Geoffrey Appleyard

John Geoffrey Appleyard, (20 December 1916 – 13 July 1943) was a British Army officer, who served in the Commandos and Special Air Service during the Second World War.

Early life and education Appleyard was born in Bramley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, the son of John Ernest Appleyard, a successful motor engineer, and Mary Elizabeth Northrop. His brother Ian became a successful rally driver. Geoffrey grew up in Linton, West Yorkshire, and was educated at Bootham School in York, where he combined academic success with natural history and roof-climbing. At Caius College, Cambridge, he obtained a first in Engineering and a skiing blue, while he was also his college's Captain of Boats, and competed as a highly successful international skier.

Military service Appleyard was commissioned into the Royal Army Service Corps (Supplementary Reserve) on 1 April 1939 with the rank of second lieutenant. Mobilised for active service on 24 August 1939, after taking part in an operation by boat and submarine to pick up two Operation Savanna agents on the coast of France and bring them back to England. On his return he was awarded a Bar to his Military Cross.

After the success of "Postmaster", the "Maid Honour Force" was expanded (though it never numbered more than 55 men at any time) and renamed the "Small Scale Raiding Force", though its official designation was No. 62 Commando, under the operational control of Combined Operations Headquarters. Appleyard took part in many SSRF raids on the coast of occupied France, landing in small boats from motor launches, compelling the Germans to reinforce their defences along hundreds of miles of coastline, and diverting significant numbers of troops from combat duties elsewhere.

Appleyard took command of the SSRF, on Operation Basalt, landing on the Channel island of Sark on the night of 3/4 October 1942. Five Germans were taken prisoner, but when one shouted a warning he was shot dead. With the enemy now alerted, the raiders returned to the beach with the remaining four prisoners. En route, three of them attempted to escape and were killed. As a result, an enraged Hitler issued the infamous Kommandobefehl ("Commando Order"), stating that all captured Commandos were to be shot without exception. On meeting the now Temporary Major Appleyard at his third investiture in eleven months, King George VI was both amused and impressed, greeting him with: "What, you again?" On the night of 12/13 July 1943, during the Allied invasion of Sicily, Appleyard supervised the dropping of a group of SAS paratroopers north of Randazzo in Operation Chestnut. The Albemarle aircraft disappeared on the return flight over the Mediterranean, and Appleyard was declared missing presumed dead.

Cultural depictions In the 2024 movie The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, Geoffrey is portrayed by British actor Alex Pettyfer. The movie portrays a heavily fictionalized version of Operation Postmaster.