Odette

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1

My name is Maurice Buckmaster.

I've been asked to say a foreword to

this story.

My only claim to do so is that, as

their commanding officer,

I knew intimately all the volunteers

who formed the French section of

Special Forces.

The Firm, as we called it sometimes.

And I know, therefore, that this

story is a true one.

The people you'll see on

the screen are playing,

as accurately as human

memory permits,

the parts of men and women who are or

were then alive.

Captain Peter Churchill, alias Pierre

Chauvet, alias Pierre Chamberlin,

known to us as Raoul, a British

officer,

was one of the first to land in

France in 1941,

by somewhat unconventional means.

'Under the very noses of an alert

Gestapo,

'one of the best radio operators,

'and certainly one of the bravest,

we ever had

'sent his messages to London.'

MORSE CODE BEEPS

'Lieutenant Alex Rabinovich, alias

Guy le Bouton, alias Gerard le Bouton.

'Arnaud was the name we knew him by.

'Arnaud was captured and executed by

the Germans in 1944.'

These two men, Raoul and Arnaud,

together with Odette,

were among the 400 men and 38 women

who volunteered for this hazardous

work in France.

'In her own words,

'Odette was a very ordinary woman.'

WIRELESS:
'At the recent combined

operations raid on Bruneval,

'much secret equipment was carried

back to London.

'This was made possible by

photographs and models.'

Oh, please do not turn it off, Mrs

Ward.

But the news is all over. That's the

postscript.

But I want to hear the postscript.

All right.

'And particularly France and Belgium.

'So, remember, if you have spent

holidays abroad,

'look at those holiday snapshots

again.

'Don't send the photographs yet, but

write to the Admiralty,

'and state quite clearly where they

were taken.

'The envelope should be

marked "Photographs"

and addressed to The

Admiralty, London SW1.

'I will repeat that. The Admiralty,

London SW1.'

BUCKMASTER:
'A mistake in the

address,

'and our fate is often bound

up in such things,

'was the reason why, on a spring

morning in 1942,

'Odette found her way to my office in

Orchard Court, Portman Square.'

Your slight inaccuracy in addressing

these photographs to the War Office

and not the Admiralty, may prove to

be of value to us.

What do you mean?

How would you like to go to France?

Go to France? Why, how can people go

to France now?

There are ways and means, you know.

You mean to tell me that people are

being sent to France by the War Office?

By the War Office? Good heavens, no.

They are a respectable institution.

They wouldn't do things like that.

Now, let me explain.

You're a Frenchwoman. You were born

in France

and lived there until you married

and came to England.

We need the help of people like you.

But I must warn you, if you do decide

to join us,

your work will be highly dangerous.

But I do not think that I am

qualified to do dangerous work.

I'm not clever. I am a very ordinary

woman.

A mother with three children.

Your children, of course, must be

considered.

But we badly need volunteers who know

and love France,

and who would, if needs be, lay down

their lives for France.

'It was in September 1942 that Odette

Sansom,

'alias Madame Odette Metayer, number

S23,

'known to us as Lise,

'completed her training.

'For her bravery and bearing when in

the hands of the enemy,

'Odette was awarded the George Cross,

'the highest British honour that can

be bestowed on any woman.

'This is her story.'

Au revoir, Lise. Good luck. Au

revoir. Merci.

And bring me back a bottle of Cognac.

Only one?

Well, there are 15 instructors.

Au revoir!

You tell us you married

an elderly husband.

Is he still alive?

No, he died in 1936.

Pneumonia.

I then went to live at Le Touquet.

Address, please.

7 Rue Victor Hugo.

When the war came, I went to the

south of France. Address?

37 Rue Clemenceau, St Raphael.

Sounds all right, sir.

Yes. Yes, I think so.

Now, where were you in December

1941?

December...

In December, I was at Cannes.

The Hotel des Alpes.

10 Rue de l'Isere. Good.

Well, that's your cover story.

Never vary that in any respect.

Now, your code number is S23.

And your field name, to us, is Lise.

Just Lise, always.

Yes. Je m'appelle Lise.

Oh, thank you, I do not smoke.

Now, Lise,

for months on end, you'll be living

a gigantic lie.

Waking or sleeping, you'll have to

be on your guard all the time.

And if you slip up,

there is not a thing we can do to

save you.

I understand.

Here's your French ration book, Lise.

It's now October '42, so the coupons

for September have been cut out.

And your false identity card.

And these are your medicines.

This one will give anyone you don't like

a pretty bad tummy-ache for 24 hours.

Drop it in his coffee.

And that one is a stimulant for

yourself,

if ever you need one.

Don't mix those two up.

Now, this is your lethal tablet.

In case you get into a jam and you

can't get out.

Swallow that and...

You think of everything, mon

commandant. We have to.

Well, that's about all, I think.

Au revoir, Lise.

Au revoir.

Oh...Major Buckmaster...

would you do something for me?

Would you have these letters posted,

one each month,

from Scotland? I have put the dates

on the back.

Yes, we'll arrange that.

Good luck, Lise. Thank you, Jack.

Oh, Madame Metayer. One thing I

forgot to ask.

Have you any children?

No, mon commandant.

I have no children.

This is Odette.

Thank you, I am very well.

Reverend Mother, I have to go to

Scotland.

If I am not here for the holidays,

my aunt will arrange

for the children to go somewhere

safe.

Yes, I do not want them to be in

London. It is too dangerous.

There they are now,

on their way to class,

if you'd like to speak to them.

I'll call them.

Oh, no! No, no, no, please. I could

not do that!

Sister Terese.

Could Francoise, Lily and

Marianne speak to their mother?

She's on the telephone.

Yes, Reverend Mother.

Marianne, Lily, Mummy's on the

telephone!

They're just coming. Here they are.

Hello, Mummy!

Hello! Wait a minute!

Francoise, I'm just going away to

Scotland.

In the FANYs.

Yes, darling, you have seen them

driving cars for officers.

That's right.

Now, Francoise, I want you to be a

good girl

and to look after Lily and Marianne.

And you will work hard, won't you,

darling?

You know your first report was not

very good.

Yes, I hated arithmetic too,

but you will try to learn it.

All right.

Goodbye, Francoise.

Hello, Lily.

And I love you with all my heart

too.

Darling...

darling, you will try to stop biting

your fingernails?

Oh, she put some bitter stuff on

them, did she?

Does she?

Goodbye, Lily.

Hello, my sweetie pie.

Have you, darling?

Does she shut her eyes when she goes

to sleep, like a real baby?

How lovely.

Goodbye, my darling and...

God bless you, baby.

Oh, no, Marianne, do not cry!

Do not cry.

Au revoir. Merci. Au revoir. Bonne

chance.

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