Leger Holidays has developed a tour based based on locations and the story featured in new film The Great Escaper.
The film, which goes on general release on October 6, is based on the true-life story of WWII veteran Bernard Jordan who staged a ‘great escape’ from his care home to attend the 70th anniversary commemorations of the D-Day landings.
The film stars Michael Caine as Bernie and Glenda Jackson, in her last film role, as Bernie’s wife Irene Jordan.
The five-day bespoke tour starts in Portsmouth with a visit to the D-Day Story, before moving to France, accompanied by a specialist battlefield tour guide.
Prices start at £649 per person, including coach travel from the UK, with regional departures, hotels in Portsmouth and Normandy, continental breakfast and all visits.
A coach showcasing the official film poster and the front cover of the Leger Holidays Battlefield Tours brochure has also been unveiled.
Leger Shearings Group chief executive Liam Race said: “I’m delighted to have been approached by Pathé UK to work on their upcoming film, The Great Escaper.
“Our battlefield tours continue to be extremely popular, and we’re certain the film will inspire viewers to embark on their own journeys of discovery to the battlefields, which is why we’ve launched a bespoke tour which follows in Bernie’s footsteps.
“The partnership will also bring our battlefield programme to new audiences who perhaps haven’t considered travelling in this way before.”
Michael Guerrero, head of marketing at film production firm Pathé UK, said: “The Great Escaper is inspired by the incredible true story of Bernie Jordan who, aged 89, left his care home to travel to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
“While Bernie may have made the journey on his own, the opportunity to partner with Leger Battlefields, who take customers to many of the same locations that Bernie visited, was too good to ignore.
“Not only did the match make sense thematically, we also knew that Leger’s expertise in reaching their customer base would help the film find an engaged and receptive audience of its own.”