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The Man Who Never Was ()

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In order to fool the Germans into thinking the Allied invasion of Sicily will take place elsewhere, British Military Intelligence comes up with a cunning ruse.
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Awards:
  • Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.
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Photos and Videos

83 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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Lt. Cmdr. Ewen Montagu
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Lucy Sherwood
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Lt. George Acres
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Pam
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Patrick O'Reilly
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Adm. Cross
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Gen. Nye
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The Father
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Taxi Driver
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Sir Bernard Spilsbury
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Gen. Cockburn
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Vice-Admiral
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Landlady
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Larry (as Terence Longden)
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Club Porter
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Scientist
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Joe
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Lt. Jewell
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Shop Assistant
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
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Adams (uncredited)
William Baskiville ...
M15 Agent (uncredited)
Gordon Bell ...
Customs Officer (uncredited)
Nigel Bernard ...
MI5 Agent (uncredited)
Michael Brill ...
Doctor (uncredited)
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French (uncredited)
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Consul Laurence (uncredited)
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Submariner (uncredited)
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German Agent (uncredited)
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Adm. Canaris (uncredited)
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Club Matron (uncredited)
Patrick Halpin ...
American Officer (uncredited)
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Passport Officer (uncredited)
Ewen Montagu ...
Air Marshal (uncredited)
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Wills Officer (uncredited)
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Secretary (uncredited)
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Sailor on Submarine (uncredited)
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German Colonel (uncredited)
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Clerk of British Embassy (uncredited)
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Winston Churchill (uncredited) (voice)
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Bank Manager (uncredited)
Peter Williams ...
Adm. Mountbatten (uncredited)

Directed by

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Ronald Neame

Written by

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Nigel Balchin ... (screenplay by)
 
Ewen Montagu ... (from the book by) (as The Hon. Ewen Montagu C.B.E. D.L. Q.C.)

Produced by

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André Hakim ... producer (produced by)
Bob McNaught ... associate producer

Music by

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Alan Rawsthorne

Cinematography by

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Oswald Morris ... director of photography

Editing by

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Peter Taylor

Art Direction by

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John Hawkesworth

Makeup Department

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Harold Fletcher ... makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Gerry O'Hara ... assistant director
Erica Masters ... assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Basil Fenton-Smith ... sound mixer
Winston Ryder ... dubbing editor
J.B. Smith ... sound mixer
John Aldred ... assistant dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by

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Tom Howard ... photographic effects

Camera and Electrical Department

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Arthur Ibbetson ... camera operator
Derek V. Browne ... clapper loader (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Sam Benson ... wardrobe supervisor (uncredited)

Music Department

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Muir Mathieson ... conductor

Additional Crew

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Theo Richmond ... publicity director (uncredited)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

British Intelligence during World War II is trying to get the German High Command to shift its forces away from Italy prior to the invasion. To create the illusion that Britain is in fact planning to invade Greece, they plan to procure a dead body, plant secret papers on it, and arrange for the Spanish authorities to find it and send the papers on to the Germans. That's the plan, anyway. First they have to find a body that will look drowned, then create an identity for it that will pass German scrutiny. Based on a true story. Written by John Vogel

Plot Keywords
Taglines The Strangest Military Hoax of World War II! See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • L'homme qui n'a jamais existé (France)
  • El hombre que nunca existió (Spain)
  • L'homme qui n'a jamais existé (Canada, French title)
  • Der Mann, den es nie gab (Austria)
  • O Homem que Nunca Existiu (Brazil)
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Runtime
  • 103 min
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Language
Color
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Filming Locations

Did You Know?

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Trivia In this movie, Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu (Clifton Webb) selects a man who had died of pneumonia, because the corpse would need to have similarly damaged lungs if it had really drowned. There is also a very emotional scene where the man's father is persuaded to allow his son to be used for the deception. In fact, a Welsh vagrant, both of whose parents were dead, was used, and his death was due to his committing suicide by ingesting rat poison. It was judged to make it almost impossible to tell that this, rather than drowning, was the real cause of death. The identity of "the man who never was" was a closely guarded secret until 1998, when it was discovered that he was called Glyndwr Michael. His grave in Huelva, Spain (near the beach at Punta Umbria) now uniquely carries both his fictional and real names. See more »
Goofs When the body is delivered to the submarine the naval party on the dock is called to attention by "Shun!" In the Royal Navy this is "Ho!" See more »
Movie Connections Featured in Episode #1.16 (1983). See more »
Soundtracks Bless 'em All See more »
Crazy Credits Military security and respect for a solemn promise have made it necessary to disguise the identity of some of the characters in this film; but in all other essentials this is the true story of "Major William Martin." See more »
Quotes [the military needs a dead body for counterintelligence]
Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu: I can assure you that this is an opportunity for your son to do a great thing for England.
The Father: My son, sir, was a Scotsman. Very proud of it.
Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu: I beg your pardon.
The Father: Never mind. We're used to that. You English always talk about England when you mean Britain.
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