Dead Man Talking

Why did the British First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Dudley Pound, scatter Convoy PQ17 into the Barents Sea on the evening of 4 July 1942? Was it just the threat of attack by the German battleship Tirpitz that persuaded Pound to order the escorting men-of-war to leave their charges. No-one seemed to know why Pound acted as he did and information surrounding the events remained an official secret for a long time. It might have remained so longer but for the revelations of a dead man talking..

Richard Woodman is a distinguished, prize-winning maritime author. He served at sea from the age of sixteen, spent eleven years in command, spent six years in operational management and is today an Elder Brother of Trinity House. The author of a number of novels, his historical studies include Arctic Convoys 1941-1945, Malta Convoys 194-1943, The Real Cruel Sea: The Merchant Navy in the Battle of the Atlantic 1939-1943 and a five volume History of the British Merchant Navy.