A Wee Bit Of War returns for a second series. We've recently returned from We Have Ways Fest, where we met lots of new friends and answered lots of questions about the Second World War in Northern Ireland. After twenty episodes of the podcast, we thought it was now time to answer some of our most frequently asked queries. So, here is an overview of wartime life in Ulster including life during the Belfast Blitz, American GIs, the on and off-pitch heroics of Paddy Mayne, and H.M.S. Caroline. ========== To find out more about WartimeNI, subscribe to our weekly newsletter: https://wartimeni.com/ne ..read more

Everyone remembers when the Belfast Giants brought ice hockey to Northern Ireland in the year 2000. But is everyone mistaken? Ice hockey had been played in Ulster since the Second World War. In 1939, Canadian Arnold "Duke" Brockman, manager of the Belfast Ice Rink at the King's Hall established a league. Harlandic Wolves, Short and Harland Raiders, Balmoral Tigers, and Thornton Wasps did battle on the ice as German forces swept across Europe and fears of invasion grew in the U.K. ========== To find out more about WartimeNI, subscribe to our weekly newsletter: https://wartimeni.com/newsletter ..read more

Their Finest Hour is a project run by the University of Oxford. It seeks to record the history of the Second World War using items and artifacts from the time as well as oral histories. On 17th June 2023, Their Finest Hour in partnership with The Linen Hall will hold a Digital Collection Day in Belfast. We caught up with Dr. Joseph Quinn to talk about the project, his hopes for the Belfast event, and to take a look at some of the intricacies and nuances that made the Second World War a different story in Ulster. ========== Register for Their Finest Hour at The Linen Hall https://www.linenhall ..read more

Glentoran Football Club in East Belfast is a team and a community steeped in history. Throughout the Second World War, players such a goalkeeper Big Tom Pearson went on to serve. Sam Robinson joined us to mark the 80th anniversary of Pearson's death shortly after he received the Military Medal with the Irish Guards in Tunisia. Sam also taked us through the fateful events of 4th-5th May 1941 as Luftwaffe bombs destroyed the club's ground, The Oval in the Fire Raid of the Belfast Blitz. ========== To find out more about WartimeNI, subscribe to our weekly newsletter: https://wartimeni.com/newslet ..read more

Throughout the Second World War, many of the big houses of Northern Ireland as well as other properties saw used for training centres, military bases, hospitals, and more... Today, many lie in ruins. Rebecca Brownlie is a photographer and the author of a new book 'Abandoned Ireland'. In this episode, Rebecca will guide us through the stories of some of Ulster's abandoned Second World War heritage, diving into the histories of some places and looking to the future of others. Follow Abandoned N.I. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AbandonedNi/ ========== Follow Abandoned N.I. on Instagram: h ..read more

By now, more people in Northern Ireland are aware of the Kindertransport and the resettlement farm at Millisle, Co. Down, and the vital role it played before, during, and after the Second World War. In the lead-up to Holocaust Memorial Day 2023, we talked to Dr. Christine Schmidt of the Wiener Holocaust Library about the role played by Northern Ireland at this time, the wealth of material in the Arolsen Archives, and the vital ongoing work of the library in the 21st century. ========== Discover the work of the Wiener Holocaust Library: https://wienerholocaustlibrary.org ========== Explore the ..read more

Brian Desmond Hurst was an acclaimed film maker born in Befast. Having served in The Great War, he emigrated, studied art, and learnt the art of filmmaking under the wing of John Ford. Throughout the Second World War, Hurst made many documentaries and movies including the beautiful 'A Letter From Ulster' in 1942. Allan Esler Smith, curator of the Brian Desmond Hurst estate joined us to talk about the archives, Hurst's early life, and a handful of those wartime epics. Archival film audio: Copyright Quartertoten Productions. Used with kind permission of the Brian Desmond Hurst Estate ..read more

Lorna Quin hails from Tandragee, Co. Armagh. She's a retired primary school teacher, and someone drawn to the stories of the Second World War since her childhood. Last year, Lorna released a book of real-life stories gathered from people across Northern Ireland who recall wartime life. Just in time for Christmas 2022, the second volume is ready to go with another 25 tales of life in wartime Ulster, 'The Emergency' in Éire, and a childhood under the Nazis in Austria. Join us for a wee bit of war... ========== Find out more about Lorna Quin and the second volume of Yes, We Have No Bananas: https ..read more

Dr. James O'Neill has literally put Northern Ireland's Second World War Defence Heritage on the map. The map in question is the Department for Communities' Historic Environment Map, and thanks to Jim's dedication, it features thousands of sites of interest. From The Great War, through to The Troubles, all defence heritage is available on the map but the lion's share of sites date from 1939-1945. Jim kindly joined us on this episode for a whistlestop tour of airfields, pillboxes, radar sites, stoplines, and lovely big concrete slabs. ========== You can view the Department for Communities' Histo ..read more

This year is the tenth anniversary of my first hearing about the old American cemetery at Lisnabreeny. Therefore, it's an unofficial tenth birthday of sorts for WartimeNI. But, anyone who knows me knows that my passion for all things Second World War goes back much further... to Saturday afternoons in front of black and white movies, to family tales of daring prison breaks and tanks racing through the African deserts. I'm Scott Edgar, and this is the story of my grandfather's war. ========== To find out more about WartimeNI, subscribe to our weekly newsletter: https://wartimeni.com/newsletter ..read more