Wish Me Luck

Wish Me Luck is a British television drama about the exploits of civilian women who became undercover agents in Occupied France during the Second World War. The series was made by London Weekend Television for the ITV network between 17 January 1988 and 25 February 1990 and created by Lavinia Warner and Jill Hyem, who had previously produced and written the BBC women prisoner of war series Tenko. The series was filmed on location in England and France.

Wish Me Luck is similar to Tenko and the 1970s BBC drama Secret Army, in that it deals with strong female characters coping under extreme conditions in wartime. The organisation for which the series' women agents worked, the Outfit, was based on the real-life Special Operations Executive. Season 1 and 2 were based on the exploits of SOE agent Nancy Wake and much of the dialogue was copied from her autobiography The White Mouse.

The series also addressed social issues and divisions under wartime conditions. A great deal of attention was also paid to creating the social context of the operatives, the drama of their work, against the backdrop of an intensely detailed local "colour" in both wartime Britain and France.

"Wish Me Luck (as You Wave Me Goodbye)" is a song made popular during the Second World War by Gracie Fields.

The first series centred around the exploits of two recruits:

Also starring:

The third and final series, which was based on the 1944 Vercors rebellion, saw Jane Snowden joined by Catherine Schell, Jeremy Nicholas and, in one of her first television roles, Shirley Henderson. Running the 'Outfit' back in London were Jane Asher and Julian Glover. Other key characters were played by Terrence Hardiman, Jeremy Northam, Stuart McGugan, Felicity Montagu, Mark Anstee, Trevor Peacock and Nigel Le Vaillant.

There were 23 episodes in all. The first series was directed by Gordon Flemyng, the second and third series by Bill Hays.