Tales from the Battlefields Terry Whenham

In this first special episode, we travel to Normandy to tell the stories of the D Day landings on the 80th anniversary of this incredible historical achievement by the Allies. We tour the beaches and listen to the story of the Pegasus Bridge through the eyes of Major John Howard, and listen to Piper Bill Millin on Sword Beach. Why did he play his pipes? We visit the Montgomery memorial before going to Ranville to discover the story of the first casualty on D Day and find the stories of several soldiers (and a dog) buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery, including a 16 year old casualty.

In this episode we discover the stories of men who died in the Great War but were not correctly remembered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission until recently. We find out about the Officer whose named was added to the Thiepval Memorial just 20 years ago because his parents refused to accept his death during their lifetime. We also look at the tragic story of the young soldier who couldn’t face going to war and took his own life. And the victim of poison gas on the Somme, who died at home and was missed off the Commission’s records but last month had a brand new headstone placed on his final resting place.

In this episode we travel to the Western Front following the story of a typical British soldier between 1916 and 1918, when he was killed in action. We travel from the Somme, to Arras and Passchendaele, before finding the location of where he died during the Lys Offensive in April 1918. What did he experience? How horrific were the conditions at Passchendaele? How did they achieve their objectives at Arras and how was his battalion almost wiped out during the German 1918 Spring Offensive. We find out through the eyes of the soldiers who were there. 

In this episode we feature the story of a young British infantry officer and his experiences on the Somme in July 1916. Jack Lidsey then became an Observer in the Royal Flying Corps. Through his words in his personal diary, we look at what happened to him in the skies above the Western Front. Jack’s story ends when he became the 29th victim of the Red Baron. The story is discussed with the author of a book about Jack, historian and battlefield guide Andrew White 

In this episode we talk to Mark Connolly about how battlefield tours evolved during and after World War 1. We discuss who these first pilgrims were and what they saw and emotionally experienced on the old Western Front battlefields? Who was the schoolteacher who went across to France on a battlefield tour in 1914 and how did charitable organisations arrange and fund the initial post war private tours? 

In this episode we continue the story of the Accrington Pals at Serre on 1st July 1916. We listen to the music that was inspired by those young men and discover more of the stories of the lads from that Northern town on the 1st day of the Somme. What is their story? We find out through the eyes of the soldiers who were there.