The Old Front Line
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.
Episodes
285 episodes
Colonel Driant's Command Post
In this episode of The Old Front Line, we explore the dramatic opening moments of the Battle of Verdun, focusing on the heroic stand of Lieutenant Colonel Émile Driant and his men in the Bois des Caures on 21st/22nd ...
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Season 9
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Episode 27
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39:12
Questions and Answers Episode 49
In this Old Front Line Q&A episode, we tackle a fascinating range of questions from listeners about life, death, and survival on the battlefields of the First World War. We begin by exploring whether veterans of the conflict were eve...
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Season 9
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Episode 26
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46:57
From The Battlefield to the Tabletop
In this special episode of the Podcast, Paul Reed speaks with archaeologist and wargamer Alex Sotheran about his journey in battlefield archaeology and the evolution of wargaming. They discuss the significance of battlefield archaeology ...
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Season 9
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Episode 25
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1:19:05
Questions and Answers Episode 48
In this Old Front Line WW1 podcast Q&A episode, we answer listeners’ questions about the history of the First World War and the legacy of the conflict today. We begin by exploring British and Commonwealth war cemeteri...
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Season 9
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Episode 24
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46:23
Ypres: A Walk on The Bluff
Step onto the Western Front in Flanders as we explore the area near to Ypres known as The Bluff. In this episode we uncover the story of the fighting here in February-March 1916, when British and German forces struggled for contro...
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Season 9
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Episode 24
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44:49
QnA Special: On The Battlefields
In this special Q&A episode of the Old Front Line podcast, recorded on location at Hooge, near Ypres, we answer questions about the battlefields of the Western Front and the legacy of the First World War.W...
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Season 9
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Episode 23
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52:30
London Pride: The London Territorials in WW1
In this episode of the Old Front Line podcast, host Paul Reed is joined by military historians Charles Fair, Richard Hendry, and Dr. Tom Thorpe to delve into the often-overlooked history of the London Territorial Force during the Great W...
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Season 9
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Episode 23
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49:30
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 ...
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Season 9
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Episode 22
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40:10
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...
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Season 9
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Episode 21
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49:30
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 call...
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Season 9
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Episode 20
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44:33
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...
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Season 9
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Episode 19
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47:42
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 a...
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Season 9
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Episode 18
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39:33
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 o...
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Season 9
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Episode 17
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41:41
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 wh...
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Season 9
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Episode 16
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40:40
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 Regime...
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Season 9
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Episode 15
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45:25
Questions and Answers Episode 42
In this episode, we delve into a lesser-known but essential aspect of First World War life: the use and organisation of latrines on the battlefield. Where did soldiers actually go to the toilet, how were these facilities construct...
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Season 9
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Episode 14
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41:26
A Tale of Two Veterans
In this episode we discuss the importance of oral history and what it tells us about the experience of conflict and the culture of the British military in the Great War, and we contrast two interviews I did with veterans in the 1980s: Ja...
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Season 9
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Episode 13
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53:23
Questions and Answers Episode 41
In this episode, we unpack the meaning and origins of the term Downland, and explore how this distinctive landscape helps us better understand the geography and terrain of the First World War.We take a closer look at the
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Season 9
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Episode 12
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40:40
Caring For The Silent Cities
In this special edition, we’re joined by Jon Gedling, Director of Estates for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, to discuss the challenges and responsibilities involved in caring for Firs...
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Season 9
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Episode 11
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38:01
Questions and Answers Episode 40
In this 40th Questions and Answers episode, we explore some of the lesser-known battlefields of the Western Front, uncovering places where traces of the First World War fighting can still be seen today. We examine what real...
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Season 9
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Episode 10
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44:49
West of Arras: Behind The Lines
We travel to the area Behind the Lines of West of Arras, visiting cemeteries where Casualty Clearing Stations were moved back to in 1918, discuss a small village where WW1 meets WW2, discover some original Great War graffiti on a farm building ...
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Season 9
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Episode 9
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1:06:06
Questions and Answers Episode 39
In this episode we ask what is the current size of the 'Zone Rouge' and are there plans to clear it? We then look at the use of morphine to treat pain and was this misused? We then look at when Steel Helmets were first issued to British and Can...
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Season 9
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Episode 8
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40:10
Battle of Loos with Peter Doyle
In a special episode we are joined by Professor Peter Doyle who delivered this talk on Loos at a Podcast Supporters Evening for the 110th Anniversary of th...
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Season 9
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Episode 7
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1:10:21
Questions and Answers Episode 38
In this latest QnA episode, we tackle a fresh set of listener questions about the First World War, ranging from battlefield geography to the realities of supply and discipline at the front. We start with how hills and features were numbered<...
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Season 9
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Episode 6
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35:25
Gunner Officer: Malcolm Vyvyan
We return to the memories of WW1 veteran Malcolm Vyvyan MC, who served with 96th Siege Battery Royal Garrison Artillery on the Western Front from 1916, and then latterly the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force. We follow him from the ...
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Season 9
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Episode 5
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35:38
