' escape plans. He, like the Kommandant, is a Wehrmacht man who has no love of the SS. Hans Meyer was a go-to actor in the 1970s for British producers requiring native Germans, resulting in guest-starring spots in, among other shows, Thriller and Quiller. He also had a robust career in European films and television.

Lt Dick Player (Christopher Neame)

Handsome and sophisticated, Player is definitely a cut above the average officer. A naval lieutenant, he spent time in Germany before the war and speaks fluent German. Is he a spy? The Germans seem to think so… Another drop-dead gorgeous young blade who looked great in a greatcoat, Christopher Neame had a good run in Colditz and it was no surprise to see him turn up as RAF pilot John Curtis in Secret Army.

Flight Lt Phil Carrington (Robert Wagner

An American who volunteered to fly with the RAF early in the conflict, Carrington is another member of the team who knows Germany: he was a journalist in Berlin before the war. A born maverick, he can at times rub his British colleagues up the wrong way. Robert Wagner was already a star when he made Colditz, known to British audiences for his long stint as Alexander Mundy, an audacious cat burglar who becomes a U.S. agent in It Takes a Thief. At the end of the 1970s, Wagner landed the role of Jonathan Hart in Hart to Hart, alongside Stefanie Powers.

Capt Pat Grant (Edward Harwicke)

Grant is the first Escape Officer at Colditz. He is based on a real-life Colditz POW, Major Pat Reid, who acted as technical adviser on the show. Reid's memoir, The Colditz Story, inspired a 1955 film of the same name, starring John Mills. The book also underpinned the TV series. Edward Hardwicke was very busy during the 1970s in all sorts of roles but is perhaps better known for his run as Dr Watson in The Return of Sherlock Holmes, a 1980s show starring Jeremy Brett as Holmes.

Major Horst Mohn (Anthony Valentine)

A smarmy, rather sinister staff officer who once served in Hitler's personal team, Mohn clashes with the Kommandant over how the POWs should be treated. Mohn wants a tougher regime at Colditz and does all he can to make life difficult for the prisoners. Anthony Valentine made a great villain as Mohn, and was booed and hissed in living rooms up and down the country when he appeared in Colditz. In the mid-1970s, Valentine played aristocratic jewel thief Raffles in a popular ITV show of the same name.