D-day - The Last Voices

Episode

Title

First
Broadcast

Comments

The Big Secret

20240527

The series begins in June 1944, as more than two million troops from over a dozen countries assemble across Southern England for a mission so secret, they don't yet know it will be D-Day, the start of Operation Overlord, to take France and attempt to push back the Nazi occupation of Europe. Allied soldiers train for top secret missions, by air and sea, and receive their mission objectives in sealed camps.

This episode charts the story of the reveal of D-Day to Allied troops, as they learn they will be part of what will become the largest seaborne invasion in history. An operation of such complexity and risk, nothing of this scale had ever been attempted before, the stakes are unimaginably high.

Paddy O'Connell, whose father took part in Operation Overlord as a Royal Marine Commando, interweaves the powerful and striking archive recordings of those who were there, with unique and extraordinary interviews with some of the last surviving veterans on the eve of the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Meeting two former WRENS - Christina Lamb who helped draw the D-Day maps in Whitehall, and Pat Owtram who spoke German and was based on the Dover Cliffs scanning for morse code from Occupied France, we are led through the enormous scale of the landings as 156,000 troops prepared for the impending invasion.

In archive recordings of the past, we hear from those who were there too, on landing craft and on ships, driving tanks or learning they would be part of the first waves onto the beaches.

As the hour of leaving for Normandy approached, commanders trusted in their training, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers set sail or took flight for the French coast under the cover of darkness.

Christian Lamb

Gordon Prime

Warwick Nield-Siddall

Ivan Lambert

Ray Nance

James Kelly

Stanley Scott

John Capon

James Sink

Roy Crane

John Clegg

William Dunn

James Stagg

Archive: BBC News, Fremantle, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums.

The most ambitious amphibious invasion in history begins as the Allies prepare to depart.

One of the biggest invasions in history begins in secret, as the Allies prepare for D-Day. Paddy O'Connell hears from survivors and witnesses, recounting what it was like.

Out Of The Skies

20240528

As night falls on 5th June 1944, 18,000 men ready themselves to leave Britain and embark on their missions. They will be the first in behind enemy lines on D-Day.

In parachutes, planes and gliders, they set off, and approach the Normandy coast as night gives way to the early hours of 6th June, marking the beginning of D-Day itself. Dropping in their thousands, many find they land far from their targets, alone, wounded or dying as their parachutes become waterlogged in flooded fields.

12,000 aircraft drop them in, and pilots and soldiers within with those aircraft lead us through the story, some of whom make the jump, describing in visceral and revealing detail how dangerous and tense their mission was.

At the Bénouville Bridge on the Orne Canal, later known as “Pegasus ?, a glider breaks apart as it lands and Major John Howard, Eddie Edwards and Wally Parr from the British Airborne recount their crash landing. Taking targets like this bridge is an essential part of the operation, for protecting the wider invasion zone and the beaches. In just a few short hours, the biggest amphibious landing in history will commence.

Bernard Morgan

Marie Scott

Joe Cattini

Ray Nance

Terence Otway

Des O'Neill

Victor Newcomb

Nat Hoskot

Warwick Nield-Siddall

William Dunn

Archive: The D-Day Story Portsmouth, BBC News, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums.

By nightfall, paratroopers and gliders are dropped behind enemy lines, and D-Day begins.

In darkness, 18,000 men in parachutes and gliders take flight across the Channel to Normandy. Paddy O'Connell hears from those who were there how the beginning of D-Day unfolded.

Over The Sea

20240529

As the landings begin on all five beaches, the first waves of men approach the shores of Normandy in landing craft. For many of the young soldiers on both sides, this is the first time they have seen action, and the closer the shore comes, the more excitement is replaced with terror.

At Omaha, the American landing craft are carried off course by strong currents. Worse still they discover that the pre-invasion naval bombardment has largely missed the German bunkers. Men see their friends gunned down before they even step foot on the shore. British Commandos peddle bicycles from Sword beach to act as reinforcements, and tank commanders describe scenes of untold terror on the beaches as they try to cross the sand.

Finally, movement off the beaches seems possible, but as the Allied Forces move off the beaches and into the Normandy countryside, danger lurks at every turn.

Don Duffield-Abdy

Bernard Morgan

Joe Cattini

Jim Glennie

Ted Batley

Ray Nance

William Dunn

James Kelly

Stanley Scott

James Sink

Warwick Nield-Siddall

John Clegg

Bill Millin

Archive: Fremantle, BBC News, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums.

D-Day has begun and troops battle ferociously on the beaches for a foothold on the coast.

The landings begin. Paddy O'Connell explores what it was like for those in landing craft approaching the shore, fighting for survival as they were targeted by enemy fire.

Beyond The Beaches

20240530

As Allied soldiers begin their missions inland from the beaches, their missions become focused on taking strategic targets in the villages and towns, on the way to Caen and Cherbourg.

The battle becomes one of hedgerow fighting, in what will become known as ‘the bocage'. Back-up comes from the air for the Allies as the most widespread frontline carpet bomb drop in history takes place. French villages are reduced to rubble. With mounting civilian casualties, dreams of liberation are turning sour for the French.

The men of British Airborne who took Pegasus Bridge under the command of Major John Howard are met by the Commandos of the First Special Service Brigade. Work begins on the beaches to build temporary ports. Paddy O'Connell discovers, through the interviews of the last surviving veterans of D-Day and those who fought with them, in historical recordings, that the men who had successfully landed on D-Day could still fail. All still faced the possibility of perishing, despite the historic scale of the invasion.

Gordon Prime

Mark Packer

Bill Gladden

Michel Deserable

John Clegg

Nat Hoskot

Ivan Lambert

Bill Millin

Wally Parr

Stanley Scott

Warwick Nield-Siddall

James Kelly

Eddie Edwards

Roy Crane

Archive: BBC News, The D-Day Story Portsmouth, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums.

After landing, Allied troops try to find their way back together behind enemy lines.

Allied soldiers regroup in unfamiliar enemy territory. Paddy O'Connell discovers in interviews with those who were there, that the fate of the invasion was still uncertain.

The Road To Liberation

20240531

As the series draws to a close, Paddy spends time with and hears from the last surviving veterans of D-Day, both those who were part of the Allied invasion force, and others who grew up in the shadow of the operation in a decimated Normandy. In the aftermath of 6th June 1944, veterans recall their sense of loss, of legacy and contribution, and above all, their responsibility to remember friends and comrades who lost their lives in the conflict.

This final part of the story explores what came next, in the aftermath of the invasion. The ferocious and bloody battle that followed, in which over 100,000 people lost their lives, and the weeks of brutality that paved the road to liberation, and made it possible. Hearing about the impact, in both nightmares and memories, that it had on those who were there is deeply moving, and commemorates this 80th anniversary with power, humility, pathos and emotion, remembering those who were left behind on the battlefields, in the marshes, fields forests and on the beaches of Normandy.

Joe Cattini

Alec Penstone

John Dennett

Mark Packer

Michel Deserable

John Forfar

Christian Lamb

Pat Owtram

Eddie Edwards

James Kelly

Nat Hoskot

Roy Crane

Archive: BBC News, The D-Day Story Portsmouth, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums.

The ferocious Battle for Normandy rages on, and memories turn to those who were lost.

The aftermath of D-Day becomes the ferocious Battle for Normandy. Paddy O'Connell hears from veterans who remember those they fought alongside, and the legacy of the invasion.

Episodes

Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Comments
01	The Big Secret	20240527	The series begins in June 1944, as more than two million troops from over a dozen countries assemble across Southern England for a mission so secret, they don't yet know it will be D-Day, the start of Operation Overlord, to take France and attempt to push back the Nazi occupation of Europe. Allied soldiers train for top secret missions, by air and sea, and receive their mission objectives in sealed camps. This episode charts the story of the reveal of D-Day to Allied troops, as they learn they will be part of what will become the largest seaborne invasion in history. An operation of such complexity and risk, nothing of this scale had ever been attempted before, the stakes are unimaginably high. Paddy O'Connell, whose father took part in Operation Overlord as a Royal Marine Commando, interweaves the powerful and striking archive recordings of those who were there, with unique and extraordinary interviews with some of the last surviving veterans on the eve of the 80th anniversary of D-Day. Meeting two former WRENS - Christina Lamb who helped draw the D-Day maps in Whitehall, and Pat Owtram who spoke German and was based on the Dover Cliffs scanning for morse code from Occupied France, we are led through the enormous scale of the landings as 156,000 troops prepared for the impending invasion. In archive recordings of the past, we hear from those who were there too, on landing craft and on ships, driving tanks or learning they would be part of the first waves onto the beaches. As the hour of leaving for Normandy approached, commanders trusted in their training, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers set sail or took flight for the French coast under the cover of darkness. Christian Lamb Gordon Prime Warwick Nield-Siddall Ivan Lambert Ray Nance James Kelly Stanley Scott John Capon James Sink Roy Crane John Clegg William Dunn James Stagg Archive: BBC News, Fremantle, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums. The most ambitious amphibious invasion in history begins as the Allies prepare to depart. One of the biggest invasions in history begins in secret, as the Allies prepare for D-Day. Paddy O'Connell hears from survivors and witnesses, recounting what it was like.
02	Out Of The Skies	20240528	As night falls on 5th June 1944, 18,000 men ready themselves to leave Britain and embark on their missions. They will be the first in behind enemy lines on D-Day. In parachutes, planes and gliders, they set off, and approach the Normandy coast as night gives way to the early hours of 6th June, marking the beginning of D-Day itself. Dropping in their thousands, many find they land far from their targets, alone, wounded or dying as their parachutes become waterlogged in flooded fields. 12,000 aircraft drop them in, and pilots and soldiers within with those aircraft lead us through the story, some of whom make the jump, describing in visceral and revealing detail how dangerous and tense their mission was. At the Bénouville Bridge on the Orne Canal, later known as “Pegasus ?, a glider breaks apart as it lands and Major John Howard, Eddie Edwards and Wally Parr from the British Airborne recount their crash landing. Taking targets like this bridge is an essential part of the operation, for protecting the wider invasion zone and the beaches. In just a few short hours, the biggest amphibious landing in history will commence. Bernard Morgan Marie Scott Joe Cattini Ray Nance Terence Otway Des O'Neill Victor Newcomb Nat Hoskot Warwick Nield-Siddall William Dunn Archive: The D-Day Story Portsmouth, BBC News, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums. By nightfall, paratroopers and gliders are dropped behind enemy lines, and D-Day begins. In darkness, 18,000 men in parachutes and gliders take flight across the Channel to Normandy. Paddy O'Connell hears from those who were there how the beginning of D-Day unfolded.
03	Over The Sea	20240529	As the landings begin on all five beaches, the first waves of men approach the shores of Normandy in landing craft. For many of the young soldiers on both sides, this is the first time they have seen action, and the closer the shore comes, the more excitement is replaced with terror. At Omaha, the American landing craft are carried off course by strong currents. Worse still they discover that the pre-invasion naval bombardment has largely missed the German bunkers. Men see their friends gunned down before they even step foot on the shore. British Commandos peddle bicycles from Sword beach to act as reinforcements, and tank commanders describe scenes of untold terror on the beaches as they try to cross the sand. Finally, movement off the beaches seems possible, but as the Allied Forces move off the beaches and into the Normandy countryside, danger lurks at every turn. Don Duffield-Abdy Bernard Morgan Joe Cattini Jim Glennie Ted Batley Ray Nance William Dunn James Kelly Stanley Scott James Sink Warwick Nield-Siddall John Clegg Bill Millin Archive: Fremantle, BBC News, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums. D-Day has begun and troops battle ferociously on the beaches for a foothold on the coast. The landings begin. Paddy O'Connell explores what it was like for those in landing craft approaching the shore, fighting for survival as they were targeted by enemy fire.
04	Beyond The Beaches	20240530	As Allied soldiers begin their missions inland from the beaches, their missions become focused on taking strategic targets in the villages and towns, on the way to Caen and Cherbourg. The battle becomes one of hedgerow fighting, in what will become known as ‘the bocage'. Back-up comes from the air for the Allies as the most widespread frontline carpet bomb drop in history takes place. French villages are reduced to rubble. With mounting civilian casualties, dreams of liberation are turning sour for the French. The men of British Airborne who took Pegasus Bridge under the command of Major John Howard are met by the Commandos of the First Special Service Brigade. Work begins on the beaches to build temporary ports. Paddy O'Connell discovers, through the interviews of the last surviving veterans of D-Day and those who fought with them, in historical recordings, that the men who had successfully landed on D-Day could still fail. All still faced the possibility of perishing, despite the historic scale of the invasion. Gordon Prime Mark Packer Bill Gladden Michel Deserable John Clegg Nat Hoskot Ivan Lambert Bill Millin Wally Parr Stanley Scott Warwick Nield-Siddall James Kelly Eddie Edwards Roy Crane Archive: BBC News, The D-Day Story Portsmouth, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums. After landing, Allied troops try to find their way back together behind enemy lines. Allied soldiers regroup in unfamiliar enemy territory. Paddy O'Connell discovers in interviews with those who were there, that the fate of the invasion was still uncertain.
05	The Road To Liberation	20240531	As the series draws to a close, Paddy spends time with and hears from the last surviving veterans of D-Day, both those who were part of the Allied invasion force, and others who grew up in the shadow of the operation in a decimated Normandy. In the aftermath of 6th June 1944, veterans recall their sense of loss, of legacy and contribution, and above all, their responsibility to remember friends and comrades who lost their lives in the conflict. This final part of the story explores what came next, in the aftermath of the invasion. The ferocious and bloody battle that followed, in which over 100,000 people lost their lives, and the weeks of brutality that paved the road to liberation, and made it possible. Hearing about the impact, in both nightmares and memories, that it had on those who were there is deeply moving, and commemorates this 80th anniversary with power, humility, pathos and emotion, remembering those who were left behind on the battlefields, in the marshes, fields forests and on the beaches of Normandy. Joe Cattini Alec Penstone John Dennett Mark Packer Michel Deserable John Forfar Christian Lamb Pat Owtram Eddie Edwards James Kelly Nat Hoskot Roy Crane Archive: BBC News, The D-Day Story Portsmouth, Paddy O'Connell, made in partnership with Imperial War Museums. The ferocious Battle for Normandy rages on, and memories turn to those who were lost. The aftermath of D-Day becomes the ferocious Battle for Normandy. Paddy O'Connell hears from veterans who remember those they fought alongside, and the legacy of the invasion.