Starting off in Werfen, I bought my entrance ticket of around 10 euros which, as I remember, included the guided tour which took in areas of the castle which could not ordinarily be visited alone. This was especially useful as it showed, to my knowledge, areas which appeared in the film. ( I had a DVD player and the film with me, needless to say.) The courtyard where the helicopter landed, the radio room ( Funkraum) and the stairs leading to the quarters were all easily available. There was later a falconry display – very appropriate. Schloss Hohenwerfen is easily accessible from Salzburg and Innsbruck by train and the castle dominates the small town.

Also in Werfen, the train station, whilst refurbished now, is still recognisable although the wooden shed where the commandos took shelter, is no more. The bridge into the town from the station is also very recognisable.

I moved on to Ebensee and possibly the most interesting part of the trip. I booked into the Feuerkogelhaus at the top of the mountain after taking the new cable car from Ebensee. This was a superb choice: it is simple, right on the header station but is run by the Reisenbichler family and Herr Reisenbichler’s grandparents, I believe it was, who ferried Burton and Eastwood around during filming. Slightly suspicious of my requests initially, Herr Reisenbichler and older friends befriended me and in the evening we had a very convivial evening over beer discussing the film and I was allowed to look at the guestbook which included two entries from Peter Berkeley and Donald Houston. I was told that there were plans