Popski's Private Army
Popski's Private Army was one of the group of semi-regular special forces units spawned by the British in the Western Desert during World War Two.
The leader was Lieutenant-Colonel Vladimir Peniakoff who had some unconventional ideas about discipline and techniques.
Specialising in raids (but not quite in the same form as the SAS or LRDG) the PPA caused problems to the enemy throughout North Africa and later Italy.
They also caused a certain amount of problems to the more conservative members of their own side, and more than one staid senior officer got into trouble for encountering a member of the unit in the street and putting the man on a charge because he answered "Popskis Private Army" when asked what his unit was.
Peniakoff has written a book detailing the history of the unit.
