The Old Front Line

Paul Reed

Walk the battlefields of the First World War with Military Historian, Paul Reed. In these podcasts, Paul brings together over 40 years of studying the Great War, from the stories of veterans he interviewed, to when he spent more than a decade living on the Old Front Line in the heart of the Somme battlefields. 

  1. Questions and Answers Episode 46

    2 DAYS AGO

    Questions and Answers Episode 46

    In this latest First World War Q&A episode we tackle some of the most intriguing and overlooked questions about life, strategy and survival on the Western Front and after the guns fell silent. Why did the British Army so often attack on ground not of its own choosing, at places like Loos and the Somme? If British commanders could have picked the battlefield, where might they have fought instead, and why?  We then explore the everyday realities of the British Army by looking at the role of regimental cooks: were they safe behind the lines, or did they have to fight as front-line soldiers too? And if so what examples do we have of this? Moving beyond the Armistice, we examine what happened when civilians returned to their shattered towns and villages after the Great War. Did governments help rebuild devastated communities, or was the burden carried by charities and local people? How were homes, farms and businesses reconstructed across the former battlefields of France and Belgium, and who actually paid for the enormous clean-up of the Western Front? We look at unexploded shells, wrecked trenches, barbed wire and battlefield debris, and ask whether German reparations really covered the cost. Finally, we investigate one of the visual trademarks of First World War battlefields: blasted woodland reduced to splintered stumps. If forests offered little cover and tangled roots made digging trenches harder, why were woods and copses fought over so fiercely? A deep dive into strategy, soldiers’ daily lives, post-war reconstruction and the scarred landscapes of the Western Front, this episode sheds new light on how the First World War was fought and how its aftermath reshaped Europe. Main Image: 'This Place was Hooge' - Provisional housing at Hooge in c.1919/20 (Old Front Line archives) Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    40 min
  2. Winter in Flanders

    31 JAN

    Winter in Flanders

    In this episode, we explore the four brutal wartime winters in Flanders during the First World War, focusing on the Western Front around Ypres from 1914 to 1918. Beginning with the establishment of the British front line at Ypres in late 1914, we examine how soldiers endured cold, mud, and constant danger during the Great War’s earliest winter, including the famous Christmas Truce of 1914. Using firsthand accounts, battalion war diaries, and casualty records, we analyse how Christmas on the Western Front in Flanders changed as the war dragged on, and why later winters were very different from the early months of optimism. We also uncover compelling evidence of a lesser-known second Christmas Truce in the Canadian sector in December 1915. The episode concludes with Christmas 1918, as civilians cautiously returned to the shattered city of Ypres in the aftermath of the First World War, reflecting on loss, survival, and the long road to recovery in Flanders. Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    50 min
  3. Questions and Answers Episode 45

    24 JAN

    Questions and Answers Episode 45

    In this latest Questions & Answers episode, we tackle some intriguing, and often misunderstood, aspects of life and fighting on the Western Front during the First World War. Who actually decided what a battle was called? Did the ordinary soldier know, at the time, which battle he was fighting in – or even when one battle had ended and another begun, during almost four years of near-continuous combat? We explore how battles were named, dated, and defined, and what that meant for the men experiencing the war on the ground. We also examine the introduction of the policy that 10% of a battalion was held back during attacks, particularly on 1 July 1916, the First day of the Battle of the Somme. When did this practice begin? Was it standard throughout the war? And where were these men actually positioned? Was it in support trenches, reserve lines, or further back with transport and logistics? For those who engage with the First World War through the landscape itself, we answer a listener’s thoughtful question about walking The Old Front Line at Ypres. Thinking about the surviving terrain, memorials, and traces of trench warfare, we recommend one particularly powerful walking route in the Ypres Salient that still tells the story of the war in a way that just maps and books sometimes cannot. Finally, we address a sensitive but important topic: did British Army officers really receive more leave than their men? If so, how was this perceived by the ranks, and what impact did it have on morale within the British and Commonwealth armies? Main image: British troops arriving on leave at Victoria Station, London. (IWM Q30515) The Battles Nomenclature Committee Report 1919: Naval and Military Press website. Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    45 min
  4. Demarcation Stones at Ypres

    17 JAN

    Demarcation Stones at Ypres

    In this special episode, Paul Reed discusses the Ypres League's mission to preserve the history of the Ypres Salient and the significance of Demarcation Stones that mark the furthest advance of German forces during the First World War in 1918. Roger Stewart and Dr Dominiek Dendooven share insights into the history, design, and restoration efforts of these stones, emphasizing the importance of community involvement and funding for their preservation. The New Ypres League aims to foster relationships between different communities and ensure that the legacy of the First World War continues to resonate with future generations. The New Ypres League: Join The New Ypres League Here. Support the Demarcation Stones Project: Pledge Support Here. Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    48 min
  5. Questions and Answers Episode 44

    10 JAN

    Questions and Answers Episode 44

    In this episode, we explore the role of British Army Chaplains during the First World War, examining who they were, what duties they performed at the front, and how effective they were in the brutal conditions of the Great War. We also ask whether chaplains are commemorated on their own permanent memorial today. We then tackle a persistent myth of the First World War: were German machine-gunners really chained to their weapons, or was this story a product of wartime propaganda? Using historical evidence, we separate fact from fiction. Next, we investigate why certain sectors of the Western Front were far more heavily mined than others, looking at terrain, strategy, and the evolution of trench warfare. Finally, we discuss how war graves were photographed by the Imperial War Graves Commission during and immediately after the conflict, and whether these powerful images still survive in archival collections today. This episode delves into lesser-known aspects of the Western Front, combining military history, myth-busting, remembrance, and the legacy of the First World War. Long, Long, Trail website: British Army Chaplains Department. Book's on Army Chaplain's Department: “Muddling Through: The Organisation of British Army Chaplaincy in World War One” by Peter Howson (Helion 2013) “God On Our Side: The British Padre in World War One” by Michael Moynihan (Leo Cooper 1983) Books on Wargrave Photography: Photographing the Fallen: A Wargraves Photographer on the Western Front by Jeremy Gordon Smith (Pen & Sword 2017) Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    40 min
  6. Are We Forgetting The First World War?

    3 JAN

    Are We Forgetting The First World War?

    Is the First World War slowly fading from public memory, or has our relationship with the Great War simply changed? In this episode, Are We Forgetting The First World War?, we explore how interest in WW1 has grown, shifted, and adapted over the last forty years, and what the future may hold. We begin in the 1980s, with the formation and growth of the Western Front Association, a turning point that helped revive serious public interest in the First World War. From there, we chart the expansion of family history research, as available records and personal archives encouraged millions to reconnect with relatives who served. We also reflect on the passing of the last surviving First World War veterans, a deeply symbolic moment that changed how the war is remembered and commemorated. The episode then examines the rise of battlefield tourism, local history projects, and public engagement that laid the foundations for the First World War Centenary (2014–2018), a period of unprecedented books, documentaries, exhibitions, podcasts, and community remembrance. But what happened after the centenary ended? We explore the unexpected “Covid bonus”, when lockdowns sparked a surge in WW1 podcasts, YouTube channels, online talks, and digital history projects, bringing the Great War to new audiences in new ways. Finally, we ask where we are today. Is interest in the First World War declining, fragmenting, or evolving? And crucially, what can historians, educators, content creators, and enthusiasts do to ensure the First World War is not forgotten? Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    42 min
  7. Questions and Answers Episode 43

    27/12/2025

    Questions and Answers Episode 43

    In this episode of The Old Front Line, we explore how individual lives and institutions reveal the human realities of the First World War. We begin by asking why only three officers were Shot at Dawn during the war, and what this striking disparity tells us about military justice, discipline, and class within the British Army. We then turn to the work of the Australian Wounded and Missing Enquiry Bureau, examining how its innovative and compassionate approach - under the leadership of Vera Deakin - sought to uncover the fate of the missing and bring answers to grieving families. Next, we consider how the experience of war shaped the men who served in the First World War, and question whether their post-war identities and challenges were truly unique, or part of a broader historical pattern. Finally, we analyse the Battle of Manchester Hill in March 1918, assessing its significance and discussing the possible fate of Lieutenant Colonel Wilfrith Elstob VC, who commanded the defence during the German Spring Offensive. Shot at Dawn episode: Shot At Dawn - Old Front Line. Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    41 min
  8. Forgotten Memoirs of the Great War Part 2

    20/12/2025

    Forgotten Memoirs of the Great War Part 2

    We return to the subject of Forgotten Memoirs of the First World War and discuss The Years of Remembrance by Harold Maybury which was published in 1924. Maybury served in the ranks of the 2/4th Battalion South Lancashire Regiment in the 57th (2nd West Lancs) Division, on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918. We ask what the book tells us about the experience of the Great War and what value memoirs like these have to our understanding of the conflict. Book: The Years of Remembrance by Harold Maybury (Published by John Walker & Co., Ltd.,, Warrington, UK, 1924) Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin. You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop. Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast. Send us a text Support the show

    45 min
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Hosts & Guests

About

Walk the battlefields of the First World War with Military Historian, Paul Reed. In these podcasts, Paul brings together over 40 years of studying the Great War, from the stories of veterans he interviewed, to when he spent more than a decade living on the Old Front Line in the heart of the Somme battlefields. 

Information

  • Creator
    Paul Reed
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    278
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Old Front Line
  • Show Website
    The Old Front Line

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