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Episode 5 Blue’s Story episode artwork

Oct 19, 2026 35 min

Episode 5 Blue’s Story

from SAS: The Shadow War

On St Patrick’s Day 1978, a covert surveillance mission in rural Londonderry went catastrophically wrong. In episode five of SAS: The Shadow War, The Independent’s world affairs editor Sam Kiley meets ‘Blue’, a former 14 Intelligence Company operative speaking publicly about the night he and a fellow soldier were ambushed while watching a farm linked to wanted IRA man Francis Hughes. Shot three times, with one bullet tearing through his stomach, Blue was left bleeding heavily in the dark, his radio failing and help far away. What followed was a desperate fight to stay alive, improvise first aid and get a message out. It is a story of instinct, split-second decisions and survival, and of the brutal consequences when a covert operation collapses in seconds. Subscribe to The Independent All Access Membership and unlock all eight episodes for just £1

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Episode 5 Blue’s Story

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This episode is 35 minutes long.

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This episode was published on October 19, 2026.

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