For instance, they reveal he carried a poetry book called Other Men’s Flowers into battle – and SAS: Rogue Heroes does show this side of him, as we see Mayne reciting poetry in prison during the first episode. They fight to keep Paddy’s legacy alive, and are keen to point out that the ‘muscle for hire’ image many people remember him for doesn’t tell the full story. The government ignored the EDM’s call to ensure the Victoria Cross was reinstated, and the fight continues to this day, currently spearheaded by the Blair Paddy Mayne Twitter account which has become especially popular in the run-up to the release of SAS: Rogue Heroes. Others argue that downgrading a VC was a standard practice, and Mayne was not alone in receiving this treatment. Even SAS founder David Stirling (played by Connor Swindells in the drama) is said to have thought Mayne overstepped the mark at times, in particular when he reportedly gunned down up to 30 unarmed soldiers in the Libyan desert in 1941. This is certainly how he’s introduced in SAS: Rogue Heroes, breaking out of prison in Cairo by dispensing with not one but three soldiers with a wince-inducing ferocity.

Some say it’s down to Mayne’s reputation as a troublemaker (especially after drinking). It’s not known who took this decision, or why, but it remains a wartime controversy that is still ongoing. Jack O’Connell as Paddy Mayne (centre) with Jock Lewes (played by Alfie Allen) and David Stirling (played by Connor Swindells)Īnd yet six months later his Victoria Cross was downgraded to his fourth DSO instead.

His recommendation was supported by witness statements, including from Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, celebrating his ‘brilliant military leadership and cool calculating courage’. Some say Mayne was personally responsible for destroying 100 aircraft, and he’s reputed to have destroyed more German planes during the Second World War than the RAF’s top ace.Īfter one particularly perilous mission in Germany in 1945, in which Mayne drove a jeep – all guns blazing – in full view of the enemy to rescue two wounded comrades, clearing a path for a Canadian division to advance as he did so, he was recommended for the Victoria Cross. These earned him the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) with three bars (each of which are added to the original DSO), making him one of only seven British servicemen to receive this award four times during World War Two. He proved to be a gift to the newly formed SAS, pioneering the use of military jeeps to conduct surprise hit-and-run raids to destroy enemy aircraft and petrol dumps, and leading several successful missions, some of which we’ll see in the course of SAS: Rogue Heroes. A boxer, a Northern Ireland rugby star and reportedly an excellent shot, Robert Blair “Paddy” Mayne went into the Second World War with many ideal qualities for a soldier, and also had a reputation as a rambunctious personality.

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