This month marks the anniversary commemorations of the Commando Raid on St. Nazaire on 28th March 1942, and as such in Season 2, Episode 12 I will be featuring an interview that I did a few years ago with veteran Ernest Booth about his wartime service and experiences, as Ernest discussed with me during this interview his best friend from Sheffield, Gerry Taylor who took part in Operation Chariot, and was sadly destined to never return home. Ernest joined up with the Territorial Army along with his best friend Gerry just before the outbreak of war, and when hostilities broke out Ernest was eventually posted to the 4th Battalion Devonshire Regiment, whilst Gerry was sent to another Regiment altogether.

Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2, Episode 11 we turn our attention to looking at one of Britain’s most iconic wartime aircraft in the form of the Avro Lancaster, as this month marks the anniversary of its first operational flights with RAF Bomber Command during the Second World War in March 1942. Today we are talking with historian and author Steve Darlow to learn more about this aircraft, its service and operational history, as well as some of those who crewed the Lancaster including his own grandfather’s experiences.

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2, Episode 10, we find ourselves heading straight back to the battlefields of Normandy in June 1944, as today I am joined by battlefield guide Ben Mayne as we discuss the 1st East Riding Yeomanry and their experiences fighting alongside the men of the 2nd Battalion Royal Ulster Rifles during the opening stages of the battle for Cambes-en-Plaine on D+1. As well as this, Ben also highlights the actions of Tank and Troop Commander Lt. Jenkin who was awarded the Military Cross for his actions here at Cambes on that afternoon of the 7th June 1944... 

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2, Episode 9, we are diving right back into our conversation with Paul Woodadge looking at the experiences of his Great Uncle Lt. Cyril Rand leading the men of his Platoon in C Company 2/Royal Ulster Rifles during the fierce fighting in Normandy in July 1944. In this particular instalment, we shall be turning our attention to their experiences during Operation Charnwood with the assault on Hill 60, and the subsequent consequences for Cyril’s platoon. We discuss their experiences on entering the ruined streets of Caen which had originally been an objective that Montgomery had hoped to capture on D-Day itself back on the 6th June, however now Caen lay in ruins, devastated by an air-raid by the Allied airforces in preparation for Operation Charnwood. We also discuss a few very lucky escapes, Cyril’s interactions with some of those civilians who lived in Caen, the actions during the advance towards Troarn as part of Operation Goodwood, as well as much, much more…

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

Today I am joined by Normandy battlefield guide, military historian, and presenter of WW2TV, Paul Woodadge, as we turn our attention to looking at the 2nd Battalion Royal Ulster Rifles and their experiences in Normandy during that summer of 1944. The Riflemen hold a rich history, with their origins dating back to the late 1700’s, and seeing action during the Napoleonic wars and the First World War. In this episode, the first of 2 parts, we shall be following in the footsteps of Paul’s Great Uncle, Lt. Cyril Rand who was a platoon commander with C Company. We will be looking at the training and the build-up to Operation Overlord, embarkation, and landing in Normandy on Sword Beach on D-Day, before turning our attention to those fierce early engagements that Cyril and his men experienced around Cambes-en-Plaine in those opening days of June 44.

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In this episode of the WW2 Nation Podcast, we hear veteran Peter Davies recall his wartime experiences serving in No. 1 Troop of B Squadron of the 1st East Riding Yeomanry as a gunner on a Sherman Tank during the Second World War. He had originally enlisted with the RAF as a wireless operator, but then was transferred to the Army which at that moment had been desperately short of winless operators. Having landed on D-Day, he and his crew fought all the way through to VE Day where they finished up in the area of Biesbosch. They were incredibly lucky, as despite suffering several glancing blows - 'Bandit' - Peter's tank was never knocked out. This episode is the first of a few instalments from this interview, that I did with Peter back in December 2019, it has been split into a few different parts, of which I will be releasing on the Podcast over the coming few weeks.

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

Today, we are heading to the Netherlands, as I am joined by Dutch Historian and Battlefield Guide Joel Stoppels to discover more about Operation Amherst in April 1945. In Season 2 Episode 6 we shall be examining this Allied airborne operation carried out by members of the French SAS Regiments which were dropped behind German lines in the Netherlands during the final stages of the war in Europe. It will also see us touching on the formation of these French SAS units and their experiences during the Second World War, the tactics they employed and how the operation unfolded for these men. We shall also touch on the fierce fighting experienced by the Canadian Army during this time as they advanced in this area of the Netherlands, including around the Dutch city of Groningen. 

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2, Episode 5 on the WW2 Nation Podcast, we hear from Douglas Parker about his experiences serving in 11 Platoon, B Company of the 2nd Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment. Doug landed in the assault waves of D-Day on Sword Beach aged just 21. This episode is something of an unexpected bonus as Reverend John Parker has kindly sent in this interview that his family did with their father Douglas Parker about his experiences serving in the army during the war.

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Corporal William Wilkinson (CWGC) 

Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2, Episode 4 on the WW2 Nation Podcast, we return to the concluding part of our discussion with historian Adam Berry about Troop Carrier Command’s experiences in the ETO during the war. We also look at the reality of live combat jumps vs training exercises; we talk about the training accident in Exercise Eagle as a part of this large dress rehearsal for the invasion; we look at Operation Market Garden, Operation Varsity and the experiences of the C-46. So plenty of things that will be coming up in this episode, but without further ado we are diving right back into the thick of it all with the drop over Normandy for D-Day.

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*

In Season 2 Episode 3 we continue our conversation with Dr Peter Schrijvers about the Battle of the Bulge, and more specifically the events surrounding the Belgian town of Bastogne. This second part covers a whole range of topics connected with the battle, among a few of the many things we discuss are Patton's Third Army and its attempt to reach Bastogne and relieve those trapped inside, the civilian experiences during the fighting, acts of valour, as well as the important use of Allied air-power during the battle, and much, much more. 

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Music Featured: 1940S Newsreel Movie March (Nostalgia, Retro, Cinematic) by IkonikMusik (Pond5)

*Please note this episode may contain some explicit language / content, parental guidance advised.*