| | |  BMMHS News & Events April 2026
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| Operation Chastise
The Dambusters' Raid
Photograph of the breached Möhne Dam taken by Flying Officer Jerry Fray of No. 542 Squadron from his Spitfire PR IX, six Barrage balloons are above the dam.
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Zoom Talk
River Kwai Railway - The True Story
by Paul Whittle
Tuesday 7th April 2026: 7:30pm
The World War II 250 mile Burma-Thailand ‘Death’ Railway was a remarkable engineering feat, but was built with an appalling loss of life.
After a brief summary of the disastrous Malayan Campaign and the fall of Fortress Singapore, the talk covers the urgent need for the railway by the Japanese, its construction, operation, and the partial post-war revival of train services.
Actual events are then contrasted with the fiction of the 1957 acclaimed film ‘Bridge on the River Kwai’, a production both award-winning but also controversial in several respects.
About the speaker - Paul Whittle
Paul’s civilian career was predominantly in the City of London as a senior human resources manager with a leading British bank. In 1999 he was granted his ‘Freedom’ and appointed a Freeman of the City of London.
For 34 years Paul also served in the Royal Corps of Signals, Territorial Army. He took part in many overseas exercises with NATO and attended the TA Command and Staff Course at the Staff College Camberley. He then held two TA Military Secretary appointments, firstly at HQ London District and then at 2 Signal Brigade at Corsham, Wiltshire. For his long and effective service he was awarded the Territorial Decoration (TD) with three subsequent Bars to that decoration. As a retired officer he is Regimental Historian of 31st Signal Regiment (V), whose history he has researched, written and published.
Paul has been a travel lecturer for over twenty years. In the UK he gives up to 100 talks each year, raising funds for charities in Myanmar (Burma), Nepal and elsewhere. He also lectures on cruise ships including Fred Olsen Cruise Lines and P & O Cruises.
His interests are many and varied. He is a keen military historian, and has visited the battlefields of the Crimean War, the American Civil War in Virginia, the Russian Eastern Front and the French Maginot Line defences.
With his interest in heritage transport, Paul is Vice-Chairman of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society. He is a regular visitor to India and is the Society’s principal link withIndian Railways and UNESCO. In late 2018 he was a contributor in the Quest TV documentary series ‘How Trains Changed the World’.
Paul is a member of the National Transport Trust, several UK steam heritage railways and the Wey and Arun Canal Trust. His charitable activities include being President of an Epsom-based community club for the blind and partially sighted.
To date Paul has travelled to over 70 countries including such relatively unknown lands as Eritrea, Armenia, Romania and Montenegro. He has also crossed the Sahara Desert, and journeyed by train from Vladivostok to central Siberia.
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Details of our BMMHS Events & Zoom talks can be found on our website https://www.bmmhs.org
Contact us in...@bmmhs.org to register for these Events and for Zoom talks the log-in details will be emailed to you on the morning of each talk. A donation of £5 is requested for each talk to cover speaker costs, licence fees and the charity donation. |
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Woodcote Village Hall Meeting
Operation Chastise - The Dambusters' Raid
by Chris Leworthy
Wednesday 15th April 2026 7:30pm
Operation Chastise - the Dambusters’ Raid
It is now over 80 years since the Dambusters’ Raid. It is a story of scientific genius coupled with supreme skill and bravery. The talk will cover the whole operation from concept to conclusion but will, in particular, focus on the raid itself, precisely what the aircrews achieved and what happened to them: - the background to the raid
- 1943 - the four challenges
- the weapon
- the aircrew
- the aircraft
- the training
- the targets
- the raid plan
- what happened - the three waves, the Dutch coast, on to Germany, the attacks, the return journey
- what was achieved
- the heavy price
- what happened to 617 and the aircrew that took part
- a tribute
About the speaker - Chris Leworthy
After retiring, Chris decided to further his knowledge and develop his interest in Military History, by visiting, reading and, in particular, volunteering at a number of historic sites. After spending some time at the Churchill War Rooms in London, he qualified as a Guide at the Battle of Britain Bunker in Uxbridge, from where the defence of London and the South East was directed in 1940, giving regular lectures to visitors to this historic site. Additionally he now delivers a large number of external talks covering key episodes in WW2, including the Battle of Britain, the Dambusters’ Raid, and Operation Jubilee.
He is married, with two adult children, and lives in Berkshire. His other activities include dog walking, gardening, rugby watching, theatre and attempting to avoid reading the news. Entry cost is just £8, which includes your entry ticket to the talk, a Q & A, and refreshments (beer, wine, soft drinks). We ask for payment in advance. If you are unable to pay in advance there will be a facility to pay on the door.
Entrance to village hall talks for students and under 21s is now free of charge.
Details of our BMMHS Village Hall Meetings can be found on our website https://www.bmmhs.org |
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| | News Item
Articles Of War Is Now Available on Amazon
Click above to order your copy
Nick Brazil's book may be purchased on Amazon with paperback, hardback and Kindle versions are all now being available. The proceeds from the sales of the book go to the charity Veterans With Dogs.
Articles of War is a collection of articles which cover a portrait of modern conflict from Napoleon to the present written by historian Nick Brazil. Proceeds from the sale of this BMMHS publication will go to support Veterans With Dogs, which is a charity dedicated to training and providing assistance dogs to support veterans with mental health conditions, enhancing their quality of life and independence.
About Articles of War:-
"A wonderful selection of beautifully written snapshots, covering both very and less well known episodes of conflict, over almost two centuries. Written in a wise, knowledgable and reflective style, given added poignancy by the author’s passing just before publication.
Highly recommended and supporting a wonderful cause, so close to the author’s heart."
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| BMMHS Upcoming Events 2026 |
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The talk by Guy Walters scheduled for 15th July in Woodcote has been changed to a Zoom talk in June 2027.
This is because Guy has moved to Prague. In addition Guy has recently published a new book....
...and a new TV series is due to launch later this month.
We are therefore currently looking for a speaker to fill the slot on 15th July in Woodcote.
Any suggestions would be most welcome. Please email andy.c...@bmmhs.org
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Many thanks to those BMMHS members that joined in the Society of Friends Fleet Air Arm Museum Zoom presentation by Alan Bennett last month and his role as a Special Forces ‘Junglie’ pilot in the Falklands conflict. As the co-pilot on Operation Plum Duff, the ‘one way trip' for Sea King Victor Charlie to insert an SAS troop onto the Argentine mainland, his views were hugely informative and enlightening. This operation was to ’strike' the Super Etendards and their Exocet missiles of the Argentine Air Force at Rio Grande Air Base which so affected the tactical thinking of the Royal Navy during the Falklands conflict. Plum Duff was aborted in country but the Fleet Air Arm helicopter crew were successful in their side of the mission. We have invited Alan back in 2027 to tell us about the time the crew who having crash landed in Chile, managed to evade the Chilean authorities for over a week before being picked up and their eventual repatriation to the UK.
General Sir Mike Rose who during the Falklands campaign commanded the SAS wrote to congratulate Alan Bennett in the way he presented his story. He also thanked Alan for the even handed way he commented on the SAS commander’s decision to abort their side of the operation, especially with hindsight and Argentinian testimonies after the conflict would have meant the SAS would have been conducting a suicide mission.
Whether you viewed this presentation or enjoyed reading the above, SoFFAAM has a monthly talk always on the last Thursday of the month and as this is usually live streamed on Zoom, every one is welcome to join in. The cost is only £4 so very good value. To see our talks diary and book your ticket, please visit our website - BMMHS devotees are very welcome and we hope to see you there. https://www.fleetairarmfriends.org.uk/talks/ |
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| Meanwhile at RAF Fairford... |
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Special thanks to Richard Macauley for sending us these photos as the US Operation Epic Fury continues.
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Sleeping With The Enemy
British Wartime Collaborators and Traitors by Nick Brazil
Click on the photo above to read Nick's article. |
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