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Speed, Aggression, Surprise

Speed, Aggression, Surprise

The Secret Origins of the Special Air Service

Summary

'Awesome!' ANDY McNAB | 'You must read this book' Colonel TIM COLLINS OBE | 'Extraordinary' Sir RANULPH FIENNES

Forget what you thought you knew. Discover the REAL story of how the SAS was created.


From ex-SAS Commander Tom Petch, this is the never-before-told story of how the world's preeminent Special Forces came into existence. Flashing between dramatic accounts from the frontlines and power negotiations in Westminster, it's an adventure that reaches from the trenches of the Western Front to piracy in the deserts of North Africa, to the final assault on Germany.

Drawing on hidden archives and told with captivating drama, it focuses on two characters largely overlooked in the traditional narrative - Dudley Clarke the mastermind, and William Fraser the frontline operator. Without them there would never have been an SAS.

'Gripping and fascinating... Packed with unforgettable characters and thrilling adventures' WILL IREDALE, bestselling author of The Pathfinders

Reviews

  • Awesome! The true story of the men who invented Special Forces warfare is even more compelling than the mythology
    ANDY McNAB

About the author

Tom Petch

Tom Petch served for eight years in the British Army, as a tank commander, adjutant, aide de camp and a Troop Commander of 22 SAS. His military experience gives him a unique perspective on recently declassified archives, operation reports, accounts and interviews of the original SAS and their commanders. He is now an award-winning film director and producer whose debut film, The Patrol, won the Raindance Film Festival. He is also the great-great-great-grandson of Samuel Shepheard, who founded Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo where the SAS was born.
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