Paul Meachair
Then he went on to study photography and Media. He has always had a passion for history and has begun to write novels in the action/adventure genre full-time since retiring along with their screenplays.
Paul has recently won two awards for his screenwriting!
Winner at the Liverpool Indie Awards
Birsamunda International Film Award
Belleau Wood
by Paul Meachair
When US Marine Liam Kierney, his cousin Jim and their friends reach war-torn France in 1918 they join a squad of veterans and soon experience the real conflicts of courage, humour, human weakness and the horror of kill or be killed.
Blundering military decisions only create weariness and desolation for Liam and his comrades as they are forced to survive within the trenches and ruined France, onward to the marine’s victory at Belleau Wood.
Following promotion for repeated acts of bravery, Liam along with his cousin are wounded and transferred to England for recovery. Here he develops a romantic relationship with his beautiful Irish nurse Sheilagh.Haunting Sheilagh is Fenton Ives-Mayfair, a vain British army captain who is infatuated with her. Liam and Sheilagh travel to the South coast for his sick leave but the jealous officer follows them there, falsifies events to have Liam arrested for desertion and also espionage.They manage to escape but are hunted down.Liam’s prison guard is brutal. The judges insensitive. Liam’s defence inadequate.Condemned at a perfunctory court martial to go before a firing squad, all seems lost for Liam until his old company commander, himself now recovering from a wound, appears to act as Liam’s defence.For the judges, Liam’s appeal is a waste of time and they undermine the defence attempts as he represents Liam. Then it becomes clear the captain has lied and falsified evidence which prompts the judge to do an ‘about turn’ allowing the captain to fall into the defence’s trap.The court martial becomes the biggest fight of Liam’s life. His life and future hangs in the balance. Can the truth set them free?Belleau Wood is a novella of approximately 47,000 words and an accompanying screenplay has been written.Meaning and Origin of: Belleau French : nickname from beau, bel 'handsome', 'beautiful' + the diminutive suffix -eau (from Latin ellu).
