[7] A new edition was published in Johannesburg and London as Inside Out: Escape from Pretoria Prison in 2003. The system was never cracked and helped the ANC coordinate in the run up to Nelson Mandela's release from prison. He had big plans to shoot Escape from Pretoria in South Africa a couple of years ago, but the money fell through. All Rights Reserved. There was an effort to rebuild the armed wing known as Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), and a plan was hatched by Oliver Tambo, Joe Slovo and/or Moses Mabhida, with the help of the South African Communist Party[2] to land 25 combatants plus arms via a boat previously purchased by the ANC, the Adventurer (or Avventura[4]), on the Transkei coast via the Indian Ocean from Somalia. So when his key worked, it was momentous. To make matters more complicated, he could only unlock his cell door from the outside, and used a broomstick he had been allowed to hang on to for cleaning with the key attached to the end so that he could reach. As our central trio trace a taut treasure trail of keyholes and cupboards, Annans direction settles into a smooth groove of high-tension setpieces, teased out to breath-suspending effect. But when it comes to watching him break out of prison all over again, though, there is no stirring feeling, no rush of emotions that come back to Jenkin. "We were right underneath an armed guard but he didnt see us. He was accused of having published, in the Press Newsletter (BIP), the article "Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) 2010", summing up the activities and successes of the BDS campaign during 2010. Australian actor and former elite cyclist Nathan Page, best known internationally for his nuanced portrayal of Detective Inspector Jack Robinson in Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (2012), was born into an air force family in Perth on 25 August 1971. While reminiscing about his childhood years, he suddenly remembered how he would pick locks back at home. Jenkin was born in Cape Town and educated at Rondebosch Boys' Prep and Boys' High School, matriculating aged 17. AM. Boom, the door just slid open, absolutely smoothly, he says. The jaw-dropping story of how two men broke out of the infamous maximum-security Pretoria Prison - and eventually on to the UK - has been given the Hollywood treatment in new blockbuster 'Escape From Pretoria', starring Daniel Radcliffe as Tim. In the end, it was the selfless actions of a fourth prisoner, Denis Goldberg - who had been sentenced alongside Mandela, and who would ultimately serve 22 years - who made their bid for freedom a reality. He continued: [It was] the only thing we managed to keep; we got rid of the all the keys immediately, but for some reason we kept thatprobably as a weapon. In front of him was a lock - and the sight of it was enough to propel him to his feet and set to work making a wooden key that would help him and fellow inmate Stephen Lee make it to freedom. Moubaris went to the USSR for training. It was a wonderful feeling.. Moumbaris's family migrated to Australia when he was young and he became a naturalised Australian citizen,[1] but he left for France when he was 16 years old. People said how can you make keys out of wood, they wouldnt be strong enough, but when we broke them up it was quite a mission, we had to use the chisel.. All Rights Reserved. more Rent SAR 14.99 Buy SAR 49.99 Trailers Ratings and Reviews 4.5 COMMON SENSE Jenkin had smuggled some money into prison. Imposing: Pretoria Prison Speaking from his home in North London, dad-of-two Stephen, now 62, says they had been determined to escape from the moment they arrived at notorious Pretoria. In September, he and Lee hung a 10-metre-long banner with the words "ANC LIVES" from a high building in the centre of Cape Town, along with a timed device which distributed hundreds of leaflets over the crowds below. [12], After the success of their first mission, Jenkin worked on refining the mechanism by adding a triggering system to the leaflet bomb, so that they did not have to be close to it when it went off. [10], His relationship with the jailers tended towards being outwardly defiant and somewhat aggressive, laughing at new wardens who tried to discipline him. Its reputation as a hellhole jail remains, and these days it houses - among 7,000 inmates - none other than disgraced Olympic champion Oscar Pistorius. He discovered to his horror that there were ten doors they had to make it through. Something went wrong, please try again later. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. That last scene is about as accurate as you can make it, Jenkin says of the very real moment the escapees werent able to open the ninth and final door to freedom. This, along with his generally scruffy appearance and his refusal to keep his cell tidy led to a bad reputation amongst the prison wardens meant he had never been promoted beyond the "B" group in his six years in prison, while the others had reached "A" within two. Home Office Minister Mark Carlisle said no evidence had been found at that time of South African responsibility for illegal activities, but appropriate action would be taken should it appear. As clunkily deployed in the script for Escape from Pretoria, however, the line acts as a shortcut to nobility, in a tight genre exercise that has scant time for such elaborate niceties as character development and social context. He also once unfurled an ANC banner from a building in Durban,[5] and was subsequently entrusted with more risky assignments. Escape From Pretoria chronicles their journey, shedding new light on how they managed to escape from prison. But, he says, they were determined to break free. "Just in case, we had brought a chisel. Jenkin and Leejoined by fellow inmate and French national Alex Moumbarisdecide to send the regime a clear message and escape. He left for the UK in 1970, where, working in a fibreglass factory under poor working conditions and little pay, found the system unjust and developed an interest in sociology. As the former prison inmate told The Daily Mail, this memory was to transform his life, and soon enough, he had begun to test out various plans that could help him and Tim get out of the horrid institution. Jenkins was not going to help the cause by sitting in prison, and he set about planning an escape. Escape from Pretoria: Directed by Francis Annan. He would then lean out of the tiny opening next to the door of his cell, and get the key inside the lock with a broomstick and a mirror. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Daniel Radcliffe stars as inmate Tim Jenkin in new film 'Escape To Pretoria' about the famous South African prison break in 1979, The film is set during the during the Apartheid era in Capetown, South Africa, The Pretoria Central Prison divided up prisoners depending on their race, Its gallows, which are left untouched today, could end the lives of seven at once, Sitting on his bed in his jail cell, Tim realised he could fashion a key to unlock the door, Tim was sentenced to 12 years behind bars for supporting Nelson Mandela's ANC, His friend Stephen Lee received eight years for his political "terrorism" fighting apartheid, Once Tim had cracked the third door, inmate Alexis Moumbaris, pictured, joined the escape effort, After leaving South Africa via Tanzania, the pair - now in their 70s - settled in the UK, New Amazon Prime documentary explores the case of Oscar Pistorius who was convicted of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013, Inside audacious Escape From Pretoria where prisoners fled hellhole jail by carving wooden keys for ELEVEN metal doors, Kate and Rio Ferdinand had 'heated' rows over her pregnancy that ended in tears as she thought he 'didn't care', Ed Sheeran reveals wife Cherry 'had a tumour' that could only be treated after birth of 2nd baby as he announces album, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). [23], As the plan evolved it became clear that for the escape to be successful it would have to be restricted to three people, who would have to hide in a small closet at one point. Then, one day he was working in a carpentry workshop and it struck him that the key could be wooden. We walked out as if we had every right to be there. Stephen and Tim had to open 11 doors in total, some right next to the guards' office. Lee moved back to Cape Town in December after enrolling in a master's degree in sociology, and the two continued their undercover work, but unbeknownst to them they were by this time under surveillance by the Security Branch of the South African Police. A massive police operation was launched to recapture the convicts, but by that time Stephen and Tim were on their way out of South Africa, to safety in the UK. su amigo Stephen Lee y a Alex . While their revolutionary deeds helped to change the course of history, their prison escape was that which garnered them real fame. For 14 free days, you can have access to a world of in-depth analyses, investigative journalism, top opinions and a range of features. He successfully distributed leaflets this way on Cape Town's Grand Parade. Lee worked for the University of the Witwatersrand, while Jenkin ran the "cell" on his own in Cape Town. In order to successfully escape from the prison in December 1979, Jenkin unlocked nine doors while Goldberg diverted the warden. [31][32] In 2013, the story of the prison escape was dramatised in the 7th episode of the 2nd season of Breakout, a television series made by National Geographic TV channel dramatising real-life prison escapes. There was also a six-metre high barbed-wire perimeter fence. Stephen and Tim, 64, whose story is told tonight in Breakout on the National Geographic Channel, were supporters of Nelson Mandelas ANC who had been put under surveillance by South Africas secret police for their clandestine activity. In prison they met Denis Goldberg and on Alexandre Moumbaris - not on Leonard Fontaine. why is alex moumbaris not in escape from pretoria. We got through the nine doors and then at the final door, we found we couldnt open the lock. While Tim - the technical mastermind - was sentenced to 12 years in jail, his friend Stephen got eight years. "Incarcerated in Pretoria Maximum Security Prison, Jenkin and Lee - joined by fellow inmate and French national Alex Moumbaris - decide to send the regime a clear message and escape. [2] In 1995, Jenkin wrote a 6-part article series called Talking to Vula: The Story of the Secret Underground Communications Network of Operation Vula. As clunkily deployed in the [] "You are the white Mandela," says a ham-faced warden, all but spitting in the face of anti-apartheid activist Tim Jenkin upon his arrival at Pretoria Local Prison in 1978. I wanted to go back and do it again, as we hadnt opened that door before., He says: We escaped it a number of times in fact, each time going a bit further, the actual [final] escape was the easy part.. On December 11th, 1979, three white activists, Tim Jenkin, Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris, escaped from Pretoria Central Prison. Upon legal advice, both pleaded guilty to all charges. Dirigida por Francis Annan y con Daniel Radcliffe en el papel principal, est basada en el libro que el mismo Jenkin escribi relatando la horrible experiencia vivida poco antes de los 80, cuando fue apresado. This was going to let us out of the cells into the corridor.. Get email updates with the day's biggest stories. Lying on his bunk one night, he gazed at the lock in front of him and had a flash of inspiration. This was legal under Section 6 of the Terrorism Act, which allowed detention without trial for up to 60 days, and was extendable. They were never told how the security police got onto them, and Jenkin concluded that it must have been the result of meticulous police work and long surveillance. Once the plan is set in motion, the film itself feels unlocked: As a re-eenacted chapter of anti-apartheid history, Escape from Pretoria may not feel entirely authentic, but it knows its prison-movie terrain, from Alcatraz to Shawshank, inside out. In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. On 11 December 1979 the three escapees managed to execute their master plan, against all odds, and found themselves outside the prison, in civilian clothes. The video features excerpts from interviews with Jenkin, Lee, Moumbaris and Goldberg filmed in 2012, in between re-enacted scenes of the prison escape. View our online Press Pack. 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