A Twist of Sand

A Twist of Sand is a 1968 British adventure film directed by Don Chaffey and starring Richard Johnson, Jeremy Kemp, Honor Blackman and Peter Vaughan based on the novel by Geoffrey Jenkins.

Plot
A former British naval officer now makes his living by smuggling goods around the Mediterranean. After being forced to dump his cargo when nearly caught by the authorities in Malta, he is eager to recoup his losses. When a former colleague appears and tells a wild story about smuggling diamonds out of south-west Africa, he sees his chance to make a lot of money. The diamonds are hidden in a shipwreck buried in the sand dunes of Namibia's Skeleton Coast.

In recurring flashbacks, the captain relives his wartime experiences as the commander of a Royal Navy submarine, sent to South African waters to destroy an experimental U-Boat.

Cast

 * Richard Johnson as Geoffrey Peace
 * Honor Blackman as Julie Chambois
 * Jeremy Kemp as Harry Riker
 * Peter Vaughan as Johann
 * Roy Dotrice as David Carland
 * Guy Doleman as Patrol Boat Commander
 * Jack May as Diamond Security Police Inspector Seekert
 * Kenneth Cope as Flag Officer
 * Tony Caunter as Sonarman Elton
 * Clifford Evans as Admiral Tringham

Production
Geoffrey Jenkins initially sold the rights for his 1959 novel to filmmaker Nunnally Johnson at 20th Century Fox. Johnson intended to write the script himself and have Robert Mitchum and Deborah Kerr cast in the starring roles. Simon Petersen was the assistant underwater cameraman to Steve Halliday with Les Bowie in SFX