In a now annual Battleground tradition, for a special Christmas treat we've recorded a special festive episode discussing the standout history books of the year, and the wider stories that surround them. Saul and Roger are joined by friends of the podcast - fellow historian Jessie Childs and publicist and historical novelist Richard Foreman.

Producer: James Hodgson

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In this episode Saul and Patrick digest the two major events of the past week: Donald Trump’s interview with Time magazine, with some highly revealing comments on the Russia/Ukraine war. And the extraordinary assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, the head of the Russian nuclear, chemical and biological protection forces, by agents of the Ukrainian security service in Moscow.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

X: @PodBattleground

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In the final days of 1944 the Red Army closed in on the Hungarian capital of Budapest, and amidst the utter chaos of the siege members of the Hungarian fascist party, the Arrow Cross, ran riot massacring the city's jewish population.

Joining Patrick, to discuss this often overlooked chapter of the Second World War is author and journalist Adam LeBor, who's book on the subject - The Last Days of Budapest: Spies, Nazis, Rescuers and Resistance, 1940-1945.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

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With the shock waves of the fall of Bashir al Assad still reverberating Saul and Patrick look

at the way this profoundly important event has reshaped the Ukraine conflict and the global order generally.

They also look at the battlefield and try to get a feel for how much trouble Ukraine might be in, and investigate the latest twist in relations between Zelensky and Trump.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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On December 16, 1944, Hitler launched his 'last gamble' in the snow-covered forests of the Ardennes in Belgium, hoping to smash through the Allied lines in the west and retake the Belgian port of Antwerp on the coast of the English Channel.

Joining Saul to discuss the Battle of the Bulge is bestselling historian Sir Antony Beevor, who provides a deeply informative and definitive account of the Battle from his expertise from writing his award winning book - Ardennes 1944: The Battle of The Bulge.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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In this special bonus episode Saul and Patrick react to the remarkable and astonishingly fast developments over the weekend in Syria, where rebel forces have taken control and long-term dictator Bashar al-Assad has fled to Moscow.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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Saul and Patrick reflect on a week of instability across the globe and in particular the news that rebel groups in Syria, have recaptured parts of Aleppo and are threatening the Russian naval base at Tartus in the eastern Mediterranean.

With Russia's influence in the region under threat, they ask what this could mean for events in Ukraine and if this additional pressure on Russia could have a significant impact on the war in Ukraine.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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Covering a wide range of fascinating topics from the race to Berlin to the liberation of Finnmark in the far north of Scandinavia, Saul and Patrick address some of the multitude of questions which we have received on the topics of our Battleground '44 series in todays episode.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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In this week's edition of Battleground Ukraine Saul and Patrick discuss the fallout from a series of escalations last week, the US's push for Ukraine to lower its age of conscription in order to combat the its manpower shortage. 

They also react to the latest significant appointee to the incoming Trump administration and what that could mean for US policy on Ukraine in the new year.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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In a powerful interview Patrick speaks to author Julian Evans who has over the past 30 years build his own powerful connection to Ukraine and in particular the city of Odesa.

He describes his experiences in witnessing the birth of Ukraine as a nation from the hardships of the 1990s in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union. And shares new fresh insights into the history of Russia’s war against Ukraine and its cultural and emotional impacts, particularly on the Ukrainians themselves.

If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - [email protected]

Producer: James Hodgson

Twitter: @PodBattleground

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