Guy Martin in bid to repeat the iconic Great Escape jump
TT/TV star attempts most famous movie motorcycle stunt of all
‘The TV crew were the first to secure access’
Guy Martin has attempted to recreate the motorcycle jump from The Great Escape for a new TV special which will be shown this Sunday on Channel 4. To attempt the feat, Guy teamed up with Triumph who created a one-off machine inspired by the original bike. In the film, escaped POW Capt. Hilts (AKA ‘The Cooler King’), steals a German soldier’s motorcycle and attempts to leap a barbed wire fence into Switzerland. Hilts was played by Steve McQueen but the actual jump scene for the 1963 movie was done by close friend and accomplished bike racer Bud Ekins.
But for the new TV special, Martin attempts to not only jump the first small fence, which Hilts cleared in the film, but also the larger, second fence which the script dictated Hilts crashed into. For absolute authenticity, the TV crew even managed to secure access to the same field in southern Bavaria where the original stunt was filmed. To prepare for the jump, Martin spent months training on a small MX bike with renowned motorcycle stuntman Andy Godbold. After learning the basics, Martin then transferred these skills to a modified Triumph Scrambler 1200XE.
The bike was built in Triumph’s special vehicle workshop by Chief Engineer, Stuart Wood. The 1200 was stripped of all of its road going electronics, the exhaust replaced with a lighter, free-flowing unit, while it was even custom painted to resemble the machines used in the movie.
As well as the jump itself, ‘Guy Martin’s Great Escape’ also explores the real POW break out from Stalag Luft III that inspired the film, which took place 75 years ago, with Martin experiencing what life was like in a POW camp. The show also stars John Leyton, who played Willie ‘Tunnel King’ Dickes, and is the only surviving member of the principle cast.
To see Guy flying high in the vapour trail of Steve McQueen’s legacy, just in time for the Christmas re-run, go to Ch4 this Sunday, December 8 at 9pm.