Welcome to Season 7!

In our first episode, we look at poison gas, its development and use on the battlefield, and how the science of chemical weapons saw the militarisation of academia in the pursuit of developing more lethal and deadly weapons.

We discover how the Allies combated the German gas threat, what it was like to be a gas victim and how a common garden pest was, in fact, nature's most effective gas detector. 

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Welcome to the final episode of Season 6 and our 150th podcast!

In this episode, we look back at the podcast since it began 3 1/2 years ago, examine some of the statistics about the pod, and contemplate some of my favourite episodes that have been released.

We then head over to Belgium and travel from Essex Farm to Elverdinghe, where we visit some of the smaller and less visited cemeteries in this part of the Ypres salient, including Talana Farm, Bleuet Farm and Ferme Olivier cemeteries. 

The podcast will be back with Season 7 on Sunday 28th April 2024.

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In this latest podcast, historian and author Tom Isitt joins us. Tom has a passion (or, he might say, obsession) with the Italian Front in the Great War. An inhospitable battlefield with appalling weather conditions and treacherous terrain, the fighting around the Isonzo River proved to be the graveyard of the Italian army in a series of 12 battles that cost hundreds of thousands of casualties.

In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk about the fighting at Isonzo and Caporetto, the Asiago plateau, the problems of supply and fighting in the mountains, and meet a belligerent commander who dismissed no fewer than 270 Generals during the course of the War.

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With the sad news of the passing of Martin Middlebrooke, this podcast heads to the Somme battlefield where we walk across the battlefield at the village of Fricourt.

Our journey takes in some of the cemeteries and memorials that cover this part of the Somme battlefield, and we look at some of the literary figures whose output provides so many insights into Fricourt and its surroundings during the Great War, including John Masefield, Siegfried Sassoon and Bernard Adams amongst others. 

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Many of you who listen to the podcast aren't on social media and are not followers of me on Twitter so please find attached a very brief update on what's happening with the podcast going forward.

I posted a video on Twitter on Sunday 18th February and this is the audio recording of that video.  

You can view the video on YouTube with the following link:
https://youtu.be/AmNHLbK_rWk?si=TVvX8atZEBm5sSNF

In this latest episode of Trench Talk, it's a real pleasure to be joined by military historian, battlefield guide and author Roger Steward.

Lockdown allowed Roger to write the book he always wanted to write about the German Cemetery at Langemarck. Very few places on the Western Front have as many myths attached to them, and in this wide-ranging chat we discuss the cemetery, what there is to see, the unpalatable history it played in the mindset of the Third Reich and debunk some of the myths.

You can buy the book here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Studentenfriedhof-Soldatenfriedhof-Langemark-Cemetery-Self-guided/dp/1913491676/ref=sr_1_1?crid=372C8DU76FNP1&keywords=Langemark&qid=1707776314&sprefix=landmark%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-1

Interested in engaging Roger as a guide? https://www.ypresbattlefieldtours.be/

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In this latest episode, we visit the battlefield where my journey through the Great War began some 35 years ago - Vimy Ridge.

We look at what happened in this part of the front and have a brief look at the battle of the 9th April 1917, before we travel around some of the cemeteries and memorials that cover this part of the battlefield.

We begin at the French National Cemetery at Notre Dame de Lorrette where we discover the story behind how the Basilica got its name.  We hear about the death of a great French cyclist before we visit the remarkable Ring of Peace memorial.

Heading down into the valley, we hear about General Barbot, and visit the massive cemetery at Caberet Rouge before visiting the Canadian memorial on top of Vimy Ridge.

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Welcome to this latest episode of Footsteps of the Fallen.

In this episode we travel to Flanders and visit one of the lesser-visited corners of the Great War in this part of Belgium, the area around the mighty Kemmelberg.

Our journey begins at Underhill Farm cemetery before heading to Nieuwkerque and across to Kemmel and Dranoutre.  On route, we visit some of the cemeteries, memorials and monuments that commemorate the men from France, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Germany who fought and died on this part of the Western Front during the Great War.

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In our latest podcast, we visit the battlefield around Cambrai, where, on the 20th of November 1917, the first mass tank battle in military history took place.  The Allies smashed a 5-mile hole in the German's lines. Still, poor communication and placement of the reserves failed to exploit the advantage and when the campaign ended 12 days later, over 40,000 men had become casualties.

If you have only one day to visit the battlefields, what should you see? We visit some of the cemeteries and memorials on the battlefield, discover the stories behind some VC winners who are commemorated here, hear the story of "Deborah", and conclude with a poignant poem written by one of Scotland's great war poets.

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Welcome to our first podcast of 2024!

In this episode, we visit the battlefields around Villers Brettoneux on the Somme, an area of Picardy that will be forever associated with the Australian Army.

We tour the battlefield and discover the military history of this part of the Somme, discover just how close the Germans came to Amiens in 1918, and visit some of the many cemeteries and memorials which cover this part of the battlefield.

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Welcome to our Christmas episode of Footsteps of the Fallen!

In this special Trench Talk I'm joined by Professor Peter Doyle who tells us all about the history behind one of the most iconic of all Great War artefacts, The Princess Mary Tin.

In this fascinating talk, we hear about the history of the box, the minute attention to detail that went into ensuring that its contents catered to all creeds and nationalities.  We hear the incredible story of trench lighters, dispel some of the myths that surround the tins, and discover what receiving these gifts did for the men on that cold Christmas Day in 1914.

You can buy Peter's book here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Every-Sailor-Afloat-Soldier-Front/dp/1913491536

Footsteps of the Fallen will be back in 2024, and I wish you all a very happy Christmas.

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