Colditz cover art

Colditz

Prisoners of the Castle

Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Colditz

By: Ben Macintyre
Narrated by: Ben Macintyre
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER - AND PERFECT GIFT FOR HISTORY BUFFS!

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SAS: ROGUE HEROES

Colditz Castle: a forbidding Gothic tower on a hill in Nazi Germany. You may have heard about the prisoners and their daring and desperate attempts to escape, but that's only part of the real story.

In Colditz: Prisoners of the Castle, bestselling historian Ben Macintyre takes us inside the walls of the most infamous prison in history to meet the real men behind the legends. Heroes and bullies, lovers and spies, captors and prisoners living cheek-by-jowl for years in a thrilling game of cat and mouse - and all determined to escape by any means necessary.

Deeply researched and full of incredible stories, this is a tale of ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances - and will change how you think about Colditz forever.

'A master at setting the pulse racing' Daily Mail

'A fine feat of storytelling . . . will surely become the last word on the subject' Telegraph

'Like watching a black-and-white photograph being colourised' Spectator

'Every Ben Macintyre book is a treat' The Tablet

© Ben MacIntyre 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Europe Germany Military War Thought-Provoking

Critic reviews

A fine feat of storytelling . . . will surely become the last word on the subject (Patrick Bishop)
Like watching a black-and-white photograph being colourised . . . rich in humour and quirky detail . . . another compelling narrative (Clare Mulley)
Nuanced and gripping . . . told with sensitivity and insight, with an eye for telling detail (Gerard DeGroot)
Fascinating
Every Ben Macintyre book is a treat (Jane Thynne)
Entertaining yet objective and often moving
Macintyre's genius has long been to excavate the nuance, subtlety and ambiguity beneath the myths he explores . . . remarkable (Matthew D'Ancona)
Another fine history . . . His unerring eye for the telling detail that can illuminate a greater story is apparent in Colditz (Ronan McGreevy)
Macintyre so seamlessly fuses so many different accounts that their compilation creates something more profound than a simple escape yarn: a biography of the prison itself and the world detainees built there (Andrea Pitzer)
Macintyre recreates the daring escape stories with punchy flair . . . a lively page-turner (NJ McGarrigle)
All stars
Most relevant
A riveting telling of a story I thought I knew well, having watched the 1950’s movie and subsequent 1970’s TV series.
This book sheds light on elements of the story previously untold. Highly recommend.

An unbiased telling of the full story of Colditz prison.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I’m just sad I’ve finished this wonderful book. A fascinating account of life in Colditz during WW2. Unexpectedly hilarious and often very moving. I’ll be recommending this book to everyone I know. Read excellently by the author.

Excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Another Ben Macintyre classic. Love his writing, reading and always his subject matter. Brilliant as always!

Colditz

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I have always enjoyed Ben’s books immensely whether that be in audio or written format. This one is no exception. He writes (and reads) in the style of a gripping novel and his subject matter is always fascinating.

Another Ben gem

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Detailed history of an iconic symbol for both sides during the conflict.
Highlights the hierarchical nature of officers and subalterns but ultimately the sheer bravado courage belligerence and boredom endured

Comprehensive History of a much mentioned but rarely understood iconic symbol

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews