About the Book: Ian Flemings Commandos The true story of Ian Flemings Second World War unit, the real-life inspiration for James Bond. In 1942, Lieutenant-Commander Ian Fleming RNVR was personal assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence - the dynamic figure behind James Bonds fictional chief, M. In the Admiralty, Fleming had a brilliant idea: why not set up a unit o About the Book: Ian Flemings Commandos The true story of Ian Flemings Second World War unit, the real-life inspiration for James Bond. In 1942, Lieutenant-Commander Ian Fleming RNVR was personal assistant to the Director of Naval Intelligence - the dynamic figure behind James Bonds fictional chief, M. In the Admiralty, Fleming had a brilliant idea: why not set up a unit of authorised looters, men who would go in with front-line troops to steal enemy intelligence? Known as 30 Assault Unit, they took part in the landings in North Africa, Sicily and Normandy and helped liberate Paris. But 30AU really came into their own in Germany in 1945 and their final amazing coup was to seize the entire archives of the German Navy - over 300 tons of documents. Ian Fleming flew out in person to bring the loot back to Britain, where it was combed for evidence to use in the Nuremberg trials. In this gripping and highly enjoyable book, Nicholas Rankin, author of the bestselling Churchills Wizards, puts 30 Assault Units fascinating story in a strategic and intelligence context. He also argues that Ian Flemings Second World War service was one of the most significant periods of his life - without this, the most popular spy fiction of the twentieth century would not have been written. About the Author: Nicholas Rankin Nicholas Rankin spent twenty years broadcasting for BBC World Service where he was Chief Producer, Arts and won two UN awards. He has written three previous, highly praised books for Faber: Dead Mans Chest, following in Robert Louis Stevensons footsteps from Scotland to Samoa; Telegram from Guernica, a biography of the ground-breaking war reporter G. L. Steer; and Churchills Wizards, a study of British camouflage and deception in the two world wars. Nicholas Rankin was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2009. He is married to the novelist Maggie Gee and lives in London