Barry Davies

Barry Davies, BEM (22 November 1944 – 18 April 2016) was a British Army infantry soldier who served with the Welsh Guards and the Special Air Service regiments. He was later a published author, and worked in television production.

Early life Davies was born on 22 November 1944 during World War II, in Wem, in the county of Shropshire, where his father was a farmer.

Military career In 1962 at the age of 18 he enlisted with the British Army's Welsh Guards, which he served with for 4 years. At the age of 22 he applied to join the Special Air Service Regiment, and having passed its selection course was transferred into it, and went on to have an extensive career with its squadrons for almost 20 years around the world, including in service in Northern Ireland during Operation Banner, Oman, Malaya, Africa and Latin America.

In 1977 he took part in an anti-terrorist operation to rescue 91 passengers of Lufthansa Flight 181 after the aeroplane had been hijacked at Mogadishu airport. Davies had originally been sent to the scene to act as an observer and advisor, but once there ended up taking part in the armed assault on the plane to free the hostages, for which he was awarded the British Empire Medal. S.A.S. Survival Guide: Escape, Evasion & Survival (1999), SAS: Are You Tough Enough? (2002–04), and 'Spymaster' (2004).

Personal life Davies married four times and was the father of two children, a son and daughter from his second marriage.

Death Davies died on 18 April 2016 from a heart attack in Valencia in Spain, where he had resided since the late 1990s.

Publications