Tales from the Battlefields

After weeks of horrendous and brutal fighting, what was left of the village of Guillemont fell on 3rd September 1916. The terrible story of the Guillemont is told through the eyes of the soldiers from both sides of the wire and we also look at what you can discover when you visit the battlefield. 

Walter Tull was one of Britain's first black army officers and was killed in action in March 1918. He was also one of the first black professional footballers, appearing for Tottenham and Northampton Town. His incredible story, from orphan to war hero, is told in this podcast by BBC Radio Northampton's Graham McKechnie, who has discovered a connection between Tull and another black sportsman who played for Northampton Saints RFC.

In this episode we look at the story of the opening day of the 100 Day Offensive that saw the Allies put into practice the lessons they had learned in earlier battles. We tell the story of 8th August 1918 through the eyes of the soldiers who were there, including the German General Erich Ludendorff.

In the 2nd part of this episode we return to the Somme and the interview with historian Steve Roberts. We continue our chat with Steve and reveal how the famous battle was filmed by Geoffrey Malins. We take a closer look at the men featured in the film. And we also discuss the "fake footage" 

In the 50th episode we talk to historian and author Steve Roberts about how the famous film "The Battle of the Somme" was filmed in 1916. Who were the cameramen? What did they see? How did they film the footage in the Sunken Lane? And who were the soldiers in the film?

In this week's episode we visit the key sites around Pozieres and look at the battle for the village through the eyes of the Australian soldiers who were there, including 2 Victoria Cross recipients. We also look at the story of composer George Butterworth.

In this episode we travel to Fromelles to tell the story of this tragic 24 hour battle through the eyes of the soldiers who were there. We walk the battlefield and visit the Australian Memorial Park on the old German front line and several cemeteries where the casualties are now at rest. We also attend the Menin Gate Ceremony in Ypres and talk to students and their teacher who participated in the ceremony.

In this episode we travel to Germany and walk around a WW1 Prisoner of War camp in Mainz Citadel and also look at the stories of the soldiers who are buried in Cologne Southern Cemetery, many of whom died in captivity.

In this episode, we travel back to Ypres and discover the very emotional story of the "Brothers in Arms" memorial at Polygon Wood. We talk to the cafe owner who discovered the body of Jack Hunter who was buried by his brother Jim in 1917 and his grave lost until 2006. We also visit the St George's Church in Ypres and talk to the CWGC guides at Tyne Cot, as well as the new "Moments" exhibition at the Menin Gate. 

In this episode we travel to the Somme to tell the story of what happened on this infamous day through the eyes of the soldiers who were there. Ginger Byrne was wounded in No Man's Land and he tells his story with extracts from his book "I Survived Didn't I?". We also walk the battlefield to see what we can discover about that day and the feelings and emotions that we experienced. And a heartbreaking poem is read by a relative of one of those men who fell.