Best Reverse Parachute Podcasts (2024)

1
231 - US Battle Tanks 56:44

3m ago56:44

56:44

In this episode, we discuss the development of US tanks from the end of the First World War through to the end of the Second World War. I am joined by renowned historian and author Stephen J. Zaloga, who has penned numerous works on military technology and history, and his latest book is 'US Battle Tanks 1917–1945’. It is a comprehensive and richly…

1
230 - U-505: Codename Nemo 45:10

12d ago45:10

45:10

Just two days before D-Day, Captain Gallery's US antisubmarine Task Group 22.3 managed to force the German U-boat U-505 to the surface. In a bold move, a boarding party secured the submarine before it could be scuttled, capturing an Enigma machine and the current Kriegsmarine code books. This remarkable operation earned Lieutenant Albert David the …

151
229 - D-Day Legacy 1:08:17

20d ago1:08:17

1:08:17

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day, I attended a special event at the Green Howards Museum. We started at the regimental war memorial in Richmond (Yorkshire) at 6.30 a.m., which was when the Green Howards landed on Gold Beach. The day was packed with discussion about the regiment and their role on D-Day. It closed with us having the privi…

251
228 - D-Day Landing Craft 1:09:03

29d ago1:09:03

1:09:03

More than 132,000 Allied troops landed on the Normandy beaches on 6 June 1944. Through their efforts, the tide of the war turned for the final time to favour the Allies. But how did the Allied army get to the shores of Normandy? The contribution of Landing Craft to D-Day is often overlooked. Andrew Whitmarsh joins me to correct this oversight. Andr…

1
227 - D-Day: Sword Beach 1:05:21

1M ago1:05:21

1:05:21

6th June 1944 saw the largest seaborne assault in human history: D-Day. While much has been written about the operation as a whole, little detailed attention has been paid to the battle for Sword Beach itself, the easternmost of the amphibious attack areas. For this episode, I am joined by Stephen Fisher. Stephen is a historian and archaeologist wh…

1
226 - D-Day and the Great Deception 52:37

2M ago52:37

52:37

As the Allied forces prepared for the monumental invasion of Normandy, concealing the massive build-up of troops in Britain from the Germans became increasingly challenging. To mislead German intelligence about the timing and location of the invasion, the Allies devised a series of elaborate deception plans. The most audacious of these schemes aime…

1
225 - Hill 107 and the Battle of Crete 45:41

2M ago45:41

45:41

On the morning of May 20, 1941, the Germans launched Operation Mercury. The invasion of Crete was the largest airborne operation yet attempted during the war, with thousands of Fallschirmjäger deployed. Key to the operation's success would be the capture of the airfield at Maleme. Outnumbered and having suffered horrendous casualties, when the airb…

1
224 - The Theory and Practice of Command in the British and German Armies 1:04:52

2M ago1:04:52

1:04:52

In this podcast episode, we will discuss the different approaches to command and control of the British Army and the German Army. From a management point of view, both organisations developed different doctrines to deal with the 'fog of war' or 'friction', which affected how commanders responded as a battle unfolded. We'll do this by delving into t…

1
223 - Landing Craft Infantry 52:35

3M ago52:35

52:35

In this podcast episode, I'm looking at the work of LCI's, Landing Craft Infantry. These are not the smaller Higgins Boats we see storming the Normandy beaches in Saving Private Ryan but large beaching craft intended to transport and deliver fighting troops, typically a company of infantry or marines, to a hostile shore once a beachhead was secured…

1
222 - The D-Day Scientists Who Changed Special Operations 47:52

3M ago47:52

47:52

Operation Jubilee, the Dieppe Raid on the coast of France, was a disaster in 1942. However, it did highlight the need for more reconnaissance before any other amphibious operations were mounted. In London, a small group of eccentric researchers, experimenting on themselves from inside pressure tanks in the middle of the London air raids, explored t…

1
221 - Training the Indian Army 40:11

4M ago40:11

40:11

The Indian Army was the largest volunteer army during the Second World War. Indian Army divisions fought in the Middle East, North Africa and Italy - and went to make up the overwhelming majority of the troops in South East Asia. Over two million personnel served in the Indian Army. In this episode, I am joined by Dr Alan Jefferys to discuss how th…

1
220 - The Archer: Reversing to Victory 43:37

4M ago43:37

43:37

From late 1944, an ungainly piece of equipment was introduced into service in the British and Canadian armies. Referred to at the time as the ‘Valentine 17-pounder SP’, and later as the ‘Archer’, it was a tracked vehicle with an open compartment at the front and a large gun facing to the rear. Joining me to tell the story of the Archer's developmen…

1
219 - D-Day Tourism 1:09:42

4M ago1:09:42

1:09:42

While at We Have Ways Fest, I caught Paul Woodadge, the host of WW2TV, giving an excellent talk on D-Day tourism. I thought I would ask him on the show to discuss tourism, how it has changed and what to see. Base in France, Paul has been a battlefield tour guide for over 20 years. More recently, he launched WW2TV and became a Second World War YouTu…

1
218 - Target Hong Kong 44:30

5M ago44:30

44:30

In January 1945, Admiral Halsey, with the third Fleet, conducted a raid into the South China Sea. This was designated Operation Gratitude. The raid was to support the landings on Luzon, in the Philippines, with the aim of destroying the Japanese navy, supply convoys and any air assets in the area. As part of this operation, Hong Kong would be attac…

1
217 - How the Luftwaffe Lost the skies over Germany 54:19

5M ago54:19

54:19

Starting with small raids at the start of the war, the aerial offensive grew into a massive operation. Huge air armadas would eventually pulverise Germany, with the Mighty Eigth Airforce flying by day and the Lancasters of Bomber Command by night. This 24-hour campaign seriously damaged Germany’s ability to make war and killed hundreds of thousands…

1
216 - The Latvian Legion 43:46

5M ago43:46

43:46

'In Arctic blizzards between January and March 1945, the Latvian 15th SS Division - a core of Russian Front veterans but most raw teenage conscripts from Nazi-occupied Latvia - tried to stop the Red Army sweeping across Pomerania, now Poland. One in three died: the majority never returned home.' In this episode, I'm joined by Vincent Hunt, and we d…

1
215 - The Power of Japanese Propaganda 41:22

5M ago41:22

41:22

This episode will look at Japanese propaganda during the imperial era. With the rise of mass production of newspapers and magazines amidst the Russo-Japanese War, the Japanese population became instilled in nationalism and militarism. Despite the era of demilitarisation and democratisation after the First World War, the Japanese Empire, once again,…

1
214 - Stan Hollis VC and the Green Howards on D-Day 49:42

6M ago49:42

49:42

The Green Howards landed in the first wave on D-Day. With them was Company Sergeant Major Stan Hollis, who had seen action in France in 1940, being evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk. He fought in North Africa and took part in the invasion of Sicily. It is fair to say Hollis was a seasoned soldier. He is also the only recipient of the Victoria C…

1
213 - The British Empire and Commonwealth’s War Against Imperial Japan 56:37

6M ago56:37

56:37

The war in Asia and the Pacific against Japan is often seen as an American affair. While the US did play a dominant role, the British and Commonwealth forces also made major contributions – on land, at sea and in the air – eventually involving over a million men and vast armadas of ships and aircraft. Joining me to discuss Britain and the Commonwea…

1
212 - Invisible Generals 50:55

7M ago50:55

50:55

When President McKinley turned down Benjamin Oliver Davis for a place at West Point due to the colour of his skin, Davis joined the army as a private. Davis soon worked his way through the ranks to receive his second lieutenant commission in 1901. It would be over 30 years before another black officer would receive his commission, and that would be…

1
211 - HG-76: Taking the Fight to Hitler's U-boats 55:04

7M ago55:04

55:04

The convoy HG-76 sailed from Gibraltar to Britain in December 1941. The Royal Navy commander in charge was 'Johnnie' Walker, an anti-submarine expert who had developed new, aggressive U-boat hunting tactics. Accompanying the escorts was HMS Audacity, the Royal Navy's first escort carrier - a new type of warship purpose-built to defend convoys from …

1
210 - The Battle for Italy, 1943 47:06

8M ago47:06

47:06

Hot on the heels of victory in Sicily, the Allies crossed into Southern Italy in September 1943. They expected to drive the Axis forces north and be in Rome by Christmas. Although Italy surrendered, the German forces resisted fiercely, and the swift, hoped-for victory descended into one of the most brutal battles of the war. I am joined by James Ho…

1
209 - Hospital Trains of WWII 36:45

8M ago36:45

36:45

From the middle of the 19th century, the railways had an integral role in warfare. Trains brought food, ammunition and essential supplies. They also transported troops into the combat zone, and then trains would be used to bring men home. Hospital trains were not a new concept in WWII, but their development moved the carriages away from being ambul…

1
208 - 2SAS and Bill Sterling 47:27

8M ago47:27

47:27

David Stirling is the name synonymous with the wartime SAS, but the real brains behind the operation was, in fact, Bill Stirling, David’s eldest brother. Having originally joined the SOE in March 1940, Bill Stirling sailed for Cairo in 1941 and there had the idea for a small special forces unit to be led by his mercurial brother. But despite some s…

1
207 - Tank Warfare in North Africa, 1942-43 1:06:13

9M ago1:06:13

1:06:13

If you cast your mind back to episode 187, I discussed the war in the North African desert in 1940-41 with Robert Forczyk. The war in the North African desert was pure mechanised warfare and, in many respects, the most technologically advanced theatre of World War II. It was also the only theatre where, for three years, British and Commonwealth, an…

1
206 - The Extraordinary Life of Journalist Wallace Carroll 1:01:03

9M ago1:01:03

1:01:03

Journalist Wallace Carroll had a career that spanned 45 years as a journalist. His first foreign posting, in 1929, was to London with the United Press newswire service. Throughout the 1930s, he covered the major events in Europe and witnessed the Spanish Civil War first-hand. Posted back to London, he dictated his early reports of the Blitz from hi…

1
205 - Victory to Defeat: The British Army 1918-40 56:31

10M ago56:31

56:31

As some of you may know, I am also a First World War historian, and the academic history of the war can be very different from the public perspective, which dwells on the first two years of the war. Forgetting the victories of 1917 and 1918 is not new; it is something the British army did during the inter-war period. Added to this corporate amnesia…

1
204 - Armour in the Pacific 45:40

10M ago45:40

45:40

We do not think of armour being widely used in the Pacific campaign, and compared to other theatres, that is a reasonable assumption. However, it was utilised by both the Japanese and Americans from the island campaigns, such as Tarawa and Guadalcanal, through to the Philippines. Joining me today is Mike Guardia, who is the author of American Armor…

1
203 - The Battle of Britain, July 1940 50:03

10M ago50:03

50:03

In this episode, I’m joined by Patrick Eriksson. If you cast your memory back, Patrick has previously joined us to talk about the Luftwaffe and his Alarmstart trilogy of books (episodes 60, 85 and 104). This time, he is back to discuss the opening few weeks of the Battle of Britain, covered in his book Tally-Ho: RAF Tactical Leadership in the Battl…

1
202 - Leningrad, 1941-42 57:53

11M ago57:53

57:53

From September 1941, the Germans surrounded Leningrad, laying siege to the city for 900 days. Over 2 million Russians were trapped, and thousands would die through starvation. As the winter closed in, Lake Ladoga froze, allowing trucks to cross the ice. Dubbed ‘Road of Life’, it would bring vital supplies and eventually evacuate over a million civi…

1
201 - Japanese Americans in WWII 1:09:22

11M ago1:09:22

1:09:22

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, over 125,000 Japanese Americans living in the continental United States were incarcerated in prison camps. The majority of these were born in America and US citizens. This was authorised by an Executive Order from President Roosevelt. The Japanese Americans complied and spent years in the camps. Even though incarce…

1
200 - The Life of Mrs George S Patton 1:01:41

11M ago1:01:41

1:01:41

Few wives of prominent men are more than a footnote in many histories, but they were often central to their husbands' lives. The classic well-known example is the relationship between the wartime British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine (see episode 116). For months I've been sitting on Stefanie van Steelandt's biography of …

1
199 - Patton, August - December 1944 47:11

12M ago47:11

47:11

If you cast your memory back to episode 157, Kevin Hymel joined me. We discussed General Patton from the campaigns in Mediteranean in 1942 to just before his activation as commander of third army in 1944. Kevin is back. This time we will discuss Patton’s arrival in France through to the Battle of the Bulge. Kevin has worked as a historian for the U…

1
198 - Kesselring 37:47

1y ago37:47

37:47

In episode 144, I chatted to Andrew Sangster about Alanbrooke. Earlier this year, I noticed Andrew had a new book, Flawed Commanders and Strategy in the Battle for Italy, 1943-45. With his co-author Pier Paolo Battistelli, the book looks at Montgomery, Mark Clark, Patton, Harold Alexander, Albert Kesselring and the fighting in Sicily and Italy. The…

1
197 - Kohima 1:11:58

1y ago1:11:58

1:11:58

Fought between 8 March and 18 July 1944, the battles of Imphal and Kohima were the turning point of one of the most gruelling campaigns of the Second World War (1939-45). The decisive Japanese defeat in north-east India became the springboard for the Fourteenth Army’s subsequent re-conquest of Burma. Joining me for this episode is Robert Lyman, aut…

1
196 - Winthrop Bell: Cracking the Code 57:59

1y ago57:59

57:59

In public life, Canadian Dr Winthrop Bell was a Harvard philosophy professor and wealthy businessman. As MI6 secret agent A12, he evaded gunfire and shook off pursuers to break open the emerging Nazi conspiracy in 1919 Berlin. His reports provided the first warnings of right-wing conspiracies in the German establishment, eventually leading to Hitle…

1
195 - Their Finest Hour Project 52:07

1y ago52:07

52:07

With the Second World War slipping from living memory, the University of Oxford has launched Their Finest Hour. The project aims to empower local communities to digitally preserve these stories and objects before they are lost to posterity. For this episode, I am joined by Dr Joseph Quinn to explain how the project works and how you can get involve…

1
194 - The Battle of Leyte Gulf 1:05:23

1y ago1:05:23

1:05:23

The battle of Leyte Gulf was the largest naval battle of WWII, it consisted of four separate actions near the Philippines between the US Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Japanese plan was to disrupt the American landings on the island of Leyte. In one respect, the plan was a success, the Japanese did draw off Admiral Halsey’s 3rd Fleet. But…

1
193 - London Underground 59:49

1y ago59:49

59:49

As attacks on London by the Luftwaffe became a reality in the summer of 1940, Londoners needed somewhere to shelter from the air raids. And so during the Blitz and through to the end of the war, deep-level Tube stations of London underground were utilised, sheltering thousands every night. But the role of the underground is much more complicated, i…

1
192 - 'The Angels', The 11th Airborne Division 46:32

1y ago46:32

46:32

When we think of airborne operations in WWII, the historiography is dominated by operations in the European Theatre. Parachute drops on Sicily, the Normandy coast for D-Day and into the Netherlands for Market Garden. But, in the Pacific, Joseph Swing's 11th Airborne Division - nicknamed the Angels - were making combat drops. They fought in some of …

1
191 - US Glider Pilots of World War II 40:21

1+ y ago40:21

40:21

The US glider pilots in WWII were all volunteers. Playing a pivotal role in delivering thousands of troops, including logistical support, these pilots landed their gliders ahead of the ground forces in Italy, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Yet, 80 years later, their story is virtually unknown. For this episode, I am joined by Scott M…

1
190 - Mussolini's Last 10 Days 52:22

1+ y ago52:22

52:22

In April 1945, with the Allies closing in, the Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini, with his German bodyguards, decided to flee Milan. The convoy was later joined by a Luftwaffe column retreating toward Germany, making a powerful force. In this episode, we're going to be looking at Mussolini's last days and the race between the OSS, the SOE and the …

1
189 - The Stalingrad Airlift 57:49

1+ y ago57:49

57:49

Stalingrad ranks as one of the most infamous, savage and emotive battles of the 20th century. To supply the trapped and exhausted German Sixth Army, the Luftwaffe mounted an airlift in the winter of 1942/43. The weather conditions faced by the flying crews, mechanics, and soldiers on the ground were appalling, but against all odds, and a resurgent …

1
188 - Company of Heroes 35:22

1+ y ago35:22

35:22

Following episode 187, when I talk to Forczyk about the war in North Africa, I thought it might be interesting to see how that fighting is interpreted and simulated as a computer game. And look at the choices game designers make when juggling authenticity and entertainment. I’m joined by David Milne from Relic Entertainment. David is one of the sen…

1
187 - Desert Armour: Tank Warfare in North Africa 1:12:58

1+ y ago1:12:58

1:12:58

The war in the North African desert was pure mechanized warfare and, in many respects, the most technologically advanced theatre of World War II. It was also the only theatre where for three years, British and Commonwealth, and later US, troops were in constant contact with Axis forces. In this episode, we are going to be discussing North Africa in…

1
186 - Our Man in Tokyo 43:07

1+ y ago43:07

43:07

In 1932 career diplomat Joseph Grew was posted to Japan as the American Ambassador. At the time, Japan was in crisis. Naval officers had assassinated the prime minister, and conspiracies flourished. The military had a stranglehold on the government. War with Russia loomed. Not only was the country in turmoil, but its relationship with America was a…

1
185 - Adrian Carton de Wiart 48:12

1+ y ago48:12

48:12

In this episode, I discuss one of the most remarkable soldiers of the British Army, Adrian Carton de Wiart. Belgium by birth, he would fight in the Boer War, lose an eye in the Somaliland Campaign, win a VC and lose a hand in First World War, command the British troops during the Norwegian Campaign of 1940, spend time as a POW for the Italians (whe…

1
184 - My Road to Mandalay 1:00:26

1+ y ago1:00:26

1:00:26

Don Townsend joined the British army as a private in 1940 and saw service in Egypt, then India and Burma. After five years of active service he left the army as a Major. I'm joined by Don's son, David has compiled his father’s wartime letters home to his family and future wife into the book My Road to Mandalay. Patreonpatreon.com/ww2podcast…

1
183 - The Waffen-SS 48:26

1+ y ago48:26

48:26

The Waffen-SS was one of the most formidable German military formations of the Second World War. Feared for its tenacity and ruthlessness in battle, notorious for the atrocities it committed. As a distinct fighting force derived from the Nazi Party's SS organization, it stood apart from the other units of the German army. Its origins, structure and…

1
182 - The British Parachute Regiment 59:37

1+ y ago59:37

59:37

The Parachute Regiment was formed in June 1940 and eventually raised 17 battalions. It would see service in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Normandy, Arnhem and would cross the Rhine as part of the largest airborne assault ever undertaken. To discuss the formation of the regiment and its history through WWII, I’m joined by historian and broadcaster Ma…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Reverse Parachute Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Quick Reference Guide