Eddie Chapman - in Popular Culture

In Popular Culture

In the 1950s producer Ted Banborough announced plans to make a film about Chapman starring Michael Rennie or Stanley Baker but this did not go ahead.

The 1966 film Triple Cross was based on the biography of the same name co-written by Chapman and Frank Owen. The film was directed by Terence Young who had known Chapman before the war. Chapman's character was played by Christopher Plummer. The film was only loosely based on reality and Chapman was disappointed with it. In his autobiography, Plummer said that Chapman was to have been a technical adviser on the film but the French authorities would not allow him in the country because he was still wanted over an alleged plot to kidnap the Sultan of Morocco. The film gave him a celebrity status for a while and this allowed him to be an occasional crime writer for The Sunday Telegraph.

In May 1989 Chapman made an extended appearance on the Channel 4 discussion programme After Dark, alongside Tony Benn, Lord Dacre, James Rusbridger, Miles Copeland and others.

In 2011, BBC Two broadcast, DOUBLE AGENT: The Eddie Chapman Story, a documentary presented by Ben Macintyre based on his book.

Playtone has acquired the film rights for Ben Macintyre's book. Mark Bomback is penning with Mike Newell set to direct.