15/09/2026
'Ordinary people, extraordinary courage': Lance Sergeant Richard O’Brien
In September 1942, ten men from No. 2 Commando, accompanied by two Norwegian soldiers, were sent to German-occupied Norway on 'Operation Musketoon'.
Their target was the Glomfjord hydroelectric power plant, which supplied electricity to the area and an aluminium plant. The objective was to put it out of action.
Among the Commandos was Lance Sergeant Richard O’Brien of the Royal Berkshire Regiment. Richard was already an experienced raider. One of many soldiers who volunteered for special forces operations after the Retreat to Dunkirk, Richard had taken part in 'Operation Chariot', the raid on St Nazaire, six months earlier.
For Musketoon, the raiding party crossed the North Sea aboard the Free French submarine Junon, landing near Glomfjord on the 15th September. After crossing mountainous terrain, the attack began on the night of 19th/20th September.
O’Brien, together with Lance Bombardier William Chudley and Private Eric Curtis, was tasked with destroying two high-pressure water pipes supplying the plant. They successfully placed explosives on the pipes while the remainder of the party attacked the power station itself.
The operation succeeded. The damage left the Glomfjord plant out of action for the remainder of the war.
The withdrawal was more difficult. The Commandos split into groups to evade German search parties. Richard, Norwegian Corporal Sverre Granlund, Private John Fairclough and Private Fred Trigg made their way north and eventually reached neutral Sweden, from where they were repatriated to Britain.
The fate of those captured was very different. Seven British Commandos were taken to Sachsenhausen concentration camp and executed on the 23rd October 1942, following Hitler’s Commando Order.
O’Brien was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
His service continued. In September 1943, now an Acting Sergeant, he fought in Italy around Salerno, Dragone Hill and Piegolelle, for which he was awarded the Military Medal.
From St Nazaire, to Norway, to Italy, Richard O’Brien’s wartime record is a remarkable story of courage, endurance and survival.
