why is alex moumbaris not in escape from pretoria

We walked out as if we had every right to be there.". 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. Its when it shoots for more historical import that it falls somewhat short. Moumbaris and Jenkin, by a variety of means, travelled overland to Swaziland and went to United Nations High Commission for Refugees, who were sympathetic to their plight and took them to an ANC representative. Watch on. After acceptance by the ANC, he and Lee received training from the ANC in various tactics, in particular how to spread their propaganda leaflets, and how to set up communication and financial structures. [12], Moumbaris, although enrolled in university courses, did not undertake formal studies at all while in prison; it was a cover so extra books could be obtained from the university library for everyone to make use of; it was a way of keeping themselves informed about the world. This was going to let us out of the cells into the corridor.. [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. Escape From Pretoria is in cinemas Friday. The video features excerpts from interviews with Jenkin, Lee, Moumbaris and Goldberg filmed in 2012, in between re-enacted scenes of the prison escape. At this point, a third prisoner, Alex Moumbaris joined the escape effort. Alex Moumbaris was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment on the 20 June 1973, which he started serving in the Pretoria Local Prison. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. However, escaping - something no inmate had successfully done before - was going to be no easy task. In June 1978, Stephen Lee and Tim Jenkin were sentenced to eight to 12 years in prison for producing political pamphlets during the Apartheid. Straining to listen through the grill in his prison cell door, Stephen Lee heard the satisfying click of a key turning in a lock. I wasnt wondering, oh will they make it?. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. [22], 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. They both found their sociology course disappointing, as the material reinforced the status quo of apartheid. [11] The wardens were all Afrikaans-speaking and were not fluent in English, and while most of the prisoners were fairly fluent in Afrikaans, they were not familiar with the topics they talked about. Then, one day he was working in a carpentry workshop and it struck him that the key could be wooden. Locked up in a maximum-security jail for leaflets against apartheid, they embarked on one of the most audacious escapes in history. [2], Moumbaris became involved with the ANC at a time when the organisation had suffered many setbacks. Lying on his bunk one night, he gazed at the lock in front of him and had a flash of inspiration. [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. With Daniel Radcliffe, Daniel Webber, Ian Hart, Mark Leonard Winter. They moved to London in 1961,[1] where Moumbaris worked for the IT department of Reuters-Comtel. [8] He and Lee went on a speaking tour in Sweden in the early 1980s. 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. The moment we heard the knocking on the door, we knew that was it, Tim told The Times. Fortunately marks on the wood showed where the key was jamming, so Tim knew which parts to file down. Lee worked for the University of the Witwatersrand, while Jenkin ran the "cell" on his own in Cape Town. We walked out as if we had every right to be there. There he met and married a French woman, Marie-Jos. lindbacken fastigheter [20] After a spell in the notorious John Vorster Square in Johannesburg, they were returned to Cape Town and after four weeks, allowed to see family, and held at Pollsmoor Prison as they awaited trial. Others were also caught, but they succeeded in infiltrating a number of trained militants. In an area called "The Pot", therewas a legendary gallows where seven could be hung at once. In the end, it was the selfless actions of a fourth prisoner, Denis Goldberg - who had been sentenced alongside Mandela, and who would ultimately serve 22 years - who made their bid for freedom a reality. People said how can you make keys out of wood, they wouldnt be strong enough, but when we broke them up it was quite a mission, we had to use the chisel.. It's not intended as a compliment: "The most deluded of them all," the warden adds, lest it be taken as such. The third partner in the escape, Egyptian-born activist Alex Moumbaris, has been fictionalized as enigmatic Frenchman Leonard (Mark Leonard Winter), who has no discernible history or motivation at all, while two black allies in the plan are marginal presences at best. In my early years I had learned to pick the back door lock at home with a piece of wire, he says. [21], Commenting on the 2017 French election, Moumbaris named Franois Asselineau as his favourite candidate, but he would vote for Marine Le Pen rather than Emmanuel Macron, purely based on protection of the nation against Macron's "financial fascism", but was still a staunch communist. [2], Moumbaris was still living in Normandy as of July 2017[update]. [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. 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). [2] Goldberg and the others decided to withdraw from the escape, with Goldberg continuing to be involved in the preparations. Shop Escape from Pretoria. He also once unfurled an ANC banner from a building in Durban,[5] and was subsequently entrusted with more risky assignments. Timothy Peter Jenkin (born 1948) is a South African writer, former anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner. From the very first day, we started to collect intelligence about possible escape routes, says Tim, who now lives in Johannesburg. The last 30-odd years have seen such a wealth of diverse, resonant personal histories emerge from the ashes of apartheid not least that of the actual, not-white Mandela that Escape from Pretoria could well have missed its moment entirely. He also participated in a local parkrun, a hobby which he said stemmed back from his days of running to keep fit in prison. We worked quite closely and he wanted to know what to emphasise, he was very keen to portray the mood and, well, me, I guess, as accurately as he could.. Alex Moumbaris was born in Egypt to Greek parents and grew up in Australia. [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. 40 years after his mad dash for freedom with his collection of wooden keys and one chisel which was, unbelievably, successful Jenkins story is being told in the feature film, with Daniel Radcliffe playing the lead role. [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. 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. Denis Goldberg first joined in with the intention of fleeing as well, but he eventually withdrew and stayed on as an advisor. Recalling their rather more successful attempt, Stephen explained: The sense of freedom was amazing. [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". He is best known for his 1979 escape from Pretoria Local Prison, along with Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris. Escape From Pretoria chronicles their journey, shedding new light on how they managed to escape from prison. It was hugely emotional, Stephen recalls. I felt so elated.". 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. We has skype chats, he wanted to learn about the character and the accent, Jenkin, now-71, explained of the study Radcliffe did to ace his portrayal. Stephen and Tim began devising ways to break out as soon as they arrived. [2], In March 1988, Moumbaris was at the side of ANC Chief Representative Dulcie September in 1988 when she was shot and killed outside the office in Paris. 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. [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. Based on the real-life prison break of two political captives, Escape From Pretoria is a race-against-time thriller set in the tumultuous apartheid days of South Africa. 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. Dirigida por Francis Annan y con Daniel Radcliffe en el papel principal, est basada en el libro que el mismo Jenkin escribi relatando la horrible experiencia vivida poco antes de los 80, cuando fue apresado. He escaped with fellow activists Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris. My heart was racing. Jenkin, Lee, and fellow prisoner Alex Moumbaris were also involved in the escape. We started just before the Soweto uprising in 1976 and carried on for three years. [23], In December 1979,[7] Jenkin, Lee and fellow inmate Alex Moumbaris[24][17] broke out of Pretoria Central Prison using handmade keys to ten of the doors leading out of the prison, after several hair-raising moments when encountering unforeseen obstacles. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. 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. After leaving . Alexandre Moumbaris is a political activist and former political prisoner. Moumbaris was fully involved in the preparation of landings on the East Coast of South Africa. On December 11th, 1979, three white activists, Tim Jenkin, Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris, escaped from Pretoria Central Prison. United Nations High Commission for Refugees, "Press Conference by O. R. Tambo, Introducing Alexandre Moumbaris, Stephen Lee and Timothy Jenkin who Escaped from Prison in South Africa", "Ambassador Molekane receives stalwart of the apartheid struggle Alex Moumbaris at the SA Embassy", "Media Statement by the Chancellor of the National Orders and Director-General in the Presidency, Dr. Cassius Lubisi, at the Union Buildings, Pretoria", "Daniel Radcliffe to Star in Prison-Break Drama 'Escape From Pretoria', "Sam Neill joins Daniel Radcliffe in 'Escape From Pretoria', "Adelaide transformed into apartheid-era Cape Town for Escape From Pretoria filming", "Daniel Radcliffe touches down in Adelaide for new movie", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alex_Moumbaris&oldid=1101678249, All Wikipedia articles written in South African English, Articles containing potentially dated statements from July 2017, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 1 August 2022, at 07:50. 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