The Day Will Dawn

Following the invasion of Poland in September 1939, Metcalfe is posted as a foreign correspondent in neutral Norway. He adjusts to war reporting in a country trying to stay out of conflict while tensions rise around him.

Eight months later, he meets Captain Alstad in a sailors' bar, drawn into a shared adventure. A scuffle erupts between British, Norwegian, and German sailors, and Alstad invites him aboard for a sea voyage in Norwegian territorial waters. They sight the Altmark and are fired upon by a German U-boat.

Metcalfe and Alstad return to Langedal, and Metcalfe travels to Oslo to report to the British embassy. There he encounters Frank Lockwood, en route back to England from the Winter War, who informs him he has been fired for leaving dry land to sail with the fisherman.

Kari, Alstad's daughter who accompanied them on the voyage, warns Metcalfe of suspicious German merchant ships at Bergen that may be carrying troops. The warning signals increasing German activity and a looming threat to Norway.

Metcalfe is bid farewell and is mistaken for getting into a taxi, but he is kidnapped by the Germans and put aboard a ship bound for Bremen. The sudden kidnapping interrupts his efforts to stay on neutral soil as the war closes in.

Germany invades Norway as Metcalfe's fate becomes part of the larger war narrative. A British warship frees him from the ship but reroutes to Cherbourg to aid Operation Aerial before returning him to Britain.

Back on British shores, Metcalfe learns that Lockwood has died of wounds on the Cherbourg docks. The encounter underscores the costs of war for journalists who cover the front.

With the Blitz underway, Metcalfe is urged not to enlist but to lead a press campaign to rally the Home Front for the Battle of the Atlantic. He faces a choice between fighting and informing public opinion to conserve resources.

Recalled by the Admiralty, he is parachuted back into Langedal to sabotage a camouflaged U-boat base and then escape across the neutral border into Sweden. He lands in Norway but is spotted and must hide, while Alstad works to help him evade capture.

Upon landing, he learns Alstad has been interned by the Germans and Kari has become engaged to the traitor Gunter. The revelation deepens the danger faced by Metcalfe and those sheltering him.

During a tense Norwegian-German friendship dance, the Germans arrive to demand Metcalfe's papers. Kari provokes a riot to shelter him at her house, and she reveals that the engagement was a ploy to secure her father's release.

Alstad is released and agrees to help Metcalfe signal British bombers with torches to guide the raid on the U-boat base. The plan succeeds, but Alstad is killed by a German patrol.

Metcalfe overhears eight hostages will be shot if the British spy is not handed over. He volunteers to surrender himself to the Germans to protect Kari.

Gunter returns to try to save Kari from the firing squad, but she refuses to reveal the spy and is imprisoned with the hostages. Gunter's loyalty is shown as he remains with them until the danger passes.

A British commando raid arrives, freeing the hostages and capturing the town's garrison. Metcalfe, Kari, the hostages, and their families are evacuated to safety in England.