John Fancy

John Fancy (9 March 1913 – 16 September 2008) was a British former airman whose tunnelling escapes from various German prisoner of war camps during World War II earned him the nickname The Mole, and inspired the book and film The Great Escape.

In all Fancy escaped from custody some sixteen times, and constructed eight separate tunnels from various camps, using a German-issued steel table knife as his principal tool. The knife became his prized possession after the war. As an escapee he had many adventures, including being captured by an extermination squad and being subjected to three mock executions.

Though he was Britain's most prolific tunnel-digger and once got as far as a boat off the Baltic coast, he was recaptured every time and was finally repatriated in April 1945 when his camp was liberated by the advancing Allied forces. He later observed: "After four years, 10 months and four days I landed back in England after taking off on what should have been a four-hour flight." He was mentioned in dispatches for his conduct.

After the war Fancy established a market garden near Driffield and ran three greengrocery shops in Scarborough. Following the death of his wife in 1983 he retired to Slapton, Devon to be near his daughter.