[5] He later wrote that he had "grown up a 'normal' complacent white South African" who "unthinkingly accepted the system and for twenty-one years never questioned it". Moumbaris was the only non-South African prisoner, and when Jenkin met him, he appeared as "a little aloof". The film will be especially endearing to viewers who love to hone in on how to, for example, make tools that look innocuous and can be easily hidden. In 2015 he went on a national tour in Australia organised by Karel Boele speaking about his escape and community currencies. While the first step toward freedom might have been exhilarating, it was far from their most momentous achievement. Alexandre Moumbaris is a political activist and former political prisoner. In fact, things have been kept so by the book, so to speak, the actors used the actual tool Jenkin and Lee as well as third prisoner Alex Moumbaris employed in their daring escape. The way Jenkin speaks about the escape is with a sort of whimsy, despite the danger theyd be in if they were caught suppose with 40 years between you and the act, theres been time to reflect. Through reading material banned by the government, they came to see the "naked reality" of apartheid and the undemocratic behavior of the ruling party, and felt a burning desire to effect positive change, which, Jenkin concluded, was only possible using unconstitutional means under the current regime. Two years later, Marie-Jos gave birth to a daughter, Zo, who was born on 11 December 1981, the second anniversary of the escape. He tells how Tim had been given a 12-year sentence and he had got eight years inside. Stephen began to experiment with wooden keys the exact replicas used by prison guards during his compulsory shifts at the prison's wood workshop. They moved to London in 1961,[1] where Moumbaris worked for the IT department of Reuters-Comtel. Jenkin and Lee - joined by fellow inmate and French national Alex Moumbaris - decide to send the regime a clear message and escape. In an area called "The Pot", therewas a legendary gallows where seven could be hung at once. [31][32] In 2013, the story of the prison escape was dramatised in the 7th episode of the 2nd season of Breakout, a television series made by National Geographic TV channel dramatising real-life prison escapes. Undeterred, Tim said: From the very first day, we started to collect intelligence about possible escape routes.. From the jail they took trains, hitchhiked and walk 25 miles to make it to the border of Swaziland - now called Eswatini. At the time it was the site of the countrys capital punishment regime (which was abolished in 1995), and housed its death row. It's not intended as a compliment: "The most deluded of them all," the warden adds, lest it be taken as such. Escape From Pretoria is in cinemas Friday. Using an ingenious homemade wooden key attached, like a crankshaft, to the end of a broomstick, Tim had just got through his outer cell door. [5] As Marie-Jos was pregnant at the time and under pressure from the French ambassador, she was not charged but instead deported back to France[3] after four months. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. This was how he knew how long the key needed to be. [2], He and Jenkin carried out a first trial run of the escape plan, and were involved in a couple of scrapes which nearly led to discovery in the lead-up to the escape. Moumbaris was fully involved in the preparation of landings on the East Coast of South Africa. Sporting a squirrelly shag wig and a valiantly attempted but wayward Cape Town accent, Radcliffe plays Jenkin, a middle-class sociology student turned underground activist for the African National Congress, with his own brand of puppyish but righteous commitment. He was also influenced by the Vietnam War and the Greek coup of the colonels in 1967. The arrests at Liliesleaf and convictions which followed at the Rivonia Trial in 1963-4 were followed by widespread roundups of activists and leaders, including Bram Fischer and Wilton Mkwayi. [17] Lee, having many friends in Johannesburg, thought it best to contact them in the first instance, so the group split at that point, making plans to meet in London. "Just in case, we had brought a chisel. After that they made it to Mozambique, Angola, and then on to Europe. [2] He started associating with African National Congress (ANC) exiles and beginning in 1967, he travelled in and out of South Africa transporting literature for the movement. . Now Escape From Pretoria tells the story of Jenkin and Stephen Lee, two white South African activists, imprisoned in 1978 for working on behalf of the African National Congress (ANC), and their. [23], As the plan evolved it became clear that for the escape to be successful it would have to be restricted to three people, who would have to hide in a small closet at one point. The jaw-dropping story of how two men broke out of the infamous maximum-security Pretoria Prison - and eventually on to the UK - has been given the Hollywood treatment in new blockbuster 'Escape From Pretoria', starring Daniel Radcliffe as Tim. Watch on. Escape from Pretoria sees Daniel Radcliffe in a very different role from his work in the Harry Potter franchise. [14], Undeterred, Jenkin continued the work in Cape Town, finding a new premises and regularly changing their printing equipment, and both carried out further leaflet bombings in Johannesburg. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. It was hugely emotional, Stephen recalls. The ol razzle dazzle where his journey looks nothing like how it has been portrayed on screen, In a way the real story is even more exciting, its just too long to fit into the 100 minutes, so theyve taken license to summaries a whole lot of events into one. Nick Fentons editing, meanwhile, maintains a keen sense of physical space and strain, not least in one comically queasy scene where a dropped key must be retrieved with the aid of a broomstick and chewing gum. You are the white Mandela, says a ham-faced warden, all but spitting in the face of anti-apartheid activist Tim Jenkin upon his arrival at Pretoria Local Prison in 1978. When he finally unlocked his cell door after two whole months of filing, he was overjoyed, Boom this thing just slid open, absolutely smoothly. The film was released on 6 March 2020, first in the UK and USA and then in the rest of the world. The video features excerpts from interviews with Jenkin, Lee, Moumbaris and Goldberg filmed in 2012, in between re-enacted scenes of the prison escape. I wasnt wondering, oh will they make it?. He lived and worked in UK and later moved to South Africa. He is best known for his 1979 escape from Pretoria Local Prison, along with Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris. Adams workaday screenplay, the actors signature anxious-earnest mien is leaned on a lot here, as is his overly explanatory voiceover, which provides a broad primer on apartheid for any uninformed viewers, along with a reminder that freedom and equality should be fought for at all costs.. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. The real-life Goldberg was much more supportively involved in the prison-break strategy; if the script does him something of a disservice for the purposes of greater narrative friction, thats not the fastest and loosest it plays with facts. Escape From Pretoria, the political thriller Annan co-wrote and directed, is based on a 1987 memoir by Tim Jenkin, in which Jenkin relates his 1979 escape from Pretoria Central Prison,. [1], Moumbaris was the only non-South African prisoner, and when Jenkin met him, he appeared as "a little aloof". Banished to the vast prison complex of Pretoria, the countrys administrative capital, Jenkin and Lee are protectively counseled by veteran liberal political prisoner Denis Goldberg (British veteran Ian Hart, giving the character a geezer-y air), who advises them to keep their heads down and to serve their time with dignity as prisoners of conscience. The youngsters, countering that they are instead prisoners of war, immediately set about an escape plan regardless. [25][26] Filming of Escape from Pretoria began in Adelaide, South Australia, in March 2019, with Daniel Webber joining the cast as Lee. On 11 December 1979 the three escapees managed to execute their master plan, against all odds, and found themselves outside the prison, in civilian clothes. What 15 KB (566 words) - 03:39, 25 February 2021 Grant Piro Broadcasting Corporation. But Tim Jenkin did, and you may be surprised to learn one of the most daring prison escapes was executed right under the noses of Pretoria Prison guards back in 1979 and involved nothing but the keys made in Jenkins own cell. [27] A decade later Jenkin also created Clearing Central, a 2nd tier exchange for moneyless exchange between groups. In 1997, he became a director of Unwembi Communications (Pty) Ltd.[7], Around the turn of the millennium Jenkin co-founded the Community Exchange System, an internet-based moneyless exchange for local communities, comparable to LETS, writing the entirety of its software. and 1979 escape from, Pretoria Local Prison (within the Pretoria Central Prison complex) with Tim Jenkin and Stephen Lee. A third prisoner, Alex Moumbaris, was brought in to be part of the escape. Alexandre Moumbaris is a political activist and former political prisoner.He was born in Egypt to Greek parents, grew up in Australia, lived and worked in the UK, was imprisoned in South Africa and now lives in France.He is known for his political activism against the apartheid rgime in South Africa in the 1970s, and his subsequent incarceration in, and 1979 escape from, Pretoria Local . In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can trust. It was gut-wrenching the length of time we were given, Stephen recalled. There was enough explosive inside to lift about 500 pamphlets into the air. "Just in case, we had brought a chisel. [6], At the end of 1970 Jenkin enrolled at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and graduated with a Bachelor of Social Science degree at the end of 1973. [19], In 2014 a documentary film called The Vula Connection, about Jenkin and his part in the creation of an ingenious secret communication system that enabled Vula operatives to penetrate South Africa's borders in secret, ultimately smuggling messages to the imprisoned Nelson Mandela, was made by Marion Edmunds. Jenkin was born in Cape Town and educated at Rondebosch Boys' Prep and Boys' High School,[2][3] matriculating aged 17. Escape from Pretoria is a 2020 Australian prison film co-written and directed by Francis Annan, based on the real-life prison escape by three political prisoners in South Africa in 1979, starring Daniel Radcliffe and Daniel Webber. Their arrest was part of a government sting to apprehend operatives from "the Moumbaris Adventurer Episode". They both found their sociology course disappointing, as the material reinforced the status quo of apartheid. To make matters more complicated, he could only unlock his cell door from the outside, and used a broomstick he had been allowed to hang on to for cleaning with the key attached to the end so that he could reach. Especially the ending of the film we had to break the final door, we were hoping to pull off the ultimate escape without leaving a trace. So it is a very strange sort of thing., Jenkin continues: It is very exciting [to watch] but I knew the outcome. But fortunately the metal of the keyhole marked where it was getting jammed, meaning Tim could accurately file it down to size. This movie is based on the book written by Jenkin himself and because of the Escape from Pretoria feels very personal and up-close. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. Meanwhile, it may struggle to find much of a fanbase in its own country of setting, where audiences might reasonably wonder why at least one South African actor couldnt have been cast in a principal role. The video features excerpts from interviews with Moumbaris, Jenkin, Lee and fellow inmate Denis Goldberg filmed in 2012, in between re-enacted scenes of the prison escape. In February 1974, Jenkin and Lee left the country in order to join the ANC in London, with the intention of helping to bring about change in South Africa. "Im glad that we escaped. [2] In June 2018, he was received by South African ambassador Rapu Molekane at the embassy in Paris. "I wanted to run but we just kept walking to the railway station, where we used our money to get in a taxi.. After Lee's father brought him a copy of the book Papillon, the book inspired them to seriously consider the prospect of escape and they concentrated on rigorous observations of the world around them. Alex Moumbaris (section Escape) and 1979 escape from, Pretoria Local Prison (within the Pretoria Central Prison complex) with Tim Jenkin and Stephen Lee. I still have it in my toolbox and still use it as a normal tool. Escape From Pretoria follows the months-long construction of an escape plan formulated by South African apartheid activists Tim Jenkin, Stephen Lee, and French national Leonard Fontaine (substituted for Egyptian-Australian activist Alex Moumbaris). He would then lean out of the tiny opening next to the door of his cell, and get the key inside the lock with a broomstick and a mirror. The pair, who are both now in their 70s, settled in north London, with Tim eventually relocating to Johannesburg years later. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Tim Jenkin and his allies were imprisoned at Pretoria Prison in South Africa. It was December 11, 1979, 18 months after our conviction, Stephen says. As clunkily deployed in the script for Escape from Pretoria, however, the line acts as a shortcut to nobility, in a tight genre exercise that has scant time for such elaborate niceties as character development and social context. [7][8], Jenkin met Stephen Lee in a sociology class at UCT. However, after the escape plan had captured his imagination, he cleaned up and changed his attitude, and was soon promoted to the "A" group. Sketchy as it is on human details, Escape from Pretoria gets by on such practical nuts and bolts. [7] A new edition was published in Johannesburg and London as Inside Out: Escape from Pretoria Prison in 2003. Actually were Tim to 12 years and Stephen to 8 years in Pretoria Prison shipped after they Handed out leaflets with a (harmless) explosion. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. [12], After the success of their first mission, Jenkin worked on refining the mechanism by adding a triggering system to the leaflet bomb, so that they did not have to be close to it when it went off. He signalled his wish to be included in any possible escape plan to Jenkin even before the idea was presented to him, after Jenkin had mentioned he and Lee had brought some money into prison. Stephen would wait until the guards had gone to sleep. They caught us with printing equipment. The fact that they were all in prison for their political activities and beliefs united them, and "as members of a revolutionary organisation [they] were disciplined and shared in [their] suffering collectively". Fortunately marks on the wood showed where the key was jamming, so Tim knew which parts to file down. This was going to let us out of the cells into the corridor.. We just hoped that nobody would see us.". Similarly to American Animals, the fast-paced narrative is geared toward the great moment of liberation, showing how the prisoners ended up developing their invincible strategy. Tim's door was just the beginning. 2020 PG-13 1h 46m DVD Rent this movie Play trailer. He became instrumental to the escape plan in several ways, making the early suggestion any escape plan would have to involve the making of keys,[7] providing a hacksaw which he had secreted after plumbers had left it behind,[8] and getting involved in some of the riskier aspects of the planning and testing of the scheme. Then I went to Australia to the set and we would often sit together and hed ask me about particular scenes, what was going through my head while this was happening. But, he says, they were determined to break free. We use cookies and similar tools that are . My heart was racing. He had been waiting for this sound for several hours every night for two months. It was dangerous, they did have regular inspections. There has only been one successful prison break since. As the former prison inmate told The Daily Mail, this memory was to transform his life, and soon enough, he had begun to test out various plans that could help him and Tim get out of the horrid institution. At night there were dogs in the yard.. While Tim - the technical mastermind - was sentenced to 12 years in jail, his friend Stephen got eight years. 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Jordan Meets Reporter at 'Creed III' Premiere Who 'Teased Him all the Time' in High School: 'I Was the Corny Kid, Right? They were sent to Pretoria Central Prison - since renamed Kgosi Mampuru II Management Area - where prisoners were divided up depending on their race. Moumbaris is renamed Leonard Fontaine and played by Mark Leonard Winter.[27][28]. We got through the nine doors and then at the final door, we found we couldnt open the lock. I wanted to go back and do it again, as we hadnt opened that door before., He says: We escaped it a number of times in fact, each time going a bit further, the actual [final] escape was the easy part.. Thence to Mozambique, and, via contact with FRELIMO, to Angola, where from the ANC office in Luanda they were able to make phone calls to their families, and were also given the news Lee was on his way to join them at the airport. He is best known for his 1979 escape from Pretoria Local Prison (part of the Pretoria Central Prison complex), along with Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris. Locked up in a maximum-security jail for setting off harmless leaflet propaganda bombs spreading dissent against the apartheid regime in 1970s South Africa, Stephen and friend Tim Jenkin were about to embark on one of the most audacious prison breaks in history. [2] Goldberg and the others decided to withdraw from the escape, with Goldberg continuing to be involved in the preparations. "You are the white Mandela," says a ham-faced warden, all but spitting in the face of anti-apartheid activist Tim Jenkin upon his arrival at Pretoria Local Prison in 1978. 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This time they came up with a plan to leave dummies in their beds, sneak downstairs, hide in a cupboard and wait for the warder to go upstairs. [15], At 3am the morning of 2 March 1978, Jenkin and Lee were both arrested, after being seen moving their printing equipment into their own dwelling. They were very big locks so you could see the marks on the inside. Actor: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. Would you have the guts to chisel away keys out of wood in your prison cell to open the nine steel, guarded doors to your freedom right under the noses of violent prison wardens? [22], After their incarceration, Jenkin, Lee and several other inmates began plotting an escape, which would involve copies of several prison keys that Jenkin made from wood. Door three fortunately worked with the same key as the inner cell door. After months of meticulous surveillance, breath-taking ingenuity, and in a race against time . All Rights Reserved. The moment we heard the knocking on the door, we knew that was it, Tim told The Times. Characterization takes a distant back seat to the ingenious practicalities of the mission itself. A lot of people cant understand how we got the shape of the key, but if you break it down most of the dimensions you get from the lock itself, you measure the hole, Jenkin explains like its nothing. Jenkins was not going to help the cause by sitting in prison, and he set about planning an escape. Recalling their rather more successful attempt, Stephen explained: The sense of freedom was amazing. The wooden key didnt work at first. He is known for his political activism against the apartheid rgime in South Africa in the 1970s, and his subsequent incarceration in, and 1979 escape from, Pretoria Local . But as Stephen would soon find out on a vital reconnaissance trip to the dentist, there were still a total of 10 doors separating them from freedom. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Written and directed by Francis Annan, the historical thriller sheds light on how Stephen and Tim managed to defy all expectations and escape from the Pretoria Central Prison. Alex Moumbaris was born in Egypt to French parents and later became a naturalised Australian. [4] He had not grown up in a political family, but when in Britain associated with Communists there and he was inspired by the communist resistance to the Axis occupation of Greece during World War II. [2] However the boat had developed engine problems and had to return to Somalia. It took until the next day for guards to realise they were missing, and a huge police operation to recapture them was launched. The only languages allowed to be spoken during visits were the two "official" languages, English and Afrikaans, but as Boris only spoke French and was deemed too young to be a security risk, allowed them to converse in French. Here they met Oliver Tambo and Alfred Nzo, President and Secretary-General of the ANC respectively, and gave a press conference on 2 January 1980. Using the broom he was allowed to keep to sweep his cell, he created another genius contraption. [9], In February 1974, Jenkin and Lee left the country in order to join the ANC in London, with the intention of helping to bring about change in South Africa. [35][36] Filming of Escape from Pretoria began in Adelaide, South Australia, in March and April 2019, with Daniel Webber joining the cast as Lee. The third prisoner in this true story was in fact Alexandre Moumbaris, Egyptian born of Greek heritage who grew up in Australia and was raised in the UK. [7], Jenkin and Lee appeared at a press conference in Lusaka with Oliver Tambo on 2 January 1980 to tell their stories,[25] before moving to London, where Jenkin worked as a research officer for the International Defence and Aid Fund. why is alex moumbaris not in escape from pretoriabegagnad frtltsmatta why is alex moumbaris not in escape from pretoria How? We were working in a carpentry workshop and I thought, I wonder if we can make a key out of wood. Director Francis Annan and his co-writer L.H . The prison, constructed from stone and steel, had gone down in prisoner folklore as being a fortress from which no one could ever hope to escape. 1978 But of course if you continue doing something long enough, you will make mistakes. His wife was detained during the same period of his detention, but was later released without charge. But we got away with it.. Messages were typed into a computer, encrypted and saved to audio cassette, then sent from a public callbox to an answering machine. su amigo Stephen Lee y a Alex . The first to get out of the toughest jail in South Africa, Stephen and Tim earned renown with a borderline genius hack. They were so convinced that they'd soon find a way out that they had money smuggled in to use for taxi fares once they got out. Others were also caught, but they succeeded in infiltrating a number of trained militants. I took the file that I brought, and I had the lock in front of me so I could keep testing it, he explained of the agonisingly slow process. Escape from Pretoria," however, the line acts as a shortcut to nobility, in a tight genre exercise that has scant time for such elaborate niceties as character development and social context. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. . 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