Boarding Party

New York Times 'A gem of World War II history.' The astonishing true story of the middle-aged volunteers who carried out one of SOE's most audacious raids Boarding Party**xA0;tells the extraordinary true story behind one of the most daring and unconventional operations of the Second World War. In neutral Goa, a German merchant ship was secretly transmitting intelligence that enabled U-boats to attack Allied shipping across the Indian Ocean. The British knew the transmitter had to be silenced, but any overt action risked violating Portuguese neutrality and causing a diplomatic crisis. The solution came from an unexpected source. More than 1,400 miles away in Calcutta, a group of middle-aged bankers, businessmen and solicitors, veterans of the long-dormant Calcutta Light Horse, were recruited for a covert mission of remarkable audacity. Officially civilians, they would undertake a secret operation that professional soldiers could not. Drawing on firsthand accounts and extensive research, James Leasor recounts one of the war's most remarkable special operations, a story of courage, ingenuity and determination against seemingly impossible odds. First published in 1978,**xA0;Boarding Party**xA0;was adapted into the acclaimed film**xA0;The Sea Wolves, starring**xA0;Gregory Peck,**xA0;Roger Moore**xA0;and**xA0;David Niven. This edition includes a foreword by**xA0;Earl Mountbatten of Burma. Daily Mirror 'One of the most decisive actions in World War II was fought by fourteen out-of-conditions middle-aged men sailing in a steam barge...'.