Extra - E41 - Codebreakers’ Legacy - Joel Greenberg
September 2014 In this final highlight from last year’s sell-out day of talks,Codebreakers’ Legacy, Dr. Joel Greenberg talks about the vitally important work of another lesser known figurefrom GC&CS, Gordon Welchman. Welchman designed changes to Alan Turing’s Bombe Machine which was used throughout the war to find the daily settings for Enigma. He also drew up the organisational plan for Blet...
35m Oct 01, 2014
35m
Hurricane Fly Past at Bletchley Park
September 2014 As part of our annual Veteran’s Reunion this year there was a fly past by a Hurricane of the RAF’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. 14,533 Hurricanes had been built by the end of World War 2, but sadly, today, there are only 12 still airworthy worldwide; only 6 of those in UK. The BBMF is proud to operate two of these historically important and rare aircraft. For more inform...
2m Sep 23, 2014
2m
E26 - Walking Among Them
September 2014 This month we bring you a special episode of the Bletchley Park Podcast, from the Annual Veterans' Reunion. 2014 is a landmark year for Bletchley Park, marking not only 75th anniversary of the Government Code and Cypher School getting its vital war work underway, but also the completion of £8 million worth of much-needed restoration, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund. At t...
56m Sep 15, 2014
56m
Veterans’ Reunion marks 75th Anniversary of Bletchley Park
September 2014 As well as marking the 75th anniversary of the Government Code and Cypher School getting itsvital war work underway, this year’s annual Veterans’ Reunion will give many their first chance to see how Bletchley Park has been transformed. 2014 is a landmark year for the Bletchley Park Trust, marking not only 75 years since the Codebreakers got cracking on the task of breaking enem...
6m Sep 04, 2014
6m
Extra - E40 - Codebreakers’ Legacy – Jack Copeland
September 2014 Professor Jack Copeland talks about ‘one of his greatest heroes’ Tommy Flowers, from his early life & career leading to working with the Bletchley Park Codebreakers. Jack explains the task faced when in mid-1942 the German High Command started to use a new encryption device, the Lorenz SZ40/42. The attack on Tunny, as it was dubbed by GC&CS, would involve some of the greatest c...
45m Sep 02, 2014
45m
Extra - E39 - Gwendoline Page
August 2014 In July, as part of the Bletchley Park Presents series of talks, four women whose diverse roles within the Government Code & Cypher School during World War Two give a rare insight into the inner workings of this top secret organisation. One of those women was WREN Gwendoline Page who worked first in the Naval Section at Bletchley Park, indexing U-boat signals & later on the Japane...
19m Aug 17, 2014
19m
E25 - Inspiring Women
August 2014 This month’s episode is all about Inspiring Women. We first take you to the launch of McAfee’s Cyber Security Exhibition and Computer Learning Zone which was held in the ballroom. The focus is on Online Safety for all ages, but especially children, as well as encouraging more women to Cyber Security. We have highlights of the speeches from McAffee’s Ross Allen & Raj Samani, Natali...
59m Aug 10, 2014
59m
Signals Intelligence in World War One
August 2014 As the centenary of World War One is marked, Bletchley Park looks back at the early intelligence career of one of its lesser-known geniuses. In this extract, recorded at the Codebreaker’s Legacy Talks in November 2013, bestselling author and Bletchley Park Trustee Michael Smith charts the World War One service of John Tiltman, Bletchley Park's Chief Cryptographer, who was awarded ...
6m Aug 03, 2014
6m
Pyry Forest Meeting - 75th Anniversary
July 2014 On 26 and 27 July 1939 one of the most important events in the history of intelligence took place in the woods outside Warsaw. Just three weeks before the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) moved to its War Station at Bletchley Park, its Head, Alastair Denniston, and its Chief Cryptanalyst, Dilly Knox, travelled to Warsaw to meet their Polish and French equivalents to share al...
4m Jul 24, 2014
4m
Extra - E38 - Lady Marion Body
July 2014 HRH The Duchess of Cambridge visited Bletchley Park on the 18th of June to mark the officially opening of the 8.5 million pound restorations, but she also had a much more personal reason for her visit as both her paternal grandmother & great aunt worked in Hut 16 at The Government Codes and Cipher School during World War 2. Lady Marion Body worked alongside the twins, Valerie and Ma...
22m Jul 17, 2014
22m
E24 - HRH The Duchess of Cambridge at Bletchley Park
July 2014 This month we take you behind the scenes during HRH The Duchess of Cambridge’s visit on 18 June, meeting the Veteran who worked with her grandmotherand some of those involved in the transformation of Bletchley Park. Valerie Glassborow, The Duchess of Cambridge’s paternal grandmother, worked as a Foreign Office Civilian, towards the end of the war, alongside her twin sister, Mary, in...
55m Jul 10, 2014
55m
Bletchley Park Presents - Guy Burt & Sarah Harding
July 2014 This September, Bletchley Park Presents Guy Burt and Sarah Harding, the creative partnership which brought us the second series of the hit ITV drama, The Bletchley Circle. As part of the prestigious Bletchley Park Presents lecture series, Guy will tell the story behind this ripping yarn, exploring how he created the strong female characters and why he based their lasting bond at Blet...
4m Jul 08, 2014
4m
Sir John Scarlett - McAfee Cyber Security Exhibit Launch
June 2014 McAfee, part of Intel Security, today announced the official opening of its international Cyber Security Exhibition and Computer Learning Zone at Bletchley Park, as part of its five-year collaborative partnership with the home of the World War Two Codebreakers. Sir John Scarlett gave a speech on the impact andimportance of Bletchley Park, online safety and therole of women in Cyber ...
7m Jun 30, 2014
7m
Extra - E37 - Royal Visit with BBC 3 Counties
June 2014 On Wednesday 18 June, Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge visited Bletchley Park to mark completion of the eight million pound, Heritage Lottery Fund supported restoration project. This uniquely historic site has been restored to its wartime glory, enabling visitors to experience what it was like for the Codebreakers who worked here and creating a permanent and fitting tribut...
59m Jun 25, 2014
59m
E23 - The Transformation of Bletchley Park
June 2014 The transformation of Bletchley Park is now complete & on the 18th of June, HRH The Duchess of Cambridge will visit to launch the completed restoration. In this month’s episode we take you inside Code breaking Huts 3 and 6 & the new Block C Visitor Centre with the first people to see them restored to their wartime glory; the Veterans themselves. We join RAF Veteran Sergeant Bernard ...
41m Jun 10, 2014
41m
The Crucial Link - Bletchley Park & the D-Day Deception
June 2014 The importance of Bletchley Park’s role in the D-Day deception should not be underestimated. Messages decrypted at Bletchley Park showed that the feint had been swallowed whole, leading Germany to believe that the invasion would be at the Pas de Calais rather than Normandy. Katherine Lynch talked to Bletchley Park’s Senior Archivist, Richard Lewis, and historian and founding member...
5m Jun 06, 2014
5m
HRH The Duchess of Cambridge Visit to Bletchley Park
May 2014 The Duchess of Cambridge will visit Bletchley Park, on Wednesday 18 June 2014 to mark the completion of the year-long restoration project, which has restored the site to its World War Two appearance. Her Royal Highness will view the restored location, tour the WW2 Codebreaking Huts and will hear about the achievements of the Codebreakers whose work is said to have helped shorten the ...
6m May 30, 2014
6m
Extra - E36 - Codebreakers’ Legacy - Michael Smith
May 2014 Bestselling author & Bletchley Park Trustee, Michael Smith discusses the life & work of John Tiltman, whom many consider may have been Britain’s greatest ever code breaker. For these highlights we have concentrated on the lesser known parts of Tiltman’s life, both before & after his time at Bletchley Park. This talk was recorded at last year’s sell-out day of talks, Codebreakers’ Le...
32m May 29, 2014
32m
Velocity Launch - How Bletchley Park Overcame Adversity
May 2014 Bletchley Park CEO Iain Standen has told a new support hub for businesses how focusing on the fascinating story of World War Two Codebreaking helped transform Bletchley Park from a ramshackle, derelict site into a vibrant heritage attraction. Velocity, a new growth hub for ambitious small and medium-sized enterprises across the South East Midlands, was launched in the newly-restored ...
6m May 23, 2014
6m
Elizabeth Marshall - A Very, Very Secret Place
May 2014 When Elizabeth Marshall, nee Tatham, was recruited to Bletchley Park in 1944, she was told “This is a very, very secret place. You must never breathe a word of what you do here.” Every one of the ten thousand or so men and women who worked for the Government Code and Cypher School, a mixture of military and civilians, was swornto lifelong secrecy. During a visit to Bletchley Park, El...
4m May 16, 2014
4m
Loebner Prize to call Bletchley Park home
May 2014 The Loebner Prize is making Bletchley Park its permanent home. The competition is modelled on Alan Turing’s famous test, which suggests that a thinking computer’s responses would, in conversation, be able to convince a panel of judges that it is human. The Loebner Prize was founded and is sponsored by Dr Hugh Loebner, a New York philanthropist. He says “The competition is the longest...
2m May 14, 2014
2m
E22 - A Very, Very Secret Place
May 2014 This month, we learn about the doomed German plans to invade Britain in 1940 with Historian & founding member of the Bletchley Park Trust, Peter Wescombe as we join him in the Bletchley Park Archive. We also take you to the launch of the biography of one of Bletchley Park’s lesser known geniuses, Gordon Welchman. Joel Greenberg has been reading up on & researching Bletchley Park’s Wo...
52m May 10, 2014
52m
Operation Sealion - A Doomed Venture
May 2014 As the 70th anniversary of D-Day approaches, original Bletchley Park Trust member & Historian Peter Westcombe, compares the meticulous planning which preceded the Normandy landings with the doomed German plot to invade Britain much earlier in World War Two, Operation SEALION. You can hear more of this interview with Peter in the next episode of the Bletchley Park Podcast, out on the ...
3m May 06, 2014
3m
Bletchley Park Presents - The Real Women of Bletchley Park
April 2014 On the 20th of July 2014, Bletchley Park proudlypresents four women whose diverse roles within the Government Code and Cypher School during World War Two give a rare insight into the inner workings of this top secret organisation. Ruth Bourne, Gwendoline Page, Jean Valentine and Charlotte (Betty) Webb will each give a personal glimpse into their time at Bletchley Park and WW2, foll...
2m Apr 28, 2014
2m
Gordon Welchman - Bletchley Park’s Architect of Ultra Intelligence
April 2014 The biography of one of Bletchley Park’s lesser-celebrated geniuses, Gordon Welchman, has been launched with the handover of personal documents and possessions to the Bletchley Park Trust. They include letters and documents which had been in Welchman’s son Nick’s loft until he was approached by the author, Dr Joel Greenberg. Tickets are on sale now for Bletchley Park Presents Dr Jo...
3m Apr 24, 2014
3m
Water Hall foundations found - Yet another exciting discovery
April 2014 Foundations believed to be of a house that predated the iconic Mansion have been found as part of the restoration of Bletchley Park. Water Hall was built in 1711 but by the late 18th century it had fallen into disrepair and was demolished by 1806. Bletchley Park's Media Relations Manager & Podcast Host, Katherine Lynch, spoke to Helen Legh on BBC Three Counties Radio Friday 18 Apri...
5m Apr 22, 2014
5m
Extra - E35 - Codebreakers’ Legacy - Prof. Barry Cooper
April 2014 Prof. Barry Cooper discussed Alan Turing’s life and work at last year’s sell-out day of talks, Codebreakers’ Legacy. Book now for Bletchley Park Presents Christy Campbell on Easter Sunday. https://bletchleypark.org.uk/calendar/d.rhtm/758932-Bletchley-Park-Presents---Christy-Campbell.html Book now - https://bletchleypark.org.uk/shop/p.rhtm/130872/762467-Ticket20AprilChristyCampbe...
29m Apr 17, 2014
29m
The Bletchley Circle Returns to PBS
April 2014 The Bletchley Circle makes a welcome return thisweekend on America’s Public Broadcasting Service. Series two of the hit ITV drama attracted more than 4 million viewers per episode on ITV in January and from Sunday 13 April it will be shown on PBS. You can hear more from the cast as well as the series Writer and Creator, Guy Burt, and Executive Producer, Jake Lushington, in our spec...
4m Apr 12, 2014
4m
E21 - It nearly drove us mad
April 2014 This month, we take you inside the 1940s Boutique, a new event which helps you recreate wartime glamour. We hear from the daughter and granddaughters of a woman who may or may not have worked at Bletchley Park but who, family legend has it, knew her brother had been killed in action when the rest of her family could only be told he was missing. We take a sneak peek inside the soon ...
45m Apr 10, 2014
45m
Volunteer Actors Bring Huts To Life - John Wilkes
April 2014 Volunteer actors from the local community will help bring Codebreaking Huts 3 & 6 to life through their projected images & voices, created by Elbow Productions. You can hear more about this project in the next episode of The Bletchley Park Podcast, out on the 10th of April. Picture: ©Elbow Productions #BPark, #Bletchleypark, #ww2veteran, #enigma
3m Apr 04, 2014
3m
It nearly drove us mad - Margaret Reardon
April 2014 Margaret Reardon, ATS (Auxiliary Territorial Service), Royal Signals, recalls her time listening to enemy radio messages on the Isle of Man during World War Two. You can hear more from Margaret in the next episode of The Bletchley Park Podcast, out on the 10th of April. #BPark, #Bletchleypark, #ww2veteran, #enigma
3m Apr 02, 2014
3m
Extra - E34 - Captain Jerry Roberts MBE
March 2014 Captain Jerry Roberts MBE, one of Bletchley Park’s lastCodebreakers, died this week at the age of 93. Jerry was one of the original members of The Testeryworking on cracking Tunny, the German High Commands code, used by Hitler & his top Generals. Their work warned the Russian’s of The Kursk Offensive, allowing them to defend until the Germans called off, what would be their last m...
30m Mar 28, 2014
30m
E20 - A Proud Moment
March 2014 Children’s TV presenters Dick & Dom came to Bletchley Park to film a programme about Alan Turing. Absolute Genius with Dick & Dom will be on CBBC on the 12th March. We caught a quick word with them between takes. Battlefield History TV is making a fascinating documentary about the Bletchley Park story which will soon be available on DVD. We bring you a taste of what will be in the ...
45m Mar 10, 2014
45m
Extra - E33 - Sarah Harding – Bletchley Circle Director
February 2014 This is the full length version* of our exclusive interviewwith Sarah Harding, Director of the second two-part story in series two of the hit ITV drama, The Bletchley Circle. In this month’s Bletchley Park Podcast & the first part ofthis EXTRA Sarah tells us about her mother, Dorothy Harding (nee Thompson) who was a Wireless Operator / Morse slip reader at Bletchley Park 1943-19...
32m Feb 27, 2014
32m
E19 - I hope she will smile, feel recognised & proud
February 2014 This month we join Bletchley Park Veteran MargaretRoland as she was asked to be the special guest at aceremony to mark the completion of refurbishment work at White Spire School in Bletchley. We take you behind the scenes at rehearsals for February half term’s exciting Living History project, where Sorrel Meechan, one of the actors helping bring the buildings to life, tells us a...
56m Feb 10, 2014
56m
Extra - E32 - Audrey Wind
January 2014 In this episode we bring you the entire interview we recorded with Veteran Wren Bombe Operator, Audrey Wind, who recalls how she was plucked from filthy cleaning jobs in basic training & recruited to do a very, very secret job. Audrey was posted to Eastcote, an outstation of Bletchley Park, where she operated Bombe machines. She says “The pressure was enormous. It took me a long ...
37m Jan 30, 2014
37m
E18 - You Must Not Mention This Conversation
January 2014 This month we take you exclusively behind the scenesduring filming of The Bletchley Circle, hearing from theProducer, Standby Art Director & Bletchley Park Truststaff who were cast as supporting actors, to safeguard machines which belong to GCHQ. We hear from Veteran Audrey Wind, whose story is featured as a DVD extra, who was told when she wasrecruited: “You must not mention thi...
55m Jan 10, 2014
55m
Extra - E31 - The Bletchley Circle Returns
December 2013 In this EXTRA episode we look back at what turned into another busy year at Bletchley Park, but also ahead to the return of the ITV drama The Bletchley Circle. The thrilling series based on the lives of four extraordinary & brilliant women who worked at Bletchley Park during WW2 returns to UK screens on ITV for a four-part series starting on Monday 6th of January 2014. Over the...
29m Dec 17, 2013
29m
E17 - Blind Dates, Doodlebugs & Tweezers
December 2013 This month, we join Bletchley Park historian Dr Joel Greenberg & AS Level history students from Milton Keynes College as they discover hidden treasures under The Mansion car park. Footings of what the Bletchley Park Trust believes were the first few wooden huts built at the outbreak of World War Two were found when the tarmac was removed. We find out what happened at a specially...
46m Dec 10, 2013
46m
Extra - E30 - Norah Boswell & Joyce Roberts
December 2013 In this month’s Bletchley Park Podcast we brought you some highlights of the day we spent with two amazing Veterans, Norah Boswell, a Wren Bombe Operator who was stationed at Stanmore & Joyce Roberts, a WAAF Teleprinter Operator at Bletchley Park. In this extended version join tour guide Mike Chapman as we roll back 70 years for these two amazing ladies & listen in as Norah gets...
32m Dec 01, 2013
32m
Extra - E29 - Women in Cyber Security
November 2013 In October Cyber Security Challenge UK & Raytheon held an event called Today, Then & Tomorrow. It looked at the role of women in cyber security, celebrating the Bletchley Park Veterans, leading figures of today & a look into the future. Here is a flavour of the day featuring Natalie Black, Stephanie Daman, Baroness Pauline Neville-Jones, Dr Brooke Hoskins, Clare McBrearty, Lucy...
30m Nov 24, 2013
30m
Extra - E28 - Mavis Batey
November 2013 Mavis Batey, one of Bletchley Park’s leading female Codebreakers, died this week at the age of 92. Mavis’s work on Enigma was crucial to the Royal Navy’s victory at Matapan in 1941 and the success of the D-Day landings in 1944. She was part of Dilly Knox’s team, working on as-yet unbroken codes and ciphers. In this Bletchley Park Podcast Extra, we can hear her chatting with Ble...
56m Nov 18, 2013
56m
E16 - Frogs over the Air
November 2013 This month, with so much happening at Bletchley Park recently, we have to bring you an extended episode. First we grab Hard-Hats & Hi Viz Jackets to join Conservation Architect Janie Price & Site Manager Rob Davies to get an in-depth update on the HLF Restoration of Bletchley Park, from floorboards to granite floors, via the roof. In October Bletchley Park hosted Are You Listen...
44m Nov 10, 2013
44m
E15 - Job Up in the Hell Hole
October 2013 This month we talk to actor Simon Callow, who was filming in Alan Turing’s office in Hut 8 & we discover a secret about his university tutor. Architect Janie Price, brings us a short update on the HLF Restoration of Bletchley Park; where they are looking at floorboards … one by one. Then join Bombe Wrens as they are transported back in time when they see Hut 11 restored to its W...
30m Oct 11, 2013
30m
Extra - E27 - Doreen Sawyer
September 2013 Earlier in the year we interviewed some of the original members of The Bletchley Park Trust who gave us an insight into how they started to save Bletchley Park. In this episode we bring you an interview with Doreen Sawyer, the lady, that original trust member Peter Wescombe climbed through the fence to speak to, and that started the ball rolling. Doreen worked at Bletchley Par...
22m Sep 28, 2013
22m
E14 - 40s Stories on Modern Tech
September 2013 This month stories from 70 years ago are given a modern twist. The New Enigma event was a chance to find out if you have what it takes to be a Codebreaker, with experts from GCHQ telling us about some truly amazing new technology, which might just confuse a certain podcast producer. Rich storytelling is the key to enjoying a visit to Bletchley Park. Now included in the admissi...
38m Sep 11, 2013
38m
Extra - E26 - Sir Arthur Bonsall
August 2013 In this episode we bring you the full interview with formerBletchley Park Code Breaker & Director of GCHQ, Sir Arthur Bonsall. He explains the work he carried out in the German Air Section at Bletchley Park, dispels a few BP Myths & tells us why there was a stone for Winston Churchill to stand on when he visited in 1941. Picture: ©Kate Arkless Gray (@RadioKate) #BPark, #Enigma, ...
29m Aug 24, 2013
29m
E13 - Spy Kids, Veterans, Letters & Lakes
August 2013 It’s all about the past & the future this month. Former Bletchley Park Code Breaker & Director of GCHQ, Sir Arthur Bonsall, tells us why there was a stone for Winston Churchill to stand on when he visited in 1941. We talk to science & technology presenter Maggie Philbin about Bletchley Park, her mother’s wartime work & the legacy that war brings to modern tech. Kerry Howard tell...
32m Aug 11, 2013
32m
Extra - E25 - A Tribute to Betty Flavell
July 2013 In February this year Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cornwall paid a visit to Bletchley Park to have afternoon tea with around 60 of our lady Veterans. One of those Veterans that I had the pleasure to interview at the time was former WRN Betty Flavell. Her son Tony, who was with her on the day, has recently been in touch to tell us the sad news that Betty unfortunately passed aw...
8m Aug 01, 2013
8m
E12 - Timely Visitors
July 2013 This month it’s all about Timely Visitors Milton Keynes South MP & long time Bletchley Park supporter, Iain Stewart goes on a Hard Hat Tour to see some of the Heritage Lottery Funded restoration with the trusts CEO Iain Standen. Then a few days later it was announced that former Bletchley Park Trust director Simon Greenish had been awarded an MBE for services to English heritage in...
29m Jul 10, 2013
29m