The last survivor of HMS "Perseus" - world premiere in Poland!

On Saturday, 9 February, during the 8th edition of the International Wreck Festival in Warsaw, there will be the world premiere of the documentary drama “The Perseus Surviovor”. The film tells the extraordinary story of the submarine HMS “Perseus” and – most likely – the secret agent John Capes, the only man who survived the sinking of the vessel.

An investigation by underwater explorer Richie Kholer, has revealed a whole sequence of interconnected events that have uncovered many secrets buried until recently at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea.

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The blue and clear waters of the Mediterranean were a real curse for British submarines. 20% of all units were sunk from the air, by enemy ships or as a result of running into a mine. And when a submarine is sunk, the rule is one – everyone dies and the sunken unit becomes a common coffin. However, there are exceptions to every rule…

HMS “Perseus” sailed on November 26, 1941 from Malta and headed for Alexandria, with the task of patrolling the waters surrounding the east coast of Greece. On December 3 the crew of the “Perseus” probably torpedoed another vessel, but on December 6 the ship ran into an Italian mine and sank off the coast of Kefalonia. This is where the extraordinary story of the only surviving passenger begins.

John Cape was the only one of the 61 men inside the “Perseus” to leave the sunken ship through the hatch in the engine room and after swimming 8 km ashore. He was hidden on the island for another 18 months until it was finally decided to take the surviving sailor to Alexandria, the ship’s final destination.

Unfortunately, many people doubted the story of the survivor because… it was too unusual! Both inside and outside the navy, many elements of the story were doubted and the protagonist was accused of not being on the sunken ship at all. The fact that Cape (as well as one other passenger) were not on the crew list certainly did not lend credibility.

There were many more doubts and until his death in 1985, John Cape was considered by many to be a liar and a fabulist who tried to create himself as a hero and the sole survivor of HMS “Perseus”. Everything changed 12 years later, in 1997, after the wreck of the submarine was found by Kostas Thoctarides and his team.

It was quickly established which vessel the divers were dealing with. A good identification was possible largely thanks to the testimony of the only surviving crew member. In turn, a thorough examination of the wreck confirmed the dramatic story of the ship’s last moments and the journey that John Cape had made and presented in his story.

For me personally, the premiere of “The Perseus Survivor” will be a kind of closure of a story. I learned about the fate of this extraordinary individual and John Cape several years ago in Łódź, during one of the past editions of the International Wreck Festival. So what better place to see the premiere of this production?

Today, the wreck of HMS “Perseus” lies at a depth of 52 metres and is the target of numerous diving expeditions.

Source: U-Film, wikipedia.org, bbc.com