A new book reveals the remarkable story of a Southport wartime hero who saved the lives of hundreds of refugees – including a company of ballet dancers, famous footballers and the journalist who was the inspiration for James Bond.
Merchant Navy Captain Joseph Green carried out his brave rescue from Holland as the Nazis invaded in 1940.
In ‘Escape From Holland’ journalist and historian Chris Hunt reconstructs the dramatic events of May 1940, when the phoney war came to an end and German forces invaded the Netherlands.
British civilians suddenly found themselves trapped in a nation collapsing at terrifying speed.
Told with pace, precision, and a storyteller’s eye for character, the book brings to life the final hours before Holland capitulated, capturing the urgency, confusion, and peril of a moment when escape became a matter of survival.
Set over the course of a single extraordinary weekend, this riveting tale follows an unlikely group of individuals whose lives briefly intersect in a race against time to reach the last official British boat out of Holland.
As communications failed and transport routes vanished, every decision carried weight.
Survival depended on quick judgement, fragile networks, and sheer chance, as well as on how ordinary people responded when time was no longer a luxury.
Just before dawn on 10th May, 1940, German parachute troops rained down on Holland.
Watching from his home on the Dutch coast was former international footballer Billy Marsden.
It was ten years to the day since Germans saved his life in a Berlin hospital after he suffered a broken neck while playing for England – and now it’s this German invasion that was putting his life in jeopardy.
In The Hague, Margot Fonteyn and the Sadler’s Wells Ballet Company watched dogfights from the roof of their hotel.
In Amsterdam, trying to file the story of the invasion were journalist David Woodward and his American wife, NBC war correspondent Margaret Rupli (one of the rare women reporting on the war for American radio), while young British diplomat Peers Carter attempted to organise an evacuation just eight months into the job.
As German forces swept into the Netherlands these British civilians – and others – found themselves caught in a war they weren’t expecting.
With the country collapsing around them and escape routes closing by the hour, their survival depended on speed, nerve, and the knowledge that there was no turning back.
‘Escape From Holland’ follows the final race to reach the last official British evacuation boat, but its power lies in the examination of why people were there in the first place and what happens along the way.
The story brings together groups of people who had no reason ever to meet, except for history’s sudden intervention.
Their paths crossed in a moment when identity, status, and background no longer mattered, only the ability to stay calm under pressure.
Author Chris Hunt said: “What drew me in was how quickly normal life disappeared.
“One day, these people were doing their jobs, rehearsing, reporting, playing sport. Next, they were running out of time.
“I wanted to capture that moment when the ground shifts and you realise that it’s time to get out.
“None of them thought of themselves as brave or significant. They were just ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. That’s what makes the story exciting, bold, and compelling.”
Among the most notable figures in the book is a Southport sailor whose courage deserves to be remembered.
Chris Hunt said: “One of the clear heroes of the event was a Southport man, a merchant navy captain called Joseph Green.
“He survived two days of German bombing in the port of Rotterdam and was in charge of just about the only British boat to get out of the port intact.
“Then, instead of heading straight back to the UK, he followed instructions from the British naval authorities in Rotterdam, which he didn’t have to do, to sail up the coast to Ijmuiden, navigating from memory because he’d had to set all the his charts and maps alight so the Germans wouldn’t get them when It looked like the ship would have to be scuttled.
“He survived another day and night of German bombing in Ijmuiden before sailing home with 700 refugees in the rusty cargo hold of his tramp steamer.
“The refugees included Margot Fonteyn and Robert Helpmann and the entire Sadler’s Wells Ballet Company, about 10 once famous British footballers including several FA Cup winners and a couple of former England captains who were coaching in Holland.
“The refugees also included the journalist who was the inspiration for James Bond and a photographer who later became a triple Oscar-nominated cinematographer.
“The captain again sailed out of the port and home intact, whereas the boat that attempted to leave the port next was blown up by a magnetic mine.
“He later received a commendation from the Admiralty for his actions but because it all happened shortly before the events of Dunkirk, I don’t feel his achievement has been fully recognised.
“His grandson still lives in the town and his brother and nephew achieved similar acts of bravery while in the merchant navy.
“I would love to see if there is any way that Southport can recognise and celebrate the achievements of this man and his family.
“I’ve researched this book for almost 20 years and it never ceases to amaze me what Captain Green did on the weekend of the invasion of Holland.
“I keep thinking that the only reason I haven’t heard the story before is that I’m not from Southport. But as hard as I look I can see no celebration of the man. Maybe everyone locally knows the story!
“Looking at one of the Southport heritage sites recently I was struck by what a good job the heritage organisations were doing for the buildings of Southport and thought it would be nice if the town could celebrate one of its local heroes too. A forgotten local hero.
“I would love to draw some attention to a local hero and get Southport talking about the man to begin with.”
One thing Chris would be keen to see is any memories of Joseph Green – and any pictures.
He said: “I researched my book for 20 years and I didn’t manage to find a photo of him.
“I found a photo of his brother – also a medal-winning captain in the merchant navy, and his nephew in the Liverpool Echo.
“The story is unbelievable. I finished the book five years ago and then parked it and last month I decided to publish it.
“I thought I’ll have one last attempt to track down a picture of him. I scoured the web and found someone talking about Joseph’s brother as if they were related. I tracked the person down and he was Joseph’s nephew but he knew nothing about Joseph. And although the family are Southport through and through the man that I found was living in rural Cambridge – in a village just 6 mies from me. And even more bizarrely the son of the man I found lived in my village in rural Cambridgeshire.
“But neither of them had a picture of Joseph.
“I would love to appeal to anyone who may have any photos of Joseph Green.”
- Do you have any pictures or memories of Joseph Green? Please email Andrew Brown at: mediaandrewbrown@gmail.com
- Escape From Holland is available for pre-order now on Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/fnITCkd
- More info on Escape From Holland can be found at Chris Hunt’s website: www.chrishunt.biz
Do you have a story for Stand Up For Southport? Do you need advertising, PR or media support? Please message Andrew Brown or email: mediaandrewbrown@gmail.com
