The Second World War as it was actually fought and actually lived — deception operations, codebreaking, the Blitz, and the women who ferried Spitfires without ever being allowed to fight in them.
Eight episodes with archivists, historians and authors who have gone back to the documents.
‘St Paul’s Survives’, 29 December 1940. Photograph by Herbert Mason. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Britain’s Second World War has been told so many times that the retellings have hardened into a shape. What keeps drawing us back is how much of the real story sits just outside that shape.
Robert Hutton introduced us to Dudley Clarke, the master of deception whose entire career depended on nobody knowing he existed. Robert Verkaik laid out the espionage failures behind Operation Market Garden. Bletchley Park gave us an episode on what actually happened there, and how much of the Alan Turing story as popularly told survives contact with the evidence.
Then there is the home front, which is where the war was mostly lived. Julie Summers has spent a career on it — the Women’s Institute, Vogue in wartime, country houses requisitioned overnight. We took on the Coventry Blitz and the persistent claim that Churchill knew and let the city burn. And we told the story of the American women who flew for Britain, delivering combat aircraft they were never permitted to take into combat.
Allen Packwood of the Churchill Archives Centre walked us through the decision-making behind D-Day, and Jonathan W. Jordan traced the alliance between Churchill and Eisenhower from Normandy into the Cold War.
Codebreaking, deception, and the pilots history nearly forgot.
This episode of the Anglotopia Podcast delves into the hidden history of Bletchley Park, exploring its origins, growth, and the significant role it played during World…
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In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, journalist and historian Robert Hutton discusses his book 'The Illusionist,' which explores the life of Colonel Dudley Clark, a…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with author Becky Aikman about her book 'Spitfires,' which uncovers the remarkable stories of American…
Listen to this episode →Every wartime episode in broadcast order.
Oct 18, 2024 • 51:20
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, journalist and historian Robert Hutton discusses his book 'The Illusionist,' which explores the life of Colonel Dudley Clark, a master of military deception during World War II. Hutton reveals how Clark's...
Jan 24, 2025 • 54:11
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with Allen Packwood, director of the Churchill Archives Center at Cambridge, about Winston Churchill's role during the D-Day landings. They explore the complexities of military...
Feb 14, 2025 • 53:13
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with Robert Verkaik, author of 'The Traitor of Arnhem', about the hidden espionage that shaped the fate of Operation Market Garden during World War II. They delve into the roles of...
May 30, 2025 • 50:05
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with author Becky Aikman about her book ‘Spitfires,’ which uncovers the remarkable stories of American women pilots during World War II. These women, known as the ‘Atta Girls,’ defied societal expectations and took to the skies to ferry military…
Oct 17, 2025 • 50:22
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with historian Julie Summers about her extensive work in uncovering the hidden corners of 20th-century British history. They discuss her approach to storytelling, the evolution of British Vogue, the significant contributions of the Women’s Institute during World War II,…
Nov 21, 2025 • 1:00:54
In this episode, historian Dr. Chris Smith discusses the Coventry Blitz, marking its 85th anniversary. He explores the myths surrounding the event, particularly the narrative that Churchill sacrificed Coventry to protect intelligence secrets. The conversation delves into the scale of the bombing, the city’s industrial significance, the immediate aftermath, and…
Mar 6, 2026 • 1:00:53
This episode of the Anglotopia Podcast delves into the hidden history of Bletchley Park, exploring its origins, growth, and the significant role it played during World War II. Dr. Chris Smith joins us to discuss the secrecy surrounding the operations, the organizational structure, and the cryptanalysis processes that led to…
Jul 10, 2026 • 58:56
In this episode of the Anglotopia Podcast, Jonathan Thomas sits down with Jonathan W. Jordan — New York Times bestselling military historian, Wall Street Journal book critic, and now federal judge — to discuss his richly researched new book Ike and Winston: World War, Cold War, and an Extraordinary Friendship.…
In the order we recorded them, oldest first.
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, journalist and historian Robert Hutton discusses his book 'The Illusionist,' which explores the life of Colonel Dudley Clark, a…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with Allen Packwood, director of the Churchill Archives Center at Cambridge, about Winston Churchill's role…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with Robert Verkaik, author of 'The Traitor of Arnhem', about the hidden espionage that shaped…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with author Becky Aikman about her book 'Spitfires,' which uncovers the remarkable stories of American…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia podcast, host Jonathan Thomas speaks with historian Julie Summers about her extensive work in uncovering the hidden corners of 20th-century…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode, historian Dr. Chris Smith discusses the Coventry Blitz, marking its 85th anniversary. He explores the myths surrounding the event, particularly the narrative that…
Listen to this episode →
This episode of the Anglotopia Podcast delves into the hidden history of Bletchley Park, exploring its origins, growth, and the significant role it played during World…
Listen to this episode →
In this episode of the Anglotopia Podcast, Jonathan Thomas sits down with Jonathan W. Jordan — New York Times bestselling military historian, Wall Street Journal book…
Listen to this episode →We turn our favourite conversations into full feature articles — the same material, written up properly, for people who’d sooner read than listen.
Companion articles for this series are being written — check back soon.
Over a hundred wartime articles from our sister sites — museums, memorials and the places you can still visit.
The Imperial War Museum has announced the acquisition of Dame Vera Lynn’s significant wartime collection — a treasure trove of personal documents, letters, and…
Read on Anglotopia →
A pub that was rebuilt brick by brick after being illegally demolished by property developers has finally welcomed its first customers back inside. The…
Read on Londontopia →
The popular North Yorkshire heritage event returns for a two-day celebration of wartime Britain across two historic sites If you’ve ever wanted to step…
Read on Anglotopia →
By the start of the 40s, the United Kingdom was already two years into World War II and several months into the Blitz. Many…
Read on Londontopia →
The Imperial War Museum in Lambeth is one of the must-visit attractions in London, especially for those who are interested in British war history.…
Read on Londontopia →New episodes every Friday. The 1940s are never far away.
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