The prisoners of war in Colditz Castle, the Nazis' top-security fortress, concocted elaborate plans for escape. They forged passes and made dummy rifles. They impersonated German guards. They even secretly built a glider. The PBS science program and the war story may seem an improbable fit at first, but they are gloriously joined by this show's conclusion.
Nova concentrates on the science of the prisoners' escape methods.
The officers from Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and other countries obsessed over doing their duty by getting away. The Nazis put them in the Colditz, the ''bad boys' camp'' in eastern Germany. The Germans considered Colditz impossible to flee, because prisoners were kept in rooms of the inner courtyard, where walls were 12 feet thick. But resourceful officers wouldn't give up. They coordinated their efforts into an industry.