WW2: Both Sides of The Wire

Episodes page 1 of 3

1. Episode 117: Frederick the Great and Prussia’s Rise to Power

   21 Oct 2026 · 1 h 05 min · Episode 117

   Jesse is absent this week, so our Matthias delves deep into Frederick the Great, one of history’s most pivotal military figures. Discover a poor nation transformed into a European superpower. Frederick's revolutionary…

2. Episode 116: The 1941 Preventive War Theory

   14 Oct 2026 · 1 h 04 min · Episode 116

   In today’s episode, we’ll return to our beloved theme of mythbusting – this time we’ll tackle the ideas around Soviet war planning and alleged aggressive intentions towards Germany in 1941. Our first book INFERNO is…

3. Episode 115: The Free French: Resistance, Rivalries & Liberation

   7 Oct 2026 · 1 h 01 min · Episode 115

   In today’s episode, we’re going to talk about the Free French – which, it turns out, involves more than just De Gaulle’s famous speeches. James Taub is a historian specialising in French and US military history, and a…

4. Episode 114: The Last President of the Third Reich: Karl Dönitz

   30 Sep 2026 · 1 h 06 min · Episode 114

   In today’s episode, we’ll continue the story of Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz and the discussion about his politics and time as last President of the German Reich. INFERNO is available now.Hardcover or eBook available on…

5. Episode 113: Karl Dönitz and His Rise to Power

   23 Sep 2026 · 46 min · Episode 113

   In today’s episode, we’ll get better acquainted with one of the war’s most important commanders – Grand Admiral and short-lived President of the German Reich Karl Doenitz. His is a story of U-boats, the Nazi Party, and…

6. Episode 112: Operation Felix - The Capture of Gibraltar

   16 Sep 2026 · 57 min · Episode 112

   Episode covers German Operation Felix: the planned 1940-41 invasion of Gibraltar. Details Hitler's strategy, Franco's refusal to enter the war, German military plans (49th Mountain Corps, Stukas, artillery…

7. Episode 111: Listeners' Q&As – From Brazil's Navy to Soviet Manpower

   9 Sep 2026 · 57 min · Episode 111

   In today’s episode, we will once again reach into our bag of questions from our supporter community – from German tank counterfactuals to South American neutrals to Soviet manpower. Join our community! The steps are…

8. Episode 110: The Spanish Civil War: The War That Shaped Modern Spain

   2 Sep 2026 · 1 h 02 min · Episode 110

   In today’s episode, Matthias returns to the Spanish Civil War to follow the conflict from the fighting around Madrid and the battles of Jarama and Brunete to Guernica, the Ebro offensive, and Franco’s final victory in…

9. Episode 109: The Spanish Civil War: How It Began

   26 Aug 2026 · 56 min · Episode 109

   In today’s episode, Matthias takes us to Spain in the 1930s to set the stage for one of the most complex conflicts of the interwar years: the Spanish Civil War. From the collapse of the monarchy and the deep political…

10. Episode 108: Erwin Rommel's Politics & Legacy

    19 Aug 2026 · 1 h 02 min · Episode 108

    In today’s episode, we’ll wrap up our journey through the life and times of Erwin Rommel by tackling thew most controversial aspects: his politics, his connection to atrocities, and his role in the Hitler assassination…

11. Episode 107: Erwin Rommel: North Africa & the Desert Fox legend

    12 Aug 2026 · 53 min · Episode 107

    In today’s episode we continue our exploration of the life and times of Erwin Rommel, as he is sent to North Africa and his reputation grows. Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit:…

12. Episode 106: Erwin Rommel: From Württemberg Cadet to France 1940

    5 Aug 2026 · 48 min · Episode 106

    In today’s episode, we’ll take a closer look at one of the most famous, mythologized and lionized figures of the war – the Desert Fox, Erwin Rommel. Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit:…

13. Episode 105: North Africa 1941-42: Operation Crusader & Brevity

    29 Jul 2026 · 1 h 00 min · Episode 105

    In today’s episode, we return to the Egyptian and Libyan desert, as both the British Commonwealth and the Axis gear up for several dramatic campaigns in the second half of 1941. Join our community! The steps are…

14. Episode 104: North Africa 1940-41: A War of Tanks, Sand and Supply

    22 Jul 2026 · 59 min · Episode 104

    In today’s episode, we’ll visit the warm and sandy expanses of the Libyan desert, for the back-and-forth campaigns of 1941 and the controversial performance of the so-called Desert Fox. Join our community! The steps…

15. Episode 103: Was Stalingrad the Real Turning Point?

    15 Jul 2026 · 59 min · Episode 103

    In today’s episode, we’ll return to mythbusting, to take on one of the sacred cows of popular military history discussions: was Stalingrad the turning point in WW2? Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit:…

16. Episode 102: Walking Through Berlin’s History

    8 Jul 2026 · 56 min · Episode 102

    In today's episode, we'll go for a stroll through Berlin and Brandenburg and take you with us on the ground to some of the most interesting spots in a city layered in history. Our Berlin Tour:…

17. Episode 101: The Last Stand on Okinawa

    1 Jul 2026 · 1 h 06 min · Episode 101

    In today’s episode, we follow the fighting on southern Okinawa to its bitter conclusion, as US forces face their toughest challenge against a series of imposing ridges, and an enemy determined to fight to the last.…

18. Episode 100: Hitler’s Orders, His Generals and Neutral Portugal

    24 Jun 2026 · 1 h 00 min · Episode 100

    In this week’s episode, we celebrate our 100th show by answering listener questions on the German Army’s lack of winter equipment in 1941, Hitler’s “no retreat” orders, Portugal’s role as a neutral power, and the…

19. Episode 99: Battles That Shaped the 20th Century

    17 Jun 2026 · 53 min · Episode 99

    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…

20. Episode 98: Okinawa: Kamikazes and the Yamato

    10 Jun 2026 · 53 min · Episode 98

    In today’s episode, we hit the beaches at Okinawa, as American forces begin a grinding 82-day campaign to capture the island from determined and dug-in Japanese defenders. Join our community! The steps are simple: -…

21. Episode 97: Okinawa Begins: Operation Iceberg

    3 Jun 2026 · 44 min · Episode 97

    In today’s episode, we’re off to the vast expanses of the Pacific Ocean, to the small but strategically important island of Okinawa. The US invasion of the island in 1945 would be the largest amphibious landings in the…

22. Episode 96: The Real General Patton: Hero, Showman, or Myth?

    27 May 2026 · 1 h 05 min · Episode 96

    In today’s episode, we tackle the legendary, controversial, and much mythologized US General George S. Patton – was he really as good as his reputation in popular memory? Checkout our First Book INFERNO:…

23. Episode 95: The Last Hours of Hitler’s Berlin 1945

    22 May 2026 · 1 h 16 min · Episode 95

    In today’s episode, we examine the final phase of the Battle of Berlin, as Soviet troops conquer the city and Hitler meets his end. Join us in Berlin in September: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026 Join our…

24. Episode 94: Trapped in the Ruins of Berlin

    13 May 2026 · 1 h 03 min · Episode 94

    In today's episode, we begin the end of the story of the Battle of Berlin, as for the fighting reaches the city itself Join us in Berlin in September: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026 Join our community! The…

25. Episode 93: Closing the Ring - Berlin 1945

    7 May 2026 · 1 h 05 min · Episode 93

    In today’s episode, we jump into the action in April 1945, as Soviet forces race towards Berlin and close the ring around the Nazi capital. Join us in Berlin in September: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026 Join…

26. Episode 92: The Last Line of Defence - Berlin 1945

    29 Apr 2026 · 52 min · Episode 92

    In today's episode, we start the story with the launch of the Berlin Operation in April 1945, and the bitter struggle for Berlin that started on the high ground at Seelow. Join us in Berlin in September:…

27. Episode 91: Why the Germans Fought to the Bitter End

    22 Apr 2026 · 1 h 00 min · Episode 91

    In today's episode, we pick up the story of the Battle of Berlin 1945, drilling down on the German side of the wire as the Berlin Operation begins. Join us in Berlin in September: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026…

28. Episode 90: Prelude to the Downfall: The Red Army at the Gates of Berlin

    15 Apr 2026 · 55 min

    Berlin Tour: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026 Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit: https://both-sides-of-the-wire.com/ - Select your rank – (Captain comes with one month free) - Fill in your…

29. Episode 89: Battle of the Bulge - Bastogne, Skorzeny, and Germany’s Failure

    8 Apr 2026 · 1 h 11 min · Episode 89

    In today’s episode, we once again take up the story of the Battle of the Bulge after the initial German breakthrough, and consider how the Allies turned the tide. Berlin Tour: https://battleguide.co.uk/bsotw-2026…

30. Episode 88: Battle of the Bulge - Day One: When the Allies Were Caught Off Guard

    1 Apr 2026 · 56 min · Episode 88

    In today’s episode, we return to the Battle of the Bulge and take up the action with the first chaotic days of the German offensive – when no one was sure how things would turn out. Berlin Tour:…

31. Episode 87: The Battle of the Bulge Begins: Germany’s Final Offensive in the West

    25 Mar 2026 · 45 min · Episode 87

    In today’s episode, we’ll tackle Germany’s last-ditch offensive in the West to win the war in the west: the Battle of the Bulge. Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit: https://both-sides-of-the-wire.com/…

32. Episode Bonus: The 1913 Redl Spy Case

    19 Mar 2026 · 1 h 07 min

    This bonus episode features a special guest appearance on the Untitled History Podcast with Gareth Edwards, where we dive into the espionage case of Alfred Redl, an Austro-Hungarian officer who spied for Russia before…

33. Episode 86: Normandy’s Forgotten Battle with Paul Woodadge

    18 Mar 2026 · 1 h 06 min · Episode 86

    In today's episode, we'll drill down to a relatively unknown battle from July 1944 that reveals much about the fierce fighting in the Normandy campaign — the Battle of La Haye-du-Puits. Join our community! The steps…

34. Episode 85: Should France have fought on in 1940?

    11 Mar 2026 · 1 h 01 min · Episode 85

    In today's episode, we'll test the waters of a historical counterfactual. Could or should France have fought on in 1940? Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit: https://both-sides-of-the-wire.com/ - Select…

35. Episode 84: From Clash to Total War: Japan vs China (1937)

    4 Mar 2026 · 1 h 01 min · Episode 84

    In today’s episode, we’ll begin the story of the full-scale war between China and Japan, which started with the so-called China Incident in 1937. Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit:…

36. Episode 83: 900,000 vs 90,000: The Fight That Should’ve Ended Mao

    25 Feb 2026 · 1 h 01 min · Episode 83

    In today's episode, we'll continue the story of China's civil war and war of Resistance against Japan, including the debate around the long march that has become the stuff of legend in China today. Join our community!…

37. Episode 82: How Manchuria Lit the Fuse of World War II in Asia

    18 Feb 2026 · 51 min · Episode 82

    In today’s episode, we’ll continue the epic story of the long fuse to the Second World War in Asia, where the Chinese Civil War spills over into a clash with Japan in Manchuria. Join our community! The steps are…

38. Episode 81: Operation Anthropoid - The Escape & The Betrayal

    11 Feb 2026 · 41 min · Episode 81

    In this week’s episode, we continue and bring to an end the fascinating and also gruesome story of the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich. This week with Military Historian Dan Hill, check out his podcast:…

39. Episode 80: Operation Anthropoid - The Assassination Attempt That Nearly Failed

    4 Feb 2026 · 44 min · Episode 80

    In today’s episode, we drop into Prague in May 1942 and explore the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich and the terrible aftermath. This week with Military Historian Dan Hill, check out his podcast:…

40. Episode 79: Operation Anthropoid: The Attack Plan on Reinhard Heydrich

    28 Jan 2026 · 47 min · Episode 79

    In today’s episode, we’ll explore one of the Second World War’s most dramatic and daring special operations: the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, the Nazi ruler in occupied Czechoslovakia. This week with Military…

41. Episode 78: How the US Ended Up in Greenland in WW2

    21 Jan 2026 · 59 min · Episode 78

    In today’s episode, we’re going to take on the Second World War story of one of today’s geopolitical hotspots – the mostly forgotten story of Greenland in WW2. Join our community! The steps are simple: - Visit:…

42. Episode 77: Imperial Powers in China: The Eight-Nation Alliance

    14 Jan 2026 · 54 min · Episode 77

    In today’s episode, we’re turning our attention to East Asia, and the origins of the 14-year struggle between Japan and China that some say marked the real start of the Second World War. Join our community! The steps…

43. Episode 76: Behind the Eastern Front: Sabotage, Terror, and Retreat - 1943/44

    7 Jan 2026 · 53 min

    In today’s episode we’ll dive into the peak of the partisan war in the Soviet Union – the massive campaign against German logistics and rear areas in 1943 and 1944, and the violent German response. Join our community!…

44. Episode 75: Behind the Eastern Front: The Partisan War Escalates - 1942

    31 Dec 2025 · 54 min · Episode 75

    In today’s episode, we’re continue the story of the Soviet partisan war against the Germans from 1941 to 1945 – how did the partisans fight, and how did the Germans try to stop them? Join our community! The steps are…

45. Episode 74: Behind the Front Line: Soviet Partisans on the Eastern Front

    26 Dec 2025 · 58 min · Episode 74

    In today’s episode, we’re losing ourselves in the forests and swamps deep inside the Soviet Union – where Soviet partisans waged an irregular campaign against the Germans that is still relatively unknown to outsiders.…

46. Episode 73: Why Crete Fell: Airborne Shock, Naval Disaster, and a Fatal Decision

    17 Dec 2025 · 1 h 14 min · Episode 73

    In today’s episode, we’ll jump into the action at Crete in 1941 – from the air vs naval battle to the shock of the German airborne assault and the missed opportunities of the Allied defence. Join our community! The…

47. Episode 72: The Battle for Crete – Hitler’s Airborne Gamble!

    10 Dec 2025 · 57 min · Episode 72

    In today’s episode, we’ll head to one of the prettiest vacation spots in Europe - the Greek island of Crete. In May 1941, this key to the eastern Mediterranean witnessed the biggest German airborne operation in…

48. Episode 71: The 1941 Battle for Greece

    3 Dec 2025 · 55 min · Episode 71

    In today’s episode, we’ll take up the story of the Balkan campaign in 1941 and follow the fighting as it spilled into Greece and witnessed dramatic fighting around storied places like Mount Olympus and Thermopylae.…

49. Episode 70: The Fall of Yugoslavia: How the Axis Broke a Kingdom in 12 Days

    26 Nov 2025 · 54 min · Episode 70

    In today’s episode, we’ll follow one of Germany’s lesser known so-called Blitzkrieg victories, the campaign in the Balkans in 1941 – a victory that has given rise to heated debates about its impact on the future course…

50. Episode 69: Mussolini’s Disaster in the Balkans

    19 Nov 2025 · 1 h 05 min

    In today’s episode, we’ll dig into a sometimes overlooked moment in the second world war - Italy’s expansion into the Balkans in 1939 and 1940. What might seem like a minor campaign to some at first glance was actually…