WW1: Not So Quiet On The Western Front!
by Dan Hill and Dr. Spencer Jones
Welcome to "Not So Quiet On The Western Front," the podcast that takes you beyond the trenches and dives deep into the untold stories and surprising truths of the First World War. Join us as we lift the lid on one of the most pivotal periods in human history, busting myths and unravelling the complexities of a conflict that shaped the course of the 20th century. Host: Dan Hill & Dr. Spencer Jones More about Dan & Spencer: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq#host To comment and ask questions, please join our community: https://not-so-quiet.com/supporters Support via Paypal: https://battleguide.co.uk
Episodes
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Episode 152: The Unknown Warrior
In November 1918 when the guns across the Western Front fell silent, a new chapter of the First World War was opened - The Search for the Missing. For most, there would be no good news - no returning son or husband, and no place to grieve. That changed in 1920 with the birth of a new concept, and...
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Episode 151: The Truth About WW1 Generals
In more than a century since the guns fell silent, one phrase above all others has come to be associated with the story of the British Army in the First World War: Lions Led By Donkeys. But does that undoubtedly powerful line stand up to historical scrutiny? Were the brave men of the BEF led to a...
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Episode 150: Spies, Codes & Cables: The Zimmermann Telegram 1917
In January 1917, as war raged across the globe, only one key player remained neutral: Having swayed from pro- to anti-German throughout the course of the war, it was recognised by most that the United States' contribution could be crucial to deciding the war's outcome. Check out Gareth's Podcast:...
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Episode 149: WW1 Trench Raiding Weapons
Picture a soldier with a trench dagger tucked into his belt and a satchel full of grenades on his shoulder, carrying a spiked club in one hand and a revolver in the other: a man ready for a deadly encounter in the dark. The weapons of trench raiding are among the most unsettling objects left…
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Episode 148: Courage Without Glory - The British Army in 1915
What happens when an army built for a short war finds itself fighting in a long one? In 1915, the British Army found out, and learned the answer the hard way. Short of guns, short of shells, and up against defences that no one had previously seen, the Army would experience a year of courage…
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Episode 147: Germany 1915: Death, Taxes & Counter-Attacks
In this episode, a continuation of our Germany at War series, we take a deep dive into the fighting on the Western Front throughout the crucial year of 1915. From poison gas and pillboxes to elastic defence, we explore the tactics, technology, and brutal realities of the war and much more in this...
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Episode 146: The Great Escapes of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle was wounded and captured at Verdun in March 1916, but this marked the beginning of a new phase of his First World War. Over the next two and a half years, he would dedicate himself to escaping captivity and rejoining the fight. This is the story of how the future president of...
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Episode 145: Charles de Gaulle in WWI: From Academy to Verdun
It is difficult to imagine Charles de Gaulle as a young man before the képi, the presidency, and his famous silhouette. But in August 1914, he was a 23-year-old lieutenant about to be wounded and tested in the inferno of combat. Ultimately captured in the brutal fighting at Verdun, he would do…
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Episode 144: Who Won the Battle of the Somme
1917 British patrols walked into Serre without firing a shot. The Germans had gone - withdrawn back to the Hindenburg Line, abandoning ground over which some one million men had been killed and wounded. Four months after the Battle of the Somme officially ended, the British were left masters of…
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Episode 143: The Ancre: The Final Major Battle of the Somme
On 13th of November 1916 the British Army attacked at Beaumont Hamel, Serre and Beaucourt - the ground of the first morning of the Somme. Four and a half months after the catastrophe of the first of July, the last battle of the campaign was fought across the same fields, still littered with the...
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Episode 142: French Army on the Somme
Today in popular memory the Battle of the Somme is often seen as titanic struggle fought between Britain and her vast Empire an the military might of the German War Machine. But, what’s far too often overlooked, and the subject of today’s episode is the contribution of the French Army who fought...
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Episode 141: Thiepval 1916: Storming the Impossible Ridge
By late September 1916, the British Army stood ready to attempt something it had failed to do on the war's bloodiest day: capture Thiepval. Once a village, now a fortified maze of underground cellars and interlinking tunnels, the position had repelled the 36th Ulster Division on 1 July and become…
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Episode 140: Flers-Courcelette: The Somme's Tactical Turning Point?
In this episode we continue our exploration of the 1916 Battle of the Somme with a focus on a key crucial stage famed for the global debut of a new weapon - the tank - But the battle of Flers-Courcelette was not just the tanks, debut - tens of thousands of infantry played their part in what would...
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Episode 139: Pozières: Australia's Bloodiest Battle of the Somme
The struggle for Pozieres would become one of the most infamous campaigns of the Battle of the Somme: some 23000 Australians would become casualties over six weeks fighting on a front barely three miles wide. The total casualties were comparable to Gallipoli and the outcome would be…
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Episode 138: Somme's Woodland: Mametz, Trônes, Delville & High Wood
There was no terrain on the Somme that soldiers feared more than woodland - a maze of broken stumps, fallen branches, and hidden barbed wire. In this episode we explore how and why the woods of the Somme became such a crucial part of the battle. Join Our Community: https://not-so-quiet.com/...
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Episode 137: Night Attack on the Somme: Bazentin Ridge 1916
Just two weeks after the catastrophe of 1 July 1916, the British Army launched another major assault on the Somme - this time with dramatically different results. Attacking before dawn after silently assembling thousands of men in No Man's Land, they overran much of the German second position,...
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Episode 136: The Somme in the South - Forgotten Victory
When people think of the Somme, they think of failure: men cut down in no man's land; shattered battalions; and catastrophic losses. Yet along much of the southern part of the battlefield, this is not what happened at all. Here, British troops broke into the German defences, captured villages and...
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Bonus Episode: Reichs & Republics The Turnip Winter of 1916/17
What happens when an entire nation runs out of food? This is one of our favourite episodes from our sister podcast, Reichs and Republics: The German History Podcast, and we’d like to share it with you. In this episode Katja and Chris explore the brutal reality of the 'Turnip Winter' of 1916/17,...
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Episode 135: The Somme’s Northern Disaster
At 7.30am on the morning of 1st July 1916, whistles blew along a front stretching more than twenty miles. Tens of thousands of British soldiers climbed from their trenches and began walking towards the German lines. By nightfall nearly 20,000 of them would be dead. It remains the bloodiest day in...
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Episode 134: France's Elite Units
What turns a unit into an elite? Is it rigorous selection, a hard-earned reputation, or simply being thrown into the fiercest fighting and surviving? In today's episode, we search for the answer through the story of the Blue Devils of the Vosges. From the Chasseurs to the Corps Francs, we'll...
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Episode 133: The Gallipoli Evacuation: A Forgotten Success Story?
For eight brutal months in 1915, every Allied plan at Gallipoli had failed. However, on the final night of the campaign, the Allies finally managed to pull off one perfectly executed operation and evacuate. This is the story of how a disastrous campaign came to an end with an almost flawless…
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Episode 132: Battles that Shaped the 20th Century
In this week’s episode and in a long overdue collaboration between Not So Quite on the Western Front and WW2 Both Sides of the Wire, four of us sit down to explore what we feel are the battles that, for one reason or another, shaped the course of the 20th century. Pre-order here:...
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Episode 131: The August Offensive: Gallipoli’s Last Great Hope
In August, the Allies prepared for their largest offensive yet on the Gallipoli Peninsula. This was intended to be the decisive breakthrough that would break the deadlock and end the stalemate once and for all. The plan involved a new landing, a night march and a dash for the heights. But how did...
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Episode 130: Why the Allies Failed at Krithia — Gallipoli’s Fatal Mistake
Four miles from the beaches of Gallipoli stood a small village called Krithia. Allied commanders believed it could be captured in a single day. Instead, thousands of British, French, Australian and New Zealand troops would die trying to reach it. Beneath the heights of Achi Baba, repeated…
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Episode 129: What Was It Really Like to Survive Gallipoli?
Have you ever wondered what it was actually like to survive in the trenches of the Gallipoli Front in the First World War? Not the battles we read about in textbooks, but the heat, the flies, the constant shellfire, and only metres from the enemy. In this episode we ask, and answer those very...
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Episode 128: The Real Black Day of the German Army? | Soissons 1918
In July 1918, the German spring offensives had reached their high watermark, and it was time for the French army to strike back. This is the story of the Battle of Soissons, the largest French tank attack of the entire First World War and a turning point for the Allied cause. Guest James Taub...
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Episode 127: From 1915 Newsreels to Mel Gibson - The Evolution of Gallipoli Movies
In this episode, Spencer is joined by Professor Mark Connelly, a renowned expert in military and cultural history, to explore the cinematic legacy of the Gallipoli Campaign. From the earliest newsreels of 1915 to the monumental impact of Peter Weir’s 1981 masterpiece, we discuss how film has…
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Episode 126: Gallipoli 1915 - France's Forgotten Battle
In 1915, France sent an army to Gallipoli. Few in the English speaking world know this, and few in France remember their efforts. In this episode, we recover the forgotten story of the French contribution to the campaign. The landing on the Asian shore and the colonial soldiers who held the right...
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Episode 125: Gallipoli 1915: What Really Happened at Anzac Cove?
In 1915, Anzac troops landed on the rugged coastline of Gallipoli in an attempt to break the Ottoman defences from the north. What they encountered were steep cliffs, chaos and devastating fire from concealed Turkish positions. This is the story of the Anzac landings. The Caribou Trail:...
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Episode 124: Gallipoli 1915: The Brutal Landing at Helles
In 1915, allied Forces tried to storm the beaches of Gallipoli and push in land through the heavily fortified ottoman positions. Instead, they faced devastating fire from determined defenders. This is the story of the Hellers landings and their bloody opening hours. The Caribou Trail:...
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Episode 123: The Dardanelles Naval Assault: Catastrophe in a Single Day
In 1915 the allies tried to force their way through one of the most heavily defended waterways in the world - what they found was a deadly combination of mines, artillery and determined Ottoman resistance. This is the story of the doomed attempt to force the Dardanelles Guest: Stephen Chambers…
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Episode 122: The Fatal Plan Behind Gallipoli
In 1915 Winston Churchill had a plan to end the war with a single blow: he called it a master stroke of strategy, history remembers it as a catastrophe. This is the story of how Gallipoli was born and why it was doomed before a single soldier set foot on the beaches. NSQ Tour 2026:...
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Episode 121: Myths of the French army
In this episode alongside regular guest James Taub, we delve into some of the most enduring myths surrounding the French Army in World War I. Why did they start the war with blue jackets and red tracers were French tactics, as suicidal, is commonly believed, and what really happened with the…
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Episode 120: From the Home Front to the Alps
In this episode, we turn the show over to you, our listeners. We delve into questions posed for the podcast and our fourth war site, the dugout, covering everything from post-war veterans to the Italian front and much, much more. Join Our Community:...
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Episode 119: What Made Men Fight?
Today we’re diving into courage and fear on the Western Front: what made men fight? What soldiers were frightened of, how they learned to function anyway, and what the sources reveal when the mask slips - in letters, diaries, medical reports, and the hard edge of military discipline. Join Our...
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Episode 118: The 5 Deadliest Allied Snipers of WWI
In this episode, we follow the Great War’s deadliest marksmen into action. What made an elite sniper and what effect did these individuals have on the battlefield? We’ll trace the lives of men like Francis Pegahmagabow, Henry “Ducky” Norwest, Billy Sing, Neville Methven, and Johnson Paudash - how...
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Episode 117: The Battle that Created a Myth: The German Army at Ypres 1914
In this episode, a continuation of our series exploring the story of the German Army on the Western Front, we look at the formation of the Western Front and explore the early battles of Trench Warfare which highlighted the brutal nature of that new phase of the Great War. Listen to WW2 Both Sides...
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Episode 116: The Battle Germany Had to Win: The Marne 1914
In this episode we continue our journey into the story of the German Army on the Western Front. This week our focus lies with the early battles of the great war and the bloody fights of late 1914 that, ultimately led to the horrors of trench warfare. Listen to WW2 Both Sides of the wire with...
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Bonus Episode: The Wartime origins of words and phrases | Untitled History Podcast Episode: 1
We really hope you enjoyed this episode, and if you did, it would mean a huge amount if you could head over to the Untitled History Podcast channel right now, give it a follow and leave a quick review!...
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Episode 115: Germany’s 6-Week Gamble - 1914
In this episode, part 2 of our Germany on the Western Front series, we take a detailed look at the famous Schlieffen Plan. What led to its creation? By who? What were its objectives? And how did it unfold in the early weeks of the Great War? - We answer all that and more! Listen to WW2 Both Sides...
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Episode 114: How Germany Prepared for the Great War
In this episode the first in a new series from the ‘other side of the wire’ along with guest historian Professor Matthias Strohn, we begin a much requested deep dive into the story of the Germany Army on the Western Front. This week our focus lies with the German pre-war military and how the…
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Episode 113: Flamethrowers in WW1: How Effective Were They?
In 1915 the German Army introduced the world to the power of the flamethrower - but by 1916 the Allies had caught up with their own weapons. As the war continued flame stopped being a novelty and instead became a system - specialist troops, evolving equipment and developing tactics. We delve into...
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Episode 112: Flamethrowers in WW1: The Weapon That Shocked the Trenches
In 1915, the German army began using a terrible new weapon in organized assaults. The flamethrower capable of clearing a trench in seconds, few weapons the First World War produced such immediate revulsion or such rapid imitation. In this episode, we dive into the story of liquid fire on the...
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Episode 111: How Grenades Took Over the Trenches in WW1
In the early months of the Great War, a hand grenade was almost an anachronism — a relic of fortress warfare associated with seventeenth-century “grenadiers” rather than modern industrial armies. And yet, by 1918, it had become one of the most important and feared weapons on the Western Front.…
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Episode 110: The Season Soldiers Feared Most: Winter in the Trenches
In this ‘seasonal’ episode,and one with particularly close links to current world events, we explore the story of winter life in the trenches. From frostbite and fraternisation to surviving in a harsh and deadly climate, we look closely at a universally disliked experience, from both sides of the...
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Episode 109: Prostitution & VD on the Western Front
Join us in 2026: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq-tour-2026 In this week’s episode we delve into the often overlooked and murky world of prostitution in the Great War. From back alley entrepreneurs to Army run brothels, and from morale affects to disease, we discuss one of the most common, but…
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Episode 108: Myths of the Somme
Join us in 2026: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq-tour-2026 In this week’s episode we head to the Somme battlefields to explore a battle that even today is covered in controversy. We discuss what actually happened in that 4 month long battle and address some of the many myths that still pervade more...
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Episode 107: Myths of the Ypres Salient
Join us on Tour in 2026: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq-tour-2026 In this week’s episode we head to the Ypres Salients to explore an area that even today is covered in controversy. We discuss what actually happened in that 4 years of fighting and address some of the many myths that still pervade...
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Episode 106: The Evolution of Sniping in WW1
In this week’s episode we continue our look into the vital role of Snipers on the Western Front. From informal and disorganised beginnings, we explore the emergence of the ‘art’ of sniping and how by 1918 they became one of the most feared and efficient weapons on the battlefield. Join Our...
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Episode 105: The Rise of the Snipers in WW1: The War Within a War
In this week’s episode we begin a multi-part journey into the secretive and highly dangerous world of sniping in the Great War. From its ad-hoc early employment, to the development of dedicated sniper schools and tactical advances on the battlefield, we explore a method of fighting, which to many...
About this show
Welcome to "Not So Quiet On The Western Front," the podcast that takes you beyond the trenches and dives deep into the untold stories and surprising truths of the First World War. Join us as we lift the lid on one of the most pivotal periods in human history, busting myths and unravelling the complexities of a conflict that shaped the course of the 20th century.
Host: Dan Hill & Dr. Spencer Jones
More about Dan & Spencer: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq#host
To comment and ask questions, please join our community: https://not-so-quiet.com/supporters
Support via Paypal: https://battleguide.co.uk
Hosted by
Dan Hill and Dr. Spencer Jones
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