The Great Train Robbery

Episode 1

A Robber's Tale

Wed, Dec 18, 201388 mins

Following a vicious attack on a wages van at Heathrow airport in November 1962 the gang concerned are disappointed that the haul is less than expected and their leader, Bruce Reynolds, despite his wife's request that he eschews crime, is greedy for a bigger heist. This comes about when an anonymous Ulsterman alerts the gang to the Glasgow to Euston mail train, said to be carrying a million pounds. Recruiting more villains Reynolds begins his meticulous plan to halt the train with false signals at a lonely Buckinghamshire crossing and, on August 8 1963, a night later than planned, the robbery takes place. Despite Reynolds' desire to play down violence train driver Jack Mills is injured and the getaway bungled as the gang, dressed as soldiers, hole up in a farmhouse. The haul is also far more than they imagined and Reynolds is conscious that it will be harder to dispose of as the robbers go their separate ways. Soon afterwards Reynolds sees in a newspaper headline that he is a suspect and a wanted man.