The Great Train Robbery

Did the "heist of the century" really happen the way the robbers say it did? In the summer of 1963, a gang of masked robbers executed a daring plan to intercept a Royal Mail train carrying millions of pounds in cash. Operating in the quiet countryside of Buckinghamshire, England, the gang stopped the locomotive in its tracks, overpowering the train's crew and escaping with an astronomical haul. But the robbery itself was just the beginning - what came after - the most wanted men on the run, the jailbreak, the betrayals, fake identities, the surreptitious flights to Latin America and the manhunt across continents - the audacity of it all captured the public's imagination for decades.

But with each grand retelling, we get further from the facts of what really happened. Joining Dan is the author of 'The Great Train Robbery: Crime of the Century', Nick Russell-Pavier who says that they may have pulled off the heist itself but their lack of planning for the aftermath was their downfall, and a common pattern in audacious heists like this and the Hatton Garden Diamond heist.

Dan also hears from Colin Mackenzie who secured one of the scoops of the century when he tracked down train robber Ronnie Biggs in Brazil who was enjoying the beaches of Rio De Janeiro as a minor celebrity and fugitive.

Produced by Mariana Des Forges, edited and sound designed by Dougal Patmore.

Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world-renowned historians like Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Matt Lewis, Tristan Hughes and more.

Get 50% off your first 3 months with code DANSNOW. Download the app or sign up here.

PLEASE VOTE NOW! for Dan Snow's History Hit in the British Podcast Awards Listener's Choice category here. Every vote counts, thank you!

If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at ds.hh@historyhit.com, we'd love to hear from you!

You can take part in our listener survey here.