Operation Mincemeat: how British intelligence fooled Hitler with a dead man
Spies dressed a corpse as an officer and planted fake invasion plans on it, tricking the Nazis about where the Allies would strike — one of the most audacious deceptions in the history of war.
Listen in the Fylom app.
Ian Fleming authored the Trout Memo which used fly-fishing analogies to propose deceptive wartime strategies.
British intelligence used phosphorus poisoning to mimic drowning because it bypassed standard medical examinations.
Pocket litter including a diamond ring receipt and an overdraft letter built a believable identity for the corpse.
A St. Christopher medal was placed on the body to discourage invasive autopsies by Spanish authorities.
The briefcase was chained to a trench coat to ensure it remained attached to the body during deployment.
Hitler diverted the First Panzer Division to Greece after Spanish intelligence covertly photographed the planted documents.
- 01Intro1 min
- 02The Trout Memo and the Macabre Idea2 min
- 03Finding Glyndwr Michael3 min
- 04The Handcuffed Briefcase3 min
- 05Swallowed Rod, Line, and Sinker3 min
- 06Outro1 min
- Operation Mincemeat | Covert, World War II, Allies, Background, Development, Execution, Impact, Legacy, & Facts | Britannica
- Operation Mincemeat
- BBC Audio | Witness History | Operation Mincemeat
- Was Operation Mincemeat Real? The True Story Behind The Movie | HistoryExtra
- Operation Mincemeat: The incredible plot that tricked Hitler - BBC
- Operation Mincemeat - Dan Snow's History Hit | Acast
- What Was Operation Mincemeat During World War 2
- What Was Operation Mincemeat During World War 2
- Selects: Operation Mincemeat: How A Corpse Fooled the Nazis Stuff You Should Know | iHeart
- Operation mincemeat: WW2's most successful deception | Sky HISTORY TV Channel
- BBC - History - Operation Mincemeat (pictures, video, facts & news)
- Operation Mincemeat: How a dead tramp fooled Hitler - BBC News
- What was Operation Mincemeat? - University of Plymouth
- Operation Mincemeat
- Operation Mincemeat: The Welsh drifter who helped end WW2
- Secret Agents, Secret Armies: Operation Mincemeat | New Orleans
- The true story of the ‘ne’er-do-well tramp’ whose corpse fooled Hitler
Fylom generates episodes like this on any topic you're curious about.
Fylom episodes are researched, written, and voiced by AI. Automated checks help catch inaccuracies, but episodes aren't reviewed by a human and AI can still get things wrong. Treat them as a starting point, not a source of record — more in our accuracy disclaimer.