Yahoo News South Tyneside RAF officer whose Second World War escape attempts inspired a BBC TV show honoured
A Hebburn-born RAF officer whose story has been told in TV and film has been honoured with a blue plaque. Dominic Bruce was a British navigator who attempted to escape from Colditz Castle while detained as a Prisoner of War.
In one such attempt, Bruce managed to make an ingenious escape from the maximum-security prison, which was for those deemed ‘incorrigible’ and where Bruce was incarcerated following numerous escapes from other camps.
The commemorative Blue Plaque was unveiled at Hebburn Central by the Mayoress of South Tyneside, Stella Matthewson, alongside Bruce's family and representatives from his Squadron and Corpus Christi College, where he studied after the war. The plaque will now be relocated to Shakespeare Avenue, where he was born in June of 1915.
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The Mayoress said: "It was a pleasure to unveil the Blue Plaque for Dominic Bruce in recognition of his service and bravery. He has a fascinating story which shows his determination and courage and is famed for his escape attempts which featured in books, TV and film.
"It’s an honour to be able to recognise the importance of Dominic Bruce and his incredible story through the South Tyneside Blue Plaque scheme."
Dominic Bruce joined the Royal Air Force in 1935, linking up with RAF 214 squadron at Scampton after his training the following year. Bruce and his comrades fought in Europe throughout the Second World War, taking part in major raids and battles, and the squadron was prominently represented in The Great Escape film.
Dominic Bruce, was portrayed by actor David McCallum in the 1970s BBC Colditz TV series, and was known as the 'Medium Sized Man’, due to his small stature. Bruce tried to escape 17 times during the Second World War, and served in the RAF until 1946, when he was awarded the Military Cross, becoming the only person in British military history to be awarded both that award and an Air Force Medal.
After the war, Dominic became a student at Corpus Christi College in Oxford, going on to become a further education tutor, and in 1989, he was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II for his Services to Education. Dominic Bruce died in February 2000, aged 84, survived by his wife Mary Brigid Bruce, who later died in June 2000, and he had six sons and three daughters.
Dominic’s eldest son, Michael Bruce added: "My father was a Hebburn lad during a time when Hebburn was a tough place, and his instinct for survival was honed in Hebburn, he was a person who always reserved the right to make up his own mind, and do what he thought was right. He did well at school and went for a higher school certificate but he had nowhere to go, no money to go to college, so he decided to join the air force and see the world."
"It’s difficult to stand back from one’s father who is presented as a war hero to the real man, but he was a person of great ingenuity, saw himself as a problem solver and he certainly brought up a family who appreciated his work."
