Brian Johnson opens up in a new interview that his mother used to save downed Allied fighter pilots and spy on Germany while she was working in their headquarters.
- October 25, 2020
AceShowbiz - Brian Johnson's mother worked as a resistance fighter in World War II and smuggled British pilots out of Italy, the rocker has shared.
The AC/DC frontman, 73, tells the "We Have Ways Of Making You Talk" podcast with comedian Al Murray and historian James Holland that his mum, Esther, smuggled downed Allied fighter pilots into the hideaway at their family farm.
Explaining her role as a stenographer in the German headquarters, from where she passed on information to the underground hideout, he detailed, "The three boys in the family, my mum's brothers were all Fascisti, blackshirts."
"I mean they thought Mussolini was the greatest thing - a lot of people did and they were real Fascisti - they had the little pistols and fancy uniforms," he remembered.
"Mum worked as a stenographer in the German headquarters and she would get any little bits of information and pass them on to the underground," explained the hitmaker.
"Her farm under the chicken run unbeknownst to her brothers, this was the women who did it... there was a hide where they would put all the downed pilots and hide them under there for a couple of days... And then from there they would march them to Switzerland to get out of the country."
Speaking about learning the extraordinary history from his mother, he said to her, "Jeez you guys were busy weren't you?" to which she fondly replied, "It was fun there was some very nice pilots. Very nice - English men are very polite."
AC/DC recently reunited with the band's new album, "Power Up", set to drop on 13 November (20).
