The Great Train Robbery struck in England

Around 3 a.m. on August 8, 1963, a gang of fifteen led by Bruce Reynolds tampered with the lineside signals on the West Coast Main Line, halting a Royal Mail travelling post office train running from Glasgow to London.

At Bridego Bridge, near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, the robbers uncoupled the engine and the High Value Packet coach, overpowered the staff, and formed a human chain to pass down 120 mailbags. Inside was roughly £2.6 million in used notes — about £50 million in today’s money — making it one of the largest cash robberies Britain had ever seen.

The gang retreated to Leatherslade Farm to split the haul, but fingerprints left at the hideout unravelled the plan. Most were caught and sentenced to up to 30 years. The episode prompted the Post Office to overhaul train security, fitting radios it had long deemed too expensive — a costly lesson learned the hard way.