An elite group that took on the Japanese finally tells its exploits. Aged just 24 and readying to parachute into the highlands of Borneo in the final months of the Second World War, Jack Tredrea well remembers being issued with a small red pill. “It was cyanide, just in case,” says the veteran commando. “We knew our chances were only 50/50. We were jumping blind and hoping like hell that the Japs hadn’t got up that high – which they hadn’t, thank God!”. Tredrea was part of an elite group of soldiers called Z Special. Their task in this instance was to gather intelligence ahead of the coming invasion and, with the aid of the locals, to harass the enemy...