Nancy Wake is an Australian-made mini-series portraying the wartime exploits of Nancy Wake, one of the most decorated Allied servicewomen during World War II. Born in New Zealand, Nancy Wake was living in Marseilles with her French industrialist husband, Henri Fiocca, when World War II broke out in Europe. She became a leading figure in the French Resistance and earned the nickname "The White Mouse", though her notoriety led to the Gestapo placing 5-million franc price on her head. After training with the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in England, she parachuted back into France in early 1944 and organized a group of more than 7,000 local Maquisards to fight the Germans.
One of the drunk Wehrmacht officers that Nancy encounters on a mission draws a Walther P38 from his holster and uses it to execute an escaping English officer.
As in real life, Sten submachine guns are widely fielded by SOE agents. Nancy Wake (Noni Hazlehurst), Captain John Farmer (Patrick Ryecart), and Denis Rake (Alan Andrews) all carry Sten Mk II submachine guns with folding skeleton stocks. After the SOE increases its presence in the area and begins supplying the French Resistance, more Maquisards - including Henri Tardivat (Luciano Martucci) and the young Jules (Vincent Gil) - has these Stens. Maquis leader Colonel Émile Coulaudon, aka "Gaspard" (Frank Gallacher) carries a Sten Mk II with a wooden stock.
The Lee-Enfield No. 1 Mk III* is a popular weapon among the French Resistance Maquisards, especially Jacquard (Dalibor Satalic), who uses his SMLE to great effect.
After he is conscripted into the French Army, Henri Fiocca is issued a Lebel 1886 rifle so old that he jokes that "this faithful weapon served the emperor Napoleon!"
Several Bren guns are dropped to the French Resistance after Nancy and her fellow SOE agents make contact with them. During a fierce gunfight with the Germans, Jacquard (Dalibor Satalic) takes one from a fallen comrade and fires it.
Before they are supplied by Nancy Wake and the SOE, many of the French Resistance Maquisards, including Tardivat and Jacquard (Dalibor Satalic), carry side-by-side double-barreled shotguns.
