Episode 47: Five in Fifteen - The Legend of Billy Bishop

On this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin take listeners into the life and legend of Billy Bishop, Canada’s most famous and most controversial First World War air ace. Beginning with his dramatic final patrol over the Western Front on 19 June 1918, the episode explores both the astonishing exploits that made Bishop a national hero and the lingering questions that still surround his record. From his unruly youth in Owen Sound and his gift for marksmanship to his rise in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force, Bishop emerges as a bold, complex, and deeply individualistic figure. The episode also examines the machines and tactics that shaped aerial combat, especially Bishop’s “lone wolf” style of flying, which brought spectacular success but also fuels debate among historians. Rather than offering simple hero worship or easy dismissal, Rejoy and Colin tackle the harder question: how should we understand Billy Bishop today?