tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post4670202917792237184..comments2024-02-20T07:06:56.933+00:00Comments on THE SKINNER: The First World War from AboveNeal Asherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13933911904170752700noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-12685689620594958732010-11-10T14:29:09.817+00:002010-11-10T14:29:09.817+00:00You should. I'd avoid the ones where you get t...You should. I'd avoid the ones where you get to dress up as a soldier and such as they, in my view, dramatically miss the point, but there's some good ones available. Our tour guide pointed out a farm that's suspected to be on the spot where the last mine is buried. Apparently it can be had for cheap:)Frisohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02798831687037479293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-1012865284734819652010-11-10T11:51:33.337+00:002010-11-10T11:51:33.337+00:00shayba, get her to watch the two other documentari...shayba, get her to watch the two other documentaries mentioned here. They would wipe away the tears and just leave her feeling numb. The Great War, for example, just delivers a bit too much to process.<br /><br />Friso, I always wondered about going on one of those 'war walks' over there.Neal Asherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13933911904170752700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-1353862532215755382010-11-10T10:36:38.988+00:002010-11-10T10:36:38.988+00:00I've visited Ypers and its surrounding battlef...I've visited Ypers and its surrounding battlefields a few times now and it never fails to impress. If you're there, I'd recommend also visiting the German graveyards at Langemarck and Vladslo.<br />The BBC series is excellent and should be watched by everyone with a passing interest in the subject.Frisohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02798831687037479293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-54314299308260105502010-11-09T22:26:00.392+00:002010-11-09T22:26:00.392+00:00My missus was crying at the end of this programme....My missus was crying at the end of this programme. I said if she thought that was bad, she should try wearing a scole for a couple of years.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-56240977514736113812010-11-09T07:37:21.619+00:002010-11-09T07:37:21.619+00:00Spencer, yup, you gotta love the Internet, unless ...Spencer, yup, you gotta love the Internet, unless of course you're a publisher of reference books!<br /><br />Andrew, particular references to that in The Great War, how in Flanders the soldiers considered being shot or blown up infinitely preferable to how many of them died, which was drowning in mud.<br /><br />Huan, yes, the bit I referenced about those two remaining mines mentioned that the other might have been found, but they weren't sure yet.Neal Asherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13933911904170752700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-52909699430679377662010-11-08T23:43:10.809+00:002010-11-08T23:43:10.809+00:00I watched a Documentary recently about the recover...I watched a Documentary recently about the recovery and disposal of some huge unstable mass of explosives that had been there since WW1. It was fairly recently that it was recovered under a car park or monument or something.Huanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08039728997048734241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-53405020164711798892010-11-08T22:38:56.656+00:002010-11-08T22:38:56.656+00:00This was the most interesting television I have wa...This was the most interesting television I have watched for a long time.<br /><br />I cannot imagine what it was like for the soldiers to fight in these conditions, particularly when it rained.<br /><br />The before and after photographs were incredible. Whole cities and villages being laid waste really brought it home.<br /><br />[A bit off topic but as part of my work - structural engineer - I have to check sites out in London for unexploded bombs from the Blitz. I have maps showing all the damaged buildings in London. I used to live in a flat built over a V2 rocket crater - that had a 1 ton warhead. Check out the clips on you tube.]<br /><br />Also search for the channel 4 programme called blitz street which tested various WW2 bombs of varying yields, including a V2.Andrewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16842767885091154638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-70300043681540318192010-11-08T18:55:20.885+00:002010-11-08T18:55:20.885+00:00Okay, i looked it up, the place i visited is known...Okay, i looked it up, the place i visited is known as the "Pool of peace", and it was indeed one of the 19 mines detonated under the germans. This one was the largest, apparently 91,000lbs of ammonal explosive. It said 9 divisions of troops attacked after the explosions, but this one was delayed by 15 seconds, something to do with the fuses that were used. The 36th Royal Irish Rifles then had this exlode infront of them as they were advancing, which can't have been very pleasent. The statue i remember was actually of two people holding hands with a dove, and i even found a picture:<br />http://www.firstworldwar.com/today/images/02pop01.jpg<br />All that from a 10+ year old memory. The internet is brilliant.Spencerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02865819871529198662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-75527042965708728502010-11-08T13:28:43.404+00:002010-11-08T13:28:43.404+00:00Yep, checking about five different sources I see t...Yep, checking about five different sources I see that it was a 'total' of 450 tons. Thanks Wraitholme.Neal Asherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13933911904170752700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-25447969347070073372010-11-08T13:24:28.133+00:002010-11-08T13:24:28.133+00:00Spencer, I considered mentioning The World at War ...Spencer, I considered mentioning The World at War (the Olivier one) but stuck to WWI. Just like with The Great War we got it as a free gift through a national newspaper. Yes, it is another excellent series.<br /><br />I'll have to check that out, Wraitholme - I probably misheard. That would then give us about twenty tons of explosive per mine - apparently enough to rattle the teacups in Downing Street.Neal Asherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13933911904170752700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-35655020511882451742010-11-08T12:57:03.860+00:002010-11-08T12:57:03.860+00:00Multiple tons of explosive. A missing unexploded m...Multiple tons of explosive. A missing unexploded mined mine.<br /><br />Right, I'm never going anywhere near Mesen.<br /><br /><br />As an aside, the wikipedia article on the battle seems to think that the total over all of the mines was 450, rather than 450 per mine.<br />Considering the large holes that resulted, I'm not sure if that's better or worse as a thought...Wraitholmehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02826174272321154766noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29616976.post-47514480090091698132010-11-08T11:48:12.695+00:002010-11-08T11:48:12.695+00:00During a school trip to tyne cott and flanders yea...During a school trip to tyne cott and flanders years ago, we visited the site of an explosion under the german lines. Not sure if it was one of the one's mentioned here, but the large pond/crater left was still quite a sight, especially when i was younger and more easily impressed. There was a chrome statue there aswell, a dove i think, or maybe two. Also, the world at war, the 1974 series narated by laurence olivier can be purchased on dvd aswell, im sure its not that much now. Its not WW1, but its still a brilliant series with lots of footage and eye-witness accounts. And the worst part? Most of this country are more interested in watching fucking X-Factor than on events which brought us to where we are today. Depressing.Spencerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02865819871529198662noreply@blogger.com