What’s your favourite scene in The Great Escape? Let me know in the comments below! And just so you all know, mine has to be McQueen’s incredible ride across the fields to the ‘Swiss Border’, partly because he did a lot of the riding and didn’t hand it off to Bud Ekins, the stunt rider! Thanks for watching!
yes that motorcycle scene was fantastic, partly because of the incredible music. I love the scenes where they are making the moonshine and passing the cup around and gagging on it and just saying "Wow" in a hoarse voice. I loved the scenes with james garner and the great donald pleasence too
One of the greatest WWII movies, The Great Escape. Thanks for taking us to some of the most memorable filiming locations from the movie. I cant even count how many times Ive seen the Great Escape but the next time I watch it I will have a renewed appreciation for the movie thanks to you!
It’s a great film isn’t it and to be stood in the same locations was a real treat and until I started planning the episode I never realised just how many were located almost on top of each other! Thanks for watching
This movie holds a special place since I first viewed it w my dad at the age of 7.. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen it since. You’ve provided a special visit for those of us that appreciate such an effort. You’ve done a super job in all aspects. So many favorite scenes and if course all of the motorcycle scenes but I really enjoyed the moment when each them taste test the moonshine.. makes me laugh every time.
Glad you enjoyed it! And I know what you mean about it being a special movie. It was a big thrill to visit the locations knowing what was filmed there, especially as most today will walk past them and not realise the significance! Thank you for watching!
The Great Escape film has been one of my favorites ever since I first saw it in 1963 as a teenager and countless other times ever since. Now even my kids and grandkids also like watching this movie. I really enjoyed visiting those filming locations in your video. Thank you for your excellent work.
My dad was a big film fan and loved a good late afternoon or night film with his beer. I used to sneak down from bed and he would say 'Shhhh... be quiet and look at what happens next'. I became a film fan because of him. He loved, just like me, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis and many more. Mum too made me watch late night films with her. Great times, great films. Love The Great Escape, based loosley on a real event. Another Stalag 17, bloody hell...what a film! I have many hundreds of old films, including US, UK and French, they make fantastic films too. Thanks for showing this comparison then & now.
You’re welcome! So many good mementoes myself from watching these films so was great to film the location comparisons. Definitely from an era that conjures up great memories!
Thanks Mike it’s appreciated! I know McQueens character was fictional vs the real events at Stalagluft III but his ride makes for great cinema and holds it own even by todays standards in my opinion, plus the areas used for the filming make it quite unique and stunning!
You’re more than welcome Chris! Thanks for taking the time to watch it and don’t forget the locations are in the description if you get the chance to visit the area (I can recommend the beer!)
Having spent 17 months in Germany {US Army} Aug. '69-Dec.'70 I was able to visit several wonderful locations while there. Wonderful charm with locals to match. Incredible to say the least. I truly enjoyed this video I assure you. Five stars*****
That was great. Big thanks for taking us to all those locations. That movie changed my life. After watching it, I just had to go to Europe & southern Germany. 30 years later (1994), went to Munich, rented a motorcycle & rode through Bavaria & the Alps. Have returned about 13 times since. Still so much to see. Thanks for bringing back some great memories.
Many thanks for your superb video. I Thoroughly enjoyed travelling virtually with you to all of those locations of The Great Escape Film. It was also very interesting to see how close many of them were especially with the Attenborough scenes and to admire some of the beautiful scenery too. It was a shame though that the bar is long gone in the James Coburn scene where the Resistance shot the Germans which is one of my many favourite scenes.
Thanks for aWatching Simon and glad you enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun to make and to finally uncover the different places! I can only think they must have had a good time there filming in the summer! If you ever get the chance to visit Füssen or the surrounding area I can’t recommend it highly enough!
Wow! What an amazing video. I will never get to Europe but seeing these locations makes me want to watch the movie again just to see the filming locations. Great work!
Thank you! It’s a beautiful part of Germany and the producers defiantly picked some stunning spots to film, and funny to see how they switched angles on some to get multiple uses from one small part of the town! Thanks for watching and keep an eye out for another war film classic location episode out early next year!
Loved this. I was stationed in Germany in 62-65. Been to Neuschwanstein as this movie was being shot, and saw the final in an Army theater in Gablingen. I spent my Honeymoon in Fussen, below the castles, and the scene of the row boat outside of the town always brings a tear or two...This is my Meca, Thank you.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and it’s really interesting to see just how many of the locations are next to each other or in a very small area of Bavaria!
This is really cool! Really enjoyed looking at the map. Just so you know the location for 'Hilts At The First swiss border checkpoint' seems to be the same URL as that for 'Hilts's Barn'.
Thanks for watching! I’ll double check the locations although they are within a 3-4 minute drive of each other! Thanks for letting me know though. I probably need to make a proper map of all the locations and post it up!
If you will remember in one of my earlier comments when you asked what my father did in the Army Air Corps, I said that he and his best friend went by bus to Memphis to enlist. His best friend was Jerome Talmadge Caffey. He sighed up to be an air gunner on bombers. That was the last time my dad saw him. In 1988, the B17G Sentimental Journey landed at Hawkins field in Jackson, Mississippi, which I saw in the air and found out they were offering free tours of the bomber. So I got my dad and my 4 year old and we went through it. At the end, on our way back to the car, my dad broke down crying and told me that his friend Talmadge had been shot down during the war and had died. A couple of years later we got internet and there were an untold number of websites about units which had fought in WW2, and others asking the viewer to honor the fallen with a comment. Since I didn't think Talmadge had any descendants I would comment to memorialize him, along with honoring my dad. Then one day I discovered a website about his bomber unit which had a photo of him and his crew, so I signed the guest book. Within hours I received an email from a woman who over the course of a short time became a good friend. It seems that she knew of Talmadge by the name Jerome. The reason for that is in the military, everyone had to go by their first name for everything. He arrived in Minnesota where training took place and air crews were assembled. He became the best friend of my new friend's father who was a captain, but they were part of two different air crews. They went to England together. On the day that Jerome was to fly a bombing mission into Germany, his very first, his crew's plane was inoperable so they borrowed the plane that my new friend's father was assigned to. On the way, Jerome's plane flew over Caen and was shot down. Only one man jumped but was horribly burned as the B24 liberator was prone to do when hit. The next day her father had to borrow another B24, they flew to Berlin and after dropping their bombs and making a turn to port in order to cross the North Sea at a different location, her father's plane was also hit and all but one bailed out. They were incarcerated in the Luftwaffe POW camp in the American sector, where the Great Escape took place. In going through some of her father's belongings, she found an obituary for Jerome and in it she learned that Jerome married and had a son he never saw. She was able to find Jerry's (as the son was named) address and phone number. So I called him introducing myself as the son of your dad's best friend before they enlisted. We talked and I asked if he had anything of his from highvschool, but he did not, so I gathered everything I had of my dad's from high school, including year book and made copies of all of them and sent them to him. However, I never heard back from him, but I did hear from his half sister who said that he was thankful to have those photos but could not respond himself because talking to me just awoke all the sadness that he felt over never meeting his father. When I found out all of this, my dad did not know what had happened to Jerome's body and had assumed it had never been found. He had also just been sent to the local VA Dementia unit with far more wrong with him than just dementia. So I decided not to tell him in order not to confuse him farther. Later, I went to the cemetery that my grandparents were buried in at Duck Hill, Mississippi, and was walking just across the cemetery lane and I found where Jerome's remains had been returned and buried with one of those flat laying memorial plaques which my dad had never noticed. His plaque was the only flat laying memorial in the entire cemetery.
The locations are absolutely beautiful. The Great escape has been one of my favorites too. Thank you so much for your research and hard work, much appreciated.
You’re most welcome! It was a fun day filming there and even the research of tracking down certain spots was enjoyable trying to piece it together from the movie and google earth!
Thanks for the upload. I'm a Japanese big fan of this movie and Steve McQueen. I am impressed by the scenery that hasn't changed much since then. I want to go there someday, so I will refer to this video.
Thanks for watching and I’m pleased you enjoyed it! The area around Füssen is stunning and the locations were a lot of fun to find! If you plan a trip there let me know as I can help with recommending places to stay etc. Thanks again for watching!
What a brilliant and well researched video!Fell in love with that part of southern Germany a long time ago when I first saw the movie.Haven’t been yet,but will soon.Bravo!
I, like so many others who have commented below, love The Great Escape and have just bought the Definitive Edition DVD so I don't need to wait until Christmas every year. I was 5 years old on its release. I've loved this video. What a joy to see the locations as they are now compared to how they were then. Many thanks for making such a wonderful effort to find them and share them with us.
Thanks Paul! Hope it’s useful if you’re ever around the Füssen way (some of them took a long time to work out on Google Earth the night before😂) Hoping to do Where Eagles Dare next (although I can’t think of that now without Al Murray vigorously slapping his thighs 🤣🤣🤣)
Very well done - thank you! Having been to Bavaria some time ago I recognize many of the locations but had no idea they were integral in the film. Good job by the film makers to hide Neuschwanstein and to make it appear that this was the Pyrenees Mountains. The proximity of the boat escape location to the café shooting scenes is interesting.
Thanks Chuck. It was a lot of fun to find all the places and it really shows the magic of Hollywood when you realise just how close most of the locations are to each other, but then they pick random ones that are really out the way like Sedgwick stealing the bike, it’s a fair distance north of Munich! Thanks for watching!
Just loved your video on the filming locations of the Great Escape. When I was in Germany about ten years ago, I too was at "Hilt's Barn" & one that you did not video...the plane crash site. They were fun locations to find back then and many thanks for posting the map locations. Having watch this movie many times over the years, one thing I would like to point out is the stolen German aircraft trainer that James Gardner & Donald Pleasence "steal" in order to fly over the alps to Switzerland. Unfortunately, is not a Messerschmitt 108 as you mentioned at 37:50, it is a Bucker BU 181 Bestmann. Bob Relyea, second unit director actually flew the plane (he doubled for Gardner wearing a wig) and performed the crash scene which was the final bit of filming before the crew returned to the USA. Again Great job!
this movie location search was fantastic. Perhaps incorporating some merged or side-by-side "then and now" shots would have been more effective than verbal narration.
23:27 this scene was the one thing I remember the most when it comes to my favorite McQueen film. The way the camera panned from the truck to the soldiers waiting was so perfectly done that I still imagine it in my mind everyday. Everytime I turn a blind corner in my truck, I just imagine this scene.
Love this. I can not get over how that railway station looks now. Such a stark contrast. Sad really. Seeing these locations, its sad to say that modernisation has taken character away from these locations. Its a pity the weather wasn't sunny as it was in the movie...
well done video , I was in that area in the early 90's and did not know this was filmed there 😪 if you get to Italy , do one on Operation Colossus , the first British combat parachute drop February 1941 Tragino Italy . Granddad was a member of X Troop No2 Commando/II SAS who made the mission...
Thanks for watching! At least now if you get the chance to go back to Bavaria you’ve got the links to the exact spots!😉 I’d love to cover Operation Colossus at some point given it’s significance for Airborne operations! And what a family history having your grandfather take part in it! I’ll forever be grateful for what that generation acheived
Absolutely brilliant and extremely informative. I hope to be able to follow in your footsteps later this year and your great work will make my mission a little easier Thanks once again 👍
Thank you so much, im sure your hard work will aid me greatly I bet you had a great time finding the film locations, i plan a visit around September. I also hope to visit Berchesgarten, Hitlers Eagles Nest and Hohenwerfen Castle if possible during this time. My favourite scenes in The Great Escape are also Steve McQueens motorbike escape attempt and also the pursuit of Mac and Big X which sadly results in their recapture.
@@davidmurphy3465 it was great fun, although a couple took ages scrolling google maps to find but well worth it! It’s such a great film and I’ve watched it for years so to actually see the places for real was really nice. Enjoy your trip in September and the Oktoberfest beers that are for sale around that time!
@@WW2Wayfinder that was another reason for that time of year, i have a friend who is from Scotland who has offered to come assist in the location find, hes a massive fan too and has been numerous times as hes Bavaria based. How long were you there for and did you fly into Munich?
Great job. I couldn't stop watching. I used the names on the stores and bars to track down the spots on Google Maps. Like the James Coburn machine gun site... and the final arrest of Attenborough.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and I was really surprised when I was filming it just how close together some locations were and how they edit it all together to make the place appear bigger than it really was!
You’re most welcome! Glad you enjoyed it! I’ve got plans to eventually do a couple more of these for other classic war movies in the future so keep an eye out for them 😃
Very well done. It always amazes me that hardly ever these locations, town, cities, mention (or 'cash in' on) their connection to these classic movies. Small signs, walking route, etc.
Thank you! I agree it would be great to see a trail that commemorates the filming there. Sadly like all things WW2 in Germany they’d rather pretend it didn’t happen and I think that the same can be said for the film which is a shame.
Oh Wow.. Thoroughly enjoyed that , I've always loved the film and too see the locations is just fantastic.. Well done indeed for taking the time to make this video. You have done a fantastic job.
@@WW2Wayfinder Fantastic. My friend and I last summer did a charity run into Europe to visit as many World War 2 battle sites. We also managed to fit in some film locations along the way.. Looking forward to your next video. Thanks.
Would like to see the hut fenced off as a tourist attraction to the great film. McQueen dressed in a German uniform and holding a Luger was a memorable scene.
You and I have the old war movies in common. Nothing makes me more relaxed than a day on the sofa watching old war movies. I get it from Dad who turned me on to many if them, and we have have Turner Classic Movies in America that play the old movies. I own probably 65 of my favorite old war movies. If you ever get to Austria, I would like to see the filming locations of Where Eagles Dare, if your familiar with it. The location and the castle make the movie so dramatic. Thanks again for your hard work !
Great video, you hit upon a pet-peeve of mine , here in Canada they let centuries old barns fall to nothingness , 200 yr old train stations made of irreplacable stone to ruin , instead of utilizing these buildings and repair and make for another use!
I’m not a huge fan of change especially when the term ‘progress’ is used so seeing the changes to these locations can be very frustrating as sometimes no logical reason is apparent and who ever did the design work hasn’t made the place look nicer, like the town square where the bike is taken. It looks like a dump now compared to 1963 when the movie was made! Thanks for taking the time to watch!
thanks for posting this very interesting . Shows how that great film left a mark on me. I was ten when this came out and dad took me to see it . then dad beening a carpenter built me a small hut and i dug a small tunnel under it with a trap door ha ha . Watched the film again after you film 60 years of watching the great escape.Take care.
Absolutely right! I should have mentioned it when I was there but I got a bit carried away with it all! He also did the crash scene on the road when Hilts first gets the bike didn’t he?
Thanks for the very informative video. I haven't been to Fusen but have travelled by train from Munich to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, before I was aware of where exactly the exterior scenes were filmed, I couldn't help notice the similarity of the landscapes visible from the train with the movie. I think it was the undulating green fields with those huts, and the mountains in the background. I've also visited Zagan and the camp site which is virtually right next to the town's railway station.
I lived in Germany 1984-1988. Never saw anything overgrown and tagged with spray paint like that train station. Re-enforces what I have heard about Germany declining. So sad. Love the then and now revisits. Very good job considering how much some of the locations/buildings have changed.
It’s sad to see as it used to be quite a nice area and just up the road are some big gated houses so I was quite surprised to see the state of it! Definitely looked better back in the day!
It’s was a lot of fun to track them all down! The shed is actually marked on Google Maps as the Great Escape Shed I think so I got lucky on that one but the ‘Swiss Border’ crossing where he turns his bike around and rides up the hill took over an hour to find and it’s just round the corner from the shed!!!!!
Thankyou so much as you said at the beginning. I'm also an avid viewer of British ww11 films and British films in General .also love Germany to great country. Will join and watch more thankyou again .👍
It was a lot of fun tracking down the different locations but you’re not wrong, some were a head scratcher for a while! I think the Swiss Border scene where McQueen rides up there on his bike then speeds off up a hill took a good hour to work out the spot on Google Earth! I’ve got another similar episode planned for next year on another favourite war film!
Thank you for this! Been watching”The Great Escape” since I was a kid & always wondered about the locations. Have been to Germany twice (for Oktoberfest) but never had/took the time to look up filming locations. Did see the Bavaria Atelier Studios where the set of “Das Boot” still resides. Thank you Dear Sir!!!
Glad you enjoyed it! If you’re able to get back it’s relatively straight forward to get to Füssen and it’s a lovely town to walk around as well as the surrounding area. The film studios are great aren’t they! I did the tour early last year and loved walking through the U-Boat, really makes you realise how good Das Boot was when you see how they filmed it!!
Great to see this! remember watching this movie with my dad, it was his favorite and now it's mine! funny thing, at 4:25 you mentioned the small town pullach, was there on a school trip in the early 90s! my favorite scene in the movie, when steve is crossing the fields and made that jump over the fence(well, not really himself)!
Glad you enjoyed it! Was a lot of fun to make and visit the places I’d grown up watching! Pullach was interesting to find the locations there. The train station has changed a lot since they filmed there!!!
@@WW2Wayfinder it was interesting to see this! another fun fakt, in the movie the train station is called neustadt, it's the name of my hometown here in the north of germany😉 i can imagine that a lot has changed since shooting the movie!
That’s cool! I’ll be honest the area does seem to have lost its charm that comes across in the movie which is a shame. With the train station closing down the area just looks run down and dirty unfortunately
On another note..I live in NE Ohio USA. I’ve visited the USS Cod Submarine in Cleveland twice. I’ve sat in a B17, B29, B24, and stood on the first step up to a P51.. all of it an honor. I’m returning to the USS North Carolina in four weeks. I don’t have the wherewithal to cross “the pond” and see these places you take us. But, I’ll be thinking of you when I’m deep in the belly of the great Battleship this September. It’s incumbent on us to carry the past forward.. you my friend are doing a Holy thing.
Now that would be cool to see. I love WW2 Battleships as they are incredible pieces of maritime engineering! I always enjoy visiting HMS Belfast in London given the ships history it’s a great experience! I’ve still got to add the B-29 and B-24 to my list! I’ve gotten close but never been inside either.
@@WW2Wayfinder the Christmas markets are the biggest reason we are going. We will be going to different parts of Germany. Going to experience the Krampus run in Munich.
Excellent tour and details. I was hoping you'd visit the Garner-Pleasance aircraft crash site, but no matter, still a terrific report! The best I've seen.
I didn’t have time sadly but not to say I won’t at a later date. I know the location I just couldn’t fit it all in sadly! One other spot I wanted to find was the road you see in the opening credits but that was quite some distance away and wasn’t practical, but maybe for another trip!
Great work Sir. Bravo... Truly a herculean task. Best wishes from an Englishman restoring medieval armour in a Resistance house in a French forest. ⚔️🇬🇧⚔️
@@WW2Wayfinder Re living in France, I will sit on my hands! 🙈😂 That said... you are welcome any time, but bring warm socks! 👍🏻SUBSCRIBED PS: If you know any one who wants to swap a sea-mine for two SC1000 'Hermann' tails please let me know. (deactivated of course). Stolen from a German goods train at Le Gare de Malestroit with a view to sell as scrap in 45, but used as planters instead. When I excavated them in 2017 I was told by the owner to dig carefully as she remembered burying two crates of stick-grenades just underneath!!
@@nigelcarren oh wow! I can ask around as I know a few people! But that’s precisely why I’d want to live in France 😉 Thanks for subscribing too! Hope you like the other videos on the channel!
Favorite scene? So many but I like the tense scenes where each POW escapees emerge from the tunnel hole, just beyond the prison fence line,and then run off into the woods.
A marvellous video! I’m now very much looking forward to my next visit to Germany. A number of years ago I travelled to Werfen in Austria to check out many of the locations of that other great 60s movie “Where Eagles Dare”.
Fantastic! Hope it’s a great trip! And keep an eye out as Where Eagles Dare is my favourite of all time so I have something planned for early next year 😉😃
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What’s your favourite scene in The Great Escape? Let me know in the comments below!
And just so you all know, mine has to be McQueen’s incredible ride across the fields to the ‘Swiss Border’, partly because he did a lot of the riding and didn’t hand it off to Bud Ekins, the stunt rider!
Thanks for watching!
My favorite scene is the dialogue/confrontation between S.McQueen and Hannes Messemer
@@marcoschwarz3763 those are some great scenes. Incredible to think he served at Stalingrad during the war!
@@WW2Wayfinder I didn't know that,thanks for the information 👍
Every single scene with Steve McQueen but especially the motorcycle scene.
yes that motorcycle scene was fantastic, partly because of the incredible music. I love the scenes where they are making the moonshine and passing the cup around and gagging on it and just saying "Wow" in a hoarse voice. I loved the scenes with james garner and the great donald pleasence too
One of the greatest WWII movies, The Great Escape. Thanks for taking us to some of the most memorable filiming locations from the movie. I cant even count how many times Ive seen the Great Escape but the next time I watch it I will have a renewed appreciation for the movie thanks to you!
It’s a great film isn’t it and to be stood in the same locations was a real treat and until I started planning the episode I never realised just how many were located almost on top of each other!
Thanks for watching
This movie holds a special place since I first viewed it w my dad at the age of 7.. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen it since. You’ve provided a special visit for those of us that appreciate such an effort. You’ve done a super job in all aspects. So many favorite scenes and if course all of the motorcycle scenes but I really enjoyed the moment when each them taste test the moonshine.. makes me laugh every time.
Glad you enjoyed it! And I know what you mean about it being a special movie. It was a big thrill to visit the locations knowing what was filmed there, especially as most today will walk past them and not realise the significance!
Thank you for watching!
Watched the movie again last night. Thanks for showing these locations. In 1963 when I was 7 yrs old The Great Escape was my first exposure to WW2.
The Great Escape film has been one of my favorites ever since I first saw it in 1963 as a teenager and countless other times ever since. Now even my kids and grandkids also like watching this movie. I really enjoyed visiting those filming locations in your video. Thank you for your excellent work.
Thank you! It’s a timeless classic and it was quite the day to be able to find all the places I could from the film! Thanks for watching!
My dad was a big film fan and loved a good late afternoon or night film with his beer. I used to sneak down from bed and he would say 'Shhhh... be quiet and look at what happens next'. I became a film fan because of him. He loved, just like me, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis and many more. Mum too made me watch late night films with her. Great times, great films. Love The Great Escape, based loosley on a real event. Another Stalag 17, bloody hell...what a film! I have many hundreds of old films, including US, UK and French, they make fantastic films too. Thanks for showing this comparison then & now.
You’re welcome! So many good mementoes myself from watching these films so was great to film the location comparisons. Definitely from an era that conjures up great memories!
enjoying the content of your videos. This is a very good movie with lots of good scenes, but my favorite scene is also McQueen's ride.
Thanks Mike it’s appreciated!
I know McQueens character was fictional vs the real events at Stalagluft III but his ride makes for great cinema and holds it own even by todays standards in my opinion, plus the areas used for the filming make it quite unique and stunning!
Absolutely loved watching this since I just finished the film. Great job, fun and so informative!
Awesome! Thank you!
Great and interesting video. Thankyou for posting. Really interesting
You’re more than welcome Chris! Thanks for taking the time to watch it and don’t forget the locations are in the description if you get the chance to visit the area (I can recommend the beer!)
Great video. Iconic film and probably one of the reasons why I moved to Austria.
Thank you! Hoping to have one out about where Eagles Dare soon too!
Having spent 17 months in Germany {US Army} Aug. '69-Dec.'70 I was able to visit several wonderful locations while there. Wonderful charm with locals to match. Incredible to say the least. I truly enjoyed this video I assure you. Five stars*****
Thank you! Germany is a beautiful place isn’t it! And the beer is enjoyable too!🍻
The dark beer at Christmas time was unforgettable. @@WW2Wayfinder
That was great. Big thanks for taking us to all those locations. That movie changed my life. After watching it, I just had to go to Europe & southern Germany. 30 years later (1994), went to Munich, rented a motorcycle & rode through Bavaria & the Alps. Have returned about 13 times since. Still so much to see. Thanks for bringing back some great memories.
Glad you enjoyed it, it’s such a great place to visit isn’t it!
Many thanks for your superb video. I Thoroughly enjoyed travelling virtually with you to all of those locations of The Great Escape Film. It was also very interesting to see how close many of them were especially with the Attenborough scenes and to admire some of the beautiful scenery too.
It was a shame though that the bar is long gone in the James Coburn scene where the Resistance shot the Germans which is one of my many favourite scenes.
Thanks for aWatching Simon and glad you enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun to make and to finally uncover the different places!
I can only think they must have had a good time there filming in the summer!
If you ever get the chance to visit Füssen or the surrounding area I can’t recommend it highly enough!
Great job! Very interesting.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it. It was a great experience to see all the locations so thank you for watching!
Wow! What an amazing video. I will never get to Europe but seeing these locations makes me want to watch the movie again just to see the filming locations. Great work!
Thank you! It’s a beautiful part of Germany and the producers defiantly picked some stunning spots to film, and funny to see how they switched angles on some to get multiple uses from one small part of the town!
Thanks for watching and keep an eye out for another war film classic location episode out early next year!
Loved this. I was stationed in Germany in 62-65. Been to Neuschwanstein as this movie was being shot, and saw the final in an Army theater in Gablingen. I spent my Honeymoon in Fussen, below the castles, and the scene of the row boat outside of the town always brings a tear or two...This is my Meca, Thank you.
Oh perfect! Glad I was able to show you that area again! It’s amazing there isn’t it.
One of the first films I saw in the theatre. Very cool then and now, thank you
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and it’s really interesting to see just how many of the locations are next to each other or in a very small area of Bavaria!
This is really cool! Really enjoyed looking at the map. Just so you know the location for 'Hilts At The First swiss border checkpoint' seems to be the same URL as that for 'Hilts's Barn'.
Thanks for watching!
I’ll double check the locations although they are within a 3-4 minute drive of each other! Thanks for letting me know though. I probably need to make a proper map of all the locations and post it up!
All fixed, the proper link is there now! Thanks J W!
If you will remember in one of my earlier comments when you asked what my father did in the Army Air Corps, I said that he and his best friend went by bus to Memphis to enlist. His best friend was Jerome Talmadge Caffey. He sighed up to be an air gunner on bombers. That was the last time my dad saw him. In 1988, the B17G Sentimental Journey landed at Hawkins field in Jackson, Mississippi, which I saw in the air and found out they were offering free tours of the bomber. So I got my dad and my 4 year old and we went through it. At the end, on our way back to the car, my dad broke down crying and told me that his friend Talmadge had been shot down during the war and had died. A couple of years later we got internet and there were an untold number of websites about units which had fought in WW2, and others asking the viewer to honor the fallen with a comment. Since I didn't think Talmadge had any descendants I would comment to memorialize him, along with honoring my dad. Then one day I discovered a website about his bomber unit which had a photo of him and his crew, so I signed the guest book. Within hours I received an email from a woman who over the course of a short time became a good friend. It seems that she knew of Talmadge by the name Jerome. The reason for that is in the military, everyone had to go by their first name for everything.
He arrived in Minnesota where training took place and air crews were assembled. He became the best friend of my new friend's father who was a captain, but they were part of two different air crews. They went to England together. On the day that Jerome was to fly a bombing mission into Germany, his very first, his crew's plane was inoperable so they borrowed the plane that my new friend's father was assigned to. On the way, Jerome's plane flew over Caen and was shot down. Only one man jumped but was horribly burned as the B24 liberator was prone to do when hit.
The next day her father had to borrow another B24, they flew to Berlin and after dropping their bombs and making a turn to port in order to cross the North Sea at a different location, her father's plane was also hit and all but one bailed out. They were incarcerated in the Luftwaffe POW camp in the American sector, where the Great Escape took place.
In going through some of her father's belongings, she found an obituary for Jerome and in it she learned that Jerome married and had a son he never saw. She was able to find Jerry's (as the son was named) address and phone number. So I called him introducing myself as the son of your dad's best friend before they enlisted. We talked and I asked if he had anything of his from highvschool, but he did not, so I gathered everything I had of my dad's from high school, including year book and made copies of all of them and sent them to him. However, I never heard back from him, but I did hear from his half sister who said that he was thankful to have those photos but could not respond himself because talking to me just awoke all the sadness that he felt over never meeting his father.
When I found out all of this, my dad did not know what had happened to Jerome's body and had assumed it had never been found. He had also just been sent to the local VA Dementia unit with far more wrong with him than just dementia. So I decided not to tell him in order not to confuse him farther. Later, I went to the cemetery that my grandparents were buried in at Duck Hill, Mississippi, and was walking just across the cemetery lane and I found where Jerome's remains had been returned and buried with one of those flat laying memorial plaques which my dad had never noticed. His plaque was the only flat laying memorial in the entire cemetery.
The locations are absolutely beautiful. The Great escape has been one of my favorites too. Thank you so much for your research and hard work, much appreciated.
You’re most welcome! It was a fun day filming there and even the research of tracking down certain spots was enjoyable trying to piece it together from the movie and google earth!
Thanks for the upload.
I'm a Japanese big fan of this movie and Steve McQueen. I am impressed by the scenery that hasn't changed much since then. I want to go there someday, so I will refer to this video.
Thanks for watching and I’m pleased you enjoyed it! The area around Füssen is stunning and the locations were a lot of fun to find!
If you plan a trip there let me know as I can help with recommending places to stay etc.
Thanks again for watching!
1963 when I was 7 years old this movie was my introduction to WW2.
What a brilliant and well researched video!Fell in love with that part of southern Germany a long time ago when I first saw the movie.Haven’t been yet,but will soon.Bravo!
I, like so many others who have commented below, love The Great Escape and have just bought the Definitive Edition DVD so I don't need to wait until Christmas every year. I was 5 years old on its release. I've loved this video. What a joy to see the locations as they are now compared to how they were then. Many thanks for making such a wonderful effort to find them and share them with us.
Great documentary.I've seen the film over 100 times .
Thank you! Was great fun tracking down the locations!
Favourite scene: when Steve uses the wire to get the motorbike and rides off on it. Wonderful.
Great stuff Jon, on my bucket list
Thanks Paul! Hope it’s useful if you’re ever around the Füssen way (some of them took a long time to work out on Google Earth the night before😂)
Hoping to do Where Eagles Dare next (although I can’t think of that now without Al Murray vigorously slapping his thighs 🤣🤣🤣)
Very well done - thank you! Having been to Bavaria some time ago I recognize many of the locations but had no idea they were integral in the film. Good job by the film makers to hide Neuschwanstein and to make it appear that this was the Pyrenees Mountains. The proximity of the boat escape location to the café shooting scenes is interesting.
Thanks Chuck. It was a lot of fun to find all the places and it really shows the magic of Hollywood when you realise just how close most of the locations are to each other, but then they pick random ones that are really out the way like Sedgwick stealing the bike, it’s a fair distance north of Munich!
Thanks for watching!
Just loved your video on the filming locations of the Great Escape. When I was in Germany about ten years ago, I too was at "Hilt's Barn" & one that you did not video...the plane crash site. They were fun locations to find back then and many thanks for posting the map locations. Having watch this movie many times over the years, one thing I would like to point out is the stolen German aircraft trainer that James Gardner & Donald Pleasence "steal" in order to fly over the alps to Switzerland. Unfortunately, is not a Messerschmitt 108 as you mentioned at 37:50, it is a Bucker BU 181 Bestmann. Bob Relyea, second unit director actually flew the plane (he doubled for Gardner wearing a wig) and performed the crash scene which was the final bit of filming before the crew returned to the USA. Again Great job!
this movie location search was fantastic. Perhaps incorporating some merged or side-by-side "then and now" shots would have been more effective than verbal narration.
All planned for the next one 😉
Superb
Thanks for sharing this really enjoyed it
You’re most welcome!
23:27 this scene was the one thing I remember the most when it comes to my favorite McQueen film. The way the camera panned from the truck to the soldiers waiting was so perfectly done that I still imagine it in my mind everyday. Everytime I turn a blind corner in my truck, I just imagine this scene.
Love this. I can not get over how that railway station looks now. Such a stark contrast. Sad really.
Seeing these locations, its sad to say that modernisation has taken character away from these locations. Its a pity the weather wasn't sunny as it was in the movie...
Absoluelty agree! I think given how poopular the film is, to then see how time has taken it's toll on some places is quite sad.
Thank You for Presenting my Favourite Movie where our Great Hero Steve Mc Queen whom we remember him always
You’re most welcome!
well done video , I was in that area in the early 90's and did not know this was filmed there 😪 if you get to Italy , do one on Operation Colossus , the first British combat parachute drop February 1941 Tragino Italy . Granddad was a member of X Troop No2 Commando/II SAS who made the mission...
Thanks for watching! At least now if you get the chance to go back to Bavaria you’ve got the links to the exact spots!😉
I’d love to cover Operation Colossus at some point given it’s significance for Airborne operations! And what a family history having your grandfather take part in it! I’ll forever be grateful for what that generation acheived
Absolutely brilliant and extremely informative.
I hope to be able to follow in your footsteps later this year and your great work will make my mission a little easier
Thanks once again 👍
Thanks David! Glad you enjoyed it and I hope the google map links help out!
Thank you so much, im sure your hard work will aid me greatly
I bet you had a great time finding the film locations, i plan a visit around September.
I also hope to visit Berchesgarten, Hitlers Eagles Nest and Hohenwerfen Castle if possible during this time.
My favourite scenes in The Great Escape are also Steve McQueens motorbike escape attempt and also the pursuit of Mac and Big X which sadly results in their recapture.
@@davidmurphy3465 it was great fun, although a couple took ages scrolling google maps to find but well worth it! It’s such a great film and I’ve watched it for years so to actually see the places for real was really nice. Enjoy your trip in September and the Oktoberfest beers that are for sale around that time!
@@WW2Wayfinder that was another reason for that time of year, i have a friend who is from Scotland who has offered to come assist in the location find, hes a massive fan too and has been numerous times as hes Bavaria based.
How long were you there for and did you fly into Munich?
Nice one! You’ll have a great time! I love Bavarian beer, some of the best there is!
Great job. I couldn't stop watching. I used the names on the stores and bars to track down the spots on Google Maps. Like the James Coburn machine gun site... and the final arrest of Attenborough.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and I was really surprised when I was filming it just how close together some locations were and how they edit it all together to make the place appear bigger than it really was!
GREAT ! ..... Thank you....
" GREAT" VIDIO & THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME, $ /£ and trip!
You’re most welcome! Glad you enjoyed it!
I’ve got plans to eventually do a couple more of these for other classic war movies in the future so keep an eye out for them 😃
Very well done. It always amazes me that hardly ever these locations, town, cities, mention (or 'cash in' on) their connection to these classic movies. Small signs, walking route, etc.
Thank you!
I agree it would be great to see a trail that commemorates the filming there. Sadly like all things WW2 in Germany they’d rather pretend it didn’t happen and I think that the same can be said for the film which is a shame.
one of my all time fav films !! that was fantastic !!! thank you so much !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Glad you enjoyed it!
@@WW2Wayfinder lovely to see !!! and some places haven't changed that much !! beautiful !!
So much has changed makes me feel old.
Oh Wow.. Thoroughly enjoyed that , I've always loved the film and too see the locations is just fantastic.. Well done indeed for taking the time to make this video. You have done a fantastic job.
Thank you!
I’m currently filming for another well known and loved war film which should be out around April time!
@@WW2Wayfinder Fantastic. My friend and I last summer did a charity run into Europe to visit as many World War 2 battle sites. We also managed to fit in some film locations along the way..
Looking forward to your next video.
Thanks.
Thanks!
Wow thank you so so much for the support! I really do appreciate it!
Thank you for this. Really great. Thank you for taking the time to bring this to us. Great stuff
Excellent !! I love then and now historical video's ! Thank you !
Thank you! I’m fortunate I’m able to share my passion with likeminded people. Thank you for watching!
Would like to see the hut fenced off as a tourist attraction to the great film. McQueen dressed in a German uniform and holding a Luger was a memorable scene.
Agreed! The whole area would really benefit from plaques/info boards at each spot as it would make a great trail for people to follow!
You and I have the old war movies in common. Nothing makes me more relaxed than a day on the sofa watching old war movies. I get it from Dad who turned me on to many if them, and we have have Turner Classic Movies in America that play the old movies. I own probably 65 of my favorite old war movies. If you ever get to Austria, I would like to see the filming locations of Where Eagles Dare, if your familiar with it. The location and the castle make the movie so dramatic. Thanks again for your hard work !
Very familiar with Where Eagles Dare! And keep an eye out for something related to that very film later this year! 😉
Watched the film again last night and so this was very interesting to watch. Thank You.
Oh wonderful! It’s great isn’t it. Certainly a timeless classic!
I just love your work and enjoyed every minute with all the great then and now. Stay safe in your travels.
Thank you! I’m planning to have another movie location episode out in the next couple of months focusing on Where Eagles Dare.
You do a great job with your videos.
Thank you!! I really appreciate that! I have a couple more movie then and now/location type episodes planned which I hope you’ll enjoy!
Great video, you hit upon a pet-peeve of mine , here in Canada they let centuries old barns fall to nothingness , 200 yr old train stations made of irreplacable stone to ruin , instead of utilizing these buildings and repair and make for another use!
I’m not a huge fan of change especially when the term ‘progress’ is used so seeing the changes to these locations can be very frustrating as sometimes no logical reason is apparent and who ever did the design work hasn’t made the place look nicer, like the town square where the bike is taken. It looks like a dump now compared to 1963 when the movie was made!
Thanks for taking the time to watch!
classic film, great video paying tribute to the film.
Thank you!
thanks for posting this very interesting . Shows how that great film left a mark on me. I was ten when this came out and dad took me to see it . then dad beening a carpenter built me a small hut and i dug a small tunnel under it with a trap door ha ha . Watched the film again after you film 60 years of watching the great escape.Take care.
You're very welcome
Mcqueen never made that jump. His friend & stunt driver, Bud Ekins, made the actual jump seen on film.
Absolutely right! I should have mentioned it when I was there but I got a bit carried away with it all! He also did the crash scene on the road when Hilts first gets the bike didn’t he?
@@WW2Wayfinderhe was also one of the German motorcyclists chasing him(self)
McQueen was not allowed to make the jump due to insurance regulations so it fell to a stunt driver.
Thanks. Great work. Loved the video. You've made me go back and listen to Elmer Bernstein's cracking score once again...
Glad you enjoyed it and the music is wonderful isn’t it! Often find myself whistling it without even realising it! Thanks for watching!
Watched this film about 25 times...So many talented actors in this film...We all know Bud Eakins made the jump...
It’s a great film isn’t it! Every time I think Hilts is going to make it to Switzerland!🫣
Thanks for the very informative video. I haven't been to Fusen but have travelled by train from Munich to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, before I was aware of where exactly the exterior scenes were filmed, I couldn't help notice the similarity of the landscapes visible from the train with the movie. I think it was the undulating green fields with those huts, and the mountains in the background. I've also visited Zagan and the camp site which is virtually right next to the town's railway station.
Yeah, this is the episode that won me over to you- well done!
Wonderful video !! Thank you so much for all your travel to all these incredible locations .
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully the next one will be for Where Eagles Dare!
I lived in Germany 1984-1988. Never saw anything overgrown and tagged with spray paint like that train station. Re-enforces what I have heard about Germany declining. So sad. Love the then and now revisits. Very good job considering how much some of the locations/buildings have changed.
It’s sad to see as it used to be quite a nice area and just up the road are some big gated houses so I was quite surprised to see the state of it! Definitely looked better back in the day!
This was awesome..thanks for taking the time on your holiday.. I can’t believe that the wooden shack is still there!
It’s was a lot of fun to track them all down!
The shed is actually marked on Google Maps as the Great Escape Shed I think so I got lucky on that one but the ‘Swiss Border’ crossing where he turns his bike around and rides up the hill took over an hour to find and it’s just round the corner from the shed!!!!!
@@WW2Wayfinder Still pretty good 60 years later!Thanks again👍🏻👍🏻.
Thankyou so much as you said at the beginning. I'm also an avid viewer of British ww11 films and British films in General .also love Germany to great country. Will join and watch more thankyou again .👍
Thank you!!!
Glad you enjoyed it and i have another one planned for later this year so keep an eye out for that!
Thanks again for watching!
THE GREAT ESCAPE is a great movie. Thank for this.
It’s wonderful isn’t it! I’m hoping to do a similar one in January for another we’ll know war movie😃
Excellent! Would love to see the stills from movie overlayed on the current day shots :) Following and subscribed.
Agreed. It’s a shame this wasn’t done being that it took so much effort and time to locate the original locations.
This is awesome. Thank you making this video.
You’re most welcome! Thank you for watching!
Great video! It’s not a popular “cult” family film. It is a family classic for millions. I watched it in the 1960’s with millions of others.
Excellent work! I cannot imagine the difficulty you had finding these places, especially given the change over 60 years.
It was a lot of fun tracking down the different locations but you’re not wrong, some were a head scratcher for a while! I think the Swiss Border scene where McQueen rides up there on his bike then speeds off up a hill took a good hour to work out the spot on Google Earth!
I’ve got another similar episode planned for next year on another favourite war film!
This is my favorite movie and I don't really have a favorite scene just love seeing some of the best actors of the Era in a fine movie
Amazing, what a job you did putting this lot together, loved every minute of this, well done job, thanks for sharing this with us all
Thank you! I’ve got a couple more location episodes I plan to do on some of my other favourite war films so keep an eye out for those!
look forward to them @@WW2Wayfinder
It was the best war movie I have ever seen
The best video I’ve seen about the Great Escape. Very informative,Well Done!
Thank you Alan, that’s very kind of you to say and I really appreciate it! It was great fun to film! My next movie special will be Where Eagles Dare!
Wow, excellent video content on the 60th anniversary of the film, thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it! It’s such an iconic movie and to visit the field where the jump took place was quite something!
What a superb video! Thanks.
You’re most welcome and thank you for watching.
Excellent work.
I'm riding down there in a month. Not a Triumph, but 2 wheels.
Thank you 👍
Fantastic! Hope you have a great time there and just in time for the decent weather too!
Really injoyed this video sir one of the greatest film ever made
Thank you! I’ll have another similar episode out in January focusing on another classic war film which I hope you’ll enjoy!
Thank you for this! Been watching”The Great Escape” since I was a kid & always wondered about the locations. Have been to Germany twice (for Oktoberfest) but never had/took the time to look up filming locations. Did see the Bavaria Atelier Studios where the set of “Das Boot” still resides.
Thank you Dear Sir!!!
Glad you enjoyed it! If you’re able to get back it’s relatively straight forward to get to Füssen and it’s a lovely town to walk around as well as the surrounding area.
The film studios are great aren’t they! I did the tour early last year and loved walking through the U-Boat, really makes you realise how good Das Boot was when you see how they filmed it!!
I enjoyed the video, beautiful locations 😄
Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for watching
Absolutely brilliant. Great job. Thoroughly enjoyed it👏🏻
Thank you!!!
A great job. Thanks.
Very interesting. Thanks for putting this together.
You’re most welcome! Thank you for watching!
Fantastic video tour of the filming sites! Well done.
Thank you Patrick, glad you enjoyed it!
@@WW2Wayfinder The Great Escape, Where Eagles Dare and Kelly's Heroes are my favorite WII films.
@@patrickcotter5629 likewise! Hoping to do a similar episode for Where Eagles Dare this coming winter!
@@WW2Wayfinder That would be awesome!
@@patrickcotter5629 I wanted to do it the winter just gone but there was no snow! Can’t be Where Eagles Dare without snow!!!!
Great to see this! remember watching this movie with my dad, it was his favorite and now it's mine! funny thing, at 4:25 you mentioned the small town pullach, was there on a school trip in the early 90s! my favorite scene in the movie, when steve is crossing the fields and made that jump over the fence(well, not really himself)!
Glad you enjoyed it! Was a lot of fun to make and visit the places I’d grown up watching! Pullach was interesting to find the locations there. The train station has changed a lot since they filmed there!!!
@@WW2Wayfinder it was interesting to see this! another fun fakt, in the movie the train station is called neustadt, it's the name of my hometown here in the north of germany😉 i can imagine that a lot has changed since shooting the movie!
That’s cool!
I’ll be honest the area does seem to have lost its charm that comes across in the movie which is a shame. With the train station closing down the area just looks run down and dirty unfortunately
Very interesting an thank you. Í´m a fan of Thais fantastic film as a young boy. Today I take my bike an visit the places.
Hope you had a great day tracking down the locations!
On another note..I live in NE Ohio USA. I’ve visited the USS Cod Submarine in Cleveland twice. I’ve sat in a B17, B29, B24, and stood on the first step up to a P51.. all of it an honor. I’m returning to the USS North Carolina in four weeks. I don’t have the wherewithal to cross “the pond” and see these places you take us. But, I’ll be thinking of you when I’m deep in the belly of the great Battleship this September. It’s incumbent on us to carry the past forward.. you my friend are doing a Holy thing.
Now that would be cool to see. I love WW2 Battleships as they are incredible pieces of maritime engineering! I always enjoy visiting HMS Belfast in London given the ships history it’s a great experience!
I’ve still got to add the B-29 and B-24 to my list! I’ve gotten close but never been inside either.
Some great memories from a legendary war film. Looking forward to the footage from your visit to 'Schloss Adler' later this year.
Thank you! I'm hoping to better this one with my Where Eagles Dare special and I also want to do one for The Eagle has Landed at some point!
Great video. I'll be in Fussen in December and will be checking some of these locations out.
Hope you have a great trip! the Christmas Markets there are worth a visit too!
@@WW2Wayfinder the Christmas markets are the biggest reason we are going. We will be going to different parts of Germany. Going to experience the Krampus run in Munich.
My favorite movie since I saw it in 1963
It’s great isn’t it! Definitely one of the greatest war movies ever made!
Excellent tour and details. I was hoping you'd visit the Garner-Pleasance aircraft crash site, but no matter, still a terrific report! The best I've seen.
I didn’t have time sadly but not to say I won’t at a later date. I know the location I just couldn’t fit it all in sadly! One other spot I wanted to find was the road you see in the opening credits but that was quite some distance away and wasn’t practical, but maybe for another trip!
Nice Work, Thank You.
Thank you for watching!
Thank you for such a well shot informative video of my favourite film,loved it as a teenager growing up in the 70’s as I do now to this day.
You’re welcome Frank! It’s always been a firm favourite of mine as well so to finally visit the sites was a huge treat!
Very interesting video. Thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it and thank you for taking the time to watch!
Brilliant mate very very well done 👍
Thank you!
A wonderful video, thank you for the upload.
You’re lost welcome and thank you for taking the time to watch!
Great work Sir. Bravo... Truly a herculean task.
Best wishes from an Englishman restoring medieval armour in a Resistance house in a French forest. ⚔️🇬🇧⚔️
Oh wow! Now that sounds interesting! Always loved the idea of living in France!
Glad you enjoyed the episode!! Thanks for watching!
@@WW2Wayfinder Re living in France, I will sit on my hands! 🙈😂 That said... you are welcome any time, but bring warm socks! 👍🏻SUBSCRIBED PS: If you know any one who wants to swap a sea-mine for two SC1000 'Hermann' tails please let me know. (deactivated of course). Stolen from a German goods train at Le Gare de Malestroit with a view to sell as scrap in 45, but used as planters instead. When I excavated them in 2017 I was told by the owner to dig carefully as she remembered burying two crates of stick-grenades just underneath!!
@@nigelcarren oh wow! I can ask around as I know a few people! But that’s precisely why I’d want to live in France 😉
Thanks for subscribing too! Hope you like the other videos on the channel!
Favorite scene? So many but I like the tense scenes where each POW escapees emerge from the tunnel hole, just beyond the prison fence line,and then run off into the woods.
Absolutely superb! Grown up with this film & never gets dull👌😎
Thank you! Agreed it’s timeless and I dread to think how many times Ive seen it now!!
Thanks for watching!
A marvellous video! I’m now very much looking forward to my next visit to Germany. A number of years ago I travelled to Werfen in Austria to check out many of the locations of that other great 60s movie “Where Eagles Dare”.
Fantastic! Hope it’s a great trip!
And keep an eye out as Where Eagles Dare is my favourite of all time so I have something planned for early next year 😉😃
Great work!
Thank you!
Brilliant video.
Thank you!!