%%
%%
%% All Zero-Context and Partial-Context Example entries on this page have been commented out. Add more context before uncommenting them.
%%
%%
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tmwnw.jpg]]

->''"Last night I dreamed a dreary dream, beyond the Isle of Skye,\\
I saw a dead man win a fight, and I think that man was I."''
-->-- ''The Battle of Otterburn'', Scottish ballad

This 1956 British espionage thriller, directed by Ronald Neame and starring Creator/CliftonWebb and Creator/GloriaGrahame, is the story of a UsefulNotes/WorldWarII plot to deceive German intelligence regarding the then-imminent invasion of southern Europe by the Allied forces. The film was adapted from a 1953 memoir of same title by Ewen Montagu (played by Webb in the film), a serving Royal Navy intelligence officer then ranked lieutenant commander.

This was to be achieved by allowing a dead body, dressed as a British officer named William Martin, to wash ashore in southern Spain carrying "plans" for the invasion (which the Germans were expecting anyway), in the hope of making the enemy think that he was a courier who had drowned en route. Spain was technically neutral but friendly to Germany, and would certainly allow them to obtain a copy of any documents on the body, but they would also hand the body back to the British if asked, and so offer the Germans just a couple of days to handle the original documents and possibly investigate the body in detail. To make it all work, the British invented a {{Backstory}} about Major Martin's career, tastes, private life, etc., designed to provide enough detail to convince the enemy that their windfall was genuine.

It succeeded, and German High Command ordered several army units to move to Sardinia (where the purported invasion was to take place) from Sicily (where the actual invasion was going to be). As with D-Day a year later, the quality of the deception was such that while the actual invasion was underway, the Germans still believed it to be a decoy.

The story focuses to a large degree on the technical aspects of "inventing" a person that the enemy can believe is real and much of the pleasure comes from that. However, in making the movie, some extra elements are put in to flesh out the plot. This is an interesting movie and as well carries some of the "atmosphere" of a traditional British World War II movie.

The true identity of 'Major Martin' was a closely-guarded secret for the duration of the war; his body was obtained on the condition that his name never be revealed publicly. It wasn't until 1998 (a full 56 years later) that the British government added a dedication to 'Glyndwr Michael' ([[DisposableVagrant a semi-literate homeless man with no surviving family]]) on 'Major Martin's' tombstone.

----
!!Contains such tropes as:
%%* BlackComedy ZCE
* BritainIsOnlyEngland: Montagu tells the father of the dead man whose body he wants to use that this is an opportunity to "do a great thing for England." The father, who is a Scotsman, takes umbrage.
%%* BritishStuffiness ZCE
%%* TheCaper ZCE
* CompositeCharacter: Ewen Montagu in this film appears to be compressed with Creator/IanFleming ([[Franchise/JamesBond yes, that Ian Fleming]]) since in RealLife, the operation was partially his idea (he worked as a junior officer at the Secret Intelligence Service at the time of the operation).
* ContrivedCoincidence: The Irish spy sent to investigate "Martin"'s backstory visits his fake fiancée... who is legitimately grieving as she's just heard the news her real boyfriend was killed in action. This helps to convince the Germans that "Martin" is genuine.
%%* DeadPersonImpersonation ZCE
%%* DeadGuyOnDisplay ZCE
* TheFilmOfTheBook: The film was adapted from the real Lieutenant Commander Ewen Montagu's 1953 memoir of same title.
%%* ForensicPhlebotinum: A lot of this is necessary to convince the enemy. ZCE
%%* GentlemanSnarker: Commander Montagu and Lt Acres. ZCE
%%* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Several, including Churchill himself. ZCE
%%* HistoryMarchesOn: Per the film's entry on Website/TheOtherWiki, the film was made before it was known that the Nazi spy network in the UK was under the control of the British secret service through their Double Cross system. PCE: does not explain what the film erroneously depicted
%%* HotLibrarian: Lucy Sherwood, roommate of Pam the intell analyst. ZCE
* TheInfiltration: The Irish Nationalist Agent sent by the Germans to investigate the credentials of William Martin.
* InventedIndividual: Major Martin is a completely fictional identity crafted from whole cloth for a cadaver for the purposes of planting disinformation about Allied plans for the invasion of Italy.
%%* LadyOfWar: Pam, the intel analyst. ZCE
* MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: Slight variation: unlike typical examples of this trope, William Martin wasn't a murder victim but died in a hospital. However, the {{Backstory}} is that Martin is acting as a courier bringing battle plans to the British Forces HQ in North Africa. His plane crashed at sea, and his body, with messenger bag attached, washed ashore on the Spanish coast. So the cause of death would have to be indistinguishable from drowning.
* MyNaymeIs: Charles Cholmondeley's last name is pronounced "Chumly".
%%* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: George Acres is one to Charles Cholmondely, his RealLife counterpart. PCE
* TheNounWhoVerbed: The title.
%%* OfficerAndAGentleman: Montagu and Acres ZCE
* ReadingTheEnemysMail: Inverted and Subverted. The whole point is to make the Germans THINK they are doing this.
* RealPersonCameo: The real Ewen Montagu appears as an Air Marshal who is extremely sceptical of Montagu's plan. Montagu and his fellow mastermind Charles Cholmondeley both acted as uncredited consultants on the film, but only Montagu would agree to appear onscreen.
%%* TheSpymaster: Montagu and Admiral Canaris. ZCE
%%* TheStrategist: Montagu and Acres ZCE
* UnwantedRevival: One of the potential "candidates" at the hospital disappoints them by discovering his lack of qualifications for the operation. As Lt. Acres said, he "up and recovered: very unreliable type".
* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The body of the real Glyndwr Michael was used without his family being told anything about it.
** In RealLife it went off pretty well, too well to provide much drama anyway, so it was necessary to add some difficulties per RuleOfDrama. The second half, where there is doubt among the German camp so they send an Irish spy, is entirely invented to extend the runtime.
%%* ThoseWackyNazis ZCE
%%* WorthyOpponent: The Irish Nationalist working for the Germans. Also Admiral Canaris the [[TheSpymaster German Spymaster]]. ZCE

----