22. The Surprising Difficulty of Finding a Corpse
Wartime London had no shortage of bodies, but it also had no shortage of legal and practical difficulties that stood in the way of British intelligence’s ability to secure one of them. As a coroner informed British intelligence when they asked for a corpse, each body had to be accounted for. However, he promised to keep an eye out for a suitable corpse: one without relatives who would claim it for burial. Finally, in late January 1943, a homeless drifter named Glyndwr Michael died of rat poison, and his body arrived in the morgue.
As he had no known relatives, Glyndwr’s cadaver was perfect for the deception plan. As an intelligence officer uncharitably put it, Glyndwr was “a ne’er-do-well” and “the only worthwhile thing that he ever did he did after his death“. The body was kept in a mortuary, awaiting the go-ahead for Operation Mincemeat to proceed. Papers identifying him as Royal Marines “Major William Martin” were prepared. Personal touch documents were added, such as a fictitious sweetheart, receipt for an engagement ring, a letter from his dad, plus a demand from Lloyds Bank that he take care of an overdraft.
