Your first look at SAS Rogue Heroes – BBC Trailer

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In 1941, an eccentric young officer names David Stirling (played by Connor Swindles) is hospitalised after a training exercise goes wrong and is bored with the progress of the war. He comes up with a plan that flies in the face of all accepted rules of modern warfare. Stirling gets permission to recruit the toughest, boldest and brightest soldiers for a small undercover unit that will create mayhem behind enemy lines. One of those recruits is Jock Lewes.

Speaking about filming the exhilarating and intense series for the BBC, Alfie recalled spending some time “suffering”.

He said of the conditions the cast filmed in: “I have shot in very cold conditions before so this was the polar opposite to that.

“I have to admit that I just lapped it up, I just loved it.

“Apart from the two to three day period where I was suffering from heat stroke and food poisoning at the same time… that was not nice.”

Alfie went on to recall his first scene with Mike Sadler (Tom Glynn-Carney).

“I’d say the one day that really sticks in the memory for me was in episode three,” he explained.

“That day was 53 degrees Celsius, it was super super hot.

“The environment we were working in definitely lent itself to a kind of forced method acting.

“It was a test of physical and mental endurance without a shadow of a doubt.

“We were in these insane conditions that obviously the real life story would have taken place in, but of course there would have been way, way more to deal with back then than we as the actors were dealing with.”

Those tuning into the drama may be surprised to learn it is based on mostly true events.

Stirling, Lewes and their fellow recruit, Paddy Mayne (Jack O’Connell) were all real SAS heroes.

Alfie did his research into Lewes and was fascinated to learn he was raised in a religious household.

“And then they had this sort of yearning to go and be in a battle field, in a life or death situation,” he recalled.

“Two just totally different ideals there, but they match up to create this fearsome soldier you know.

“I think that is a quality that enables Jock to go out there and be this machine of war.”

The synopsis for the first episodes reads: “Spring 1941. The British Army is losing the war against Germany and the Axis powers, fighting for control of North Africa.

“Told to stand down after yet another failed operation, Lieutenant David Stirling, an eccentric young officer serving with 8 Commando, finds himself increasingly frustrated with the military authorities and their handling of current strategy.

“It’s a frustration also shared by Lt John ‘Jock’ Lewes, who is fighting under heavy bombardment in the besieged city of Tobruk, and Lt Robert Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne, currently ‘detained’ in a military prison.

“But Lewes has an idea he’s keen to discuss – and it involves parachutes…”

SAS: Rogue Heroes airs on BBC One on Sunday at 9pm.

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