Right in front of O'Donnell, a British colonel took as a "war souvenir" a blueprint for a reconstruction of Hitler's hometown Linz, in Austria.

As the new bureau chief, O'Donnell wrote about developments, such as the Russian discovery and identification (after several mistakes) of Hitler's body in mid-May of the same year.

The British historian Hugh Trevor-Roper, on November 1, held a press conference (covered by O'Donnell) where he revealed the generally accepted theory of Hitler's death.

Other people who had been close to Hitler in the final days, most notably Ambassador Walther Hewel, committed suicide after the break-out attempt.

More witnesses died in Soviet captivity, such as Dr. Werner Haase, the last physician to attend Hitler, who had already been gravely ill with tuberculosis in April 1945.

Some of the above dates can be confusing, as Hitler kept unusual hours - he typically slept until late in the morning, went to bed around dawn, and held his military conferences around midnight or later.

Anticipating this, O'Donnell wrote in the prologue: Just how close this composite account comes to historical truth, to the kind of documentation an academic historian insists on, I simply cannot say.

O'Donnell even noted that many of the people he interviewed, to make a point, would literally "act out" scenes, a touch not found in historical archives.

He argued that these interrogations, because of the recent occurrence of the bunker events, the end of the war, and worries over possible criminal charges, were about as accurate as "asking the shell-shocked to describe exactly the burst of artillery."

Moreover, many witnesses admitted that they either lied or withheld information during their 1945 interviews, mainly due to pressure from their interrogators (this was especially true of those captured by the Soviets).

It is arguable that, if one compares the accounts written in The Bunker with those in Inside the Third Reich, that O'Donnell presents the supposed assassination attempt as more dramatic and purposeful.

O'Donnell created a theory out of this, and makes the claim that Fegelein's mistress actually was a spy, possibly a Hungarian working for British intelligence.

O'Donnell's main contribution to Führerbunker literature was his account of the "breakout" that occurred on the night of May 1–2, 1945 - no other historian (or writer) attempted to describe this event before him.

Hentschel stayed in the bunker, while some female Soviet army officers looted Eva Braun's room around noon before he too was taken by the Russians and flown to Moscow.