Mr Justice Charleton visits Kilkenny Liberal Studies Group

Mr Justice Charleton gave a lecture on truth and historical fiction to the Kilkenny Liberal Studies group  based on the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich by Czech and Slovak partisans in May 1942. The talk was entitled 'Truth and Fiction in Portraying a Historical Event: the Assassination of Reinhardt Heydrich'.  Extracts from the film, Operation Daybreak (1975) were played to show how sometimes departures from fact can expose a fundamental truth. This talk explores the intersection between  historical fact and creative interpretation in film, focusing on the 1942 assassination of Nazi leader Reinhard Heydrich by Czech and Slovak resistance fighters  Although the event has been portrayed in various films such as Anthropoid (2016), The Man with the Iron Heart (2017), and Lidice (2011), particular attention is given to Operation Daybreak (1975), which, despite its departures from strict historical accuracy, captures the spirit of heroism and sacrifice at the heart of the story. Mr Justice Charleton examines how filmmakers use fiction to express deeper emotional or moral truths, and where the line should be drawn between storytelling and distortion. The talk also reflects on the devastating consequences of the assassination, the legacy of those who carried it out, and the enduring question of what it means to resist tyranny, no matter the cost.