Best WW2 documentary to watch while waiting for HOI4?

[lobosrul]

It's not the perfect WWII documentary, but I'd think that if such a programme existed it would essentially be an expanded version of the World at War.

It would be quite nice if ITV went back and made a revised version. I believe Ultra and Magic were still at least partially still classified when it was made, also it being in the middle of the Cold War made the Soviet archives off limits. Also, a bit more into the operations of major battles, nice cgi maps with unit names etc.

 

[Riotkiller]

Soviet Storm is indeed excellent.

 

[Daelyn75]

Thanks to this thread. I'm currently watching World At War and I find it to be quite excellent. I really like that they add in a lot of stories that aren't just about the fighting but how people lived, felt about it all, and the general situation with morale. I knew France was bad in 1940, but I guess I never quite knew just how they collapsed so quickly. 12 Million refugees on the road out of about 40 million people is pretty insane.

There was a TV show that I only caught a few episodes of. I used to try and catch it 10-15 years back, but it was always on late at night and now I forget the name of it. It's about a British police investigator during the Second World War. It's not a documentary, but it was a drama show.

Does anyone here know what I'm talking about? It's not that old I don't think. It was from around the year 2000. It was quite well done if I recall correctly, and showed the civilian side to the war that raged around them.

I remember there was one episode where there was a murder that he investigated, and the only eye witness was a German spy who was caught and was in prison. Another where his son was an RAF pilot and fought in the Battle Of Britain, and his best friend was gay, and was found out from his girlfriend who he ended up murdering to cover it up. He knew that the investigator was on to him and was planning to arrest him, so when he went out to fight against the Luftwaffe that day he took as many German planes with him before he ended his own life in a suicide crash - either into an enemy plane, or into the ground.

I believe that those were the only two episodes that I saw, and I'd really like to see more of them. So if anyone knows of what show I am referring to, please let me know here.

 

[Scott1964]

How about Nazil Evil or The Fall of The Reich

 

[Stenner]

Thanks to this thread. I'm currently watching World At War and I find it to be quite excellent. I really like that they add in a lot of stories that aren't just about the fighting but how people lived, felt about it all, and the general situation with morale. I knew France was bad in 1940, but I guess I never quite knew just how they collapsed so quickly. 12 Million refugees on the road out of about 40 million people is pretty insane.

There was a TV show that I only caught a few episodes of. I used to try and catch it 10-15 years back, but it was always on late at night and now I forget the name of it. It's about a British police investigator during the Second World War. It's not a documentary, but it was a drama show.

Does anyone here know what I'm talking about? It's not that old I don't think. It was from around the year 2000. It was quite well done if I recall correctly, and showed the civilian side to the war that raged around them.

I remember there was one episode where there was a murder that he investigated, and the only eye witness was a German spy who was caught and was in prison. Another where his son was an RAF pilot and fought in the Battle Of Britain, and his best friend was gay, and was found out from his girlfriend who he ended up murdering to cover it up. He knew that the investigator was on to him and was planning to arrest him, so when he went out to fight against the Luftwaffe that day he took as many German planes with him before he ended his own life in a suicide crash - either into an enemy plane, or into the ground.

I believe that those were the only two episodes that I saw, and I'd really like to see more of them. So if anyone knows of what show I am referring to, please let me know here.

There are a couple of shows like that on Netflix, checking.

Edit1: "FOYLE'S WAR" ? 2003-2013 "Set during World War II, this crime drama follows police inspector Christopher Foyle, who learns that crooks don't stop for anything -- not even war. "

Edit2: That's the only one I can find that even comes close (on Netflix), but it comes so exactingly close that I'm going to watch it to find out.

Edit3: the one where his son is in the RAF is Season 2 ep 2, I'm going to guess this is it.

 

[Axe99]

There are a couple of shows like that on Netflix, checking.

Edit1: "FOYLE'S WAR" ? 2003-2013 "Set during World War II, this crime drama follows police inspector Christopher Foyle, who learns that crooks don't stop for anything -- not even war. "

Edit2: That's the only one I can find that even comes close (on Netflix), but it comes so exactingly close that I'm going to watch it to find out.

That's deffo Foyle's War, it's a great little show, those episodes are in seasons one and two, and they've apparently done eight seasons so far. Definitely not a documentary, but captures some of the feel of it very well, from a 'home front' perspective.

In terms of WW2 material, I've watched the first season of Battlefield so far and enjoyed it a lot, seems to have been put together very well. Watched some of World at War when I was a kid, but reckon I'll have to go back to it, given all I can really remember now is the title screen!

 

[Enigma1]

Foyles War has been on and off UK TV for quite a while, and the last ever episode was shown just a couple of months ago.
They finished the original series when war ended, but such was the demand for more, that they made more episodes in the last few years, set just after the war.
Inspector Christopher Foyle moved from being a police officer to being part of MI5...great viewing

 

[Mamluke]

do you guys know about any documentary focusing on the inteligence war?

or does World at war cover that?

 

[Daelyn75]

Thanks very much guys. I'll be checking Foyle's War out on Netflix.

 

[WarDog]

Some good tips here.
BBC The World at War is great. It is quite Anglo centric of cause, but not too much.
BBC Auschwitz, The Nazis & The Final Solution is brilliant, but depressing.

I also like the series German War Files. Search for them on YouTube. Some excamples:
German War Files - Stug III, IV Assault Guns
German War Files - Hummel, Mobile Artillery
German War Files - Military Vehicles And Half Tracks

 

[Aleksi_i]

World War 2 in HD Colour https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1JGtsilzwg This is the link to the first one called "The Gathering Storm"

It so funny because there was no HD cameras in that era. You can have black screen in 1080p but it doesn't make that as sharp as wildly used marker.

Edit
Ahem- Had a dad

 

[Aleksi_i]

Soviet Storm is indeed excellent.

It's actually good, for a russian.

 

[Daelyn75]

You can have black screen in 1080p but it doesn't make that as sharp as wildly used marker.

That sounds rather painful.

 

[KaiserJohanHome]

"World at War" is really good.

It's the same style, but not as good as, the WW1 "The Great War". If you enjoyed "World at War", you'll love "The Great War"

 

[Porkman]

Don't watch. Read. With the Old Breed

The sequel of that is "China Marine." I was hopeful that when they made The Pacific and based a lot of it on Sledge, that we'd finally get a good glimpse at China during and immediately after the war. Unfortunately, the Tv series just put in an asterisk saying that these guys got home 6 months later ("cleaning up after the war") and didn't go into the US sealift into Beijing and Tianjin and the early fighting as the Chinese civil war started heating up again.

It's a shame though because, even though China has officially come around to giving the Nationalists their due in the war, they did it too late to interview any of the Chinese veterans.

 

[Admiral Piett]

"World at War" is really good.

It's the same style, but not as good as, the WW1 "The Great War". If you enjoyed "World at War", you'll love "The Great War"

If you are looking for any more WWI stuff, this is the best WWI documentary ever made to date:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zViwCUtQ5o

It is based on Hew Strachan's single volume history of the war that he wrote as a companion to the multi-episode documentary. Yes, THE Hew Strachan. As in the guy any World War I historian or buff should have a shrine to in their closet.

 

[wingo]

Soviet Storm is indeed excellent, and it's free on youtube with some other documentaries/historical reenatments (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuSx-lf2ft7hPceGVNHybOw/playlists?shelf_id=8&view=50&sort=dd). And while we are at suggesting WW1 documentaries they also released World War One, which was a real eye-opener for me, although I'm not sure how much bias is there, there is really not much detailed info about the WW1 eastern front easily available.

 

[Stenner]

Thanks very much guys. I'll be checking Foyle's War out on Netflix.

I'm into season 4, it's great!

 

[Mannstien]

Watch the Battlefield Series by the BBC. They will also show you how a proper OOB is set up...oops we don't get one sorry but sarcasm aside it is a good series . If you want to find it on youtube do a search on Battlefield Series Playlist and you'll get a couple of chaps that have posted all of the videos but not necessarily in historical order, still awesome series and hats off to the BBC for it.

 

[Mannstien]

Some good tips here.
BBC The World at War is great. It is quite Anglo centric of cause, but not too much.
BBC Auschwitz, The Nazis & The Final Solution is brilliant, but depressing.

I also like the series German War Files. Search for them on YouTube. Some excamples:
German War Files - Stug III, IV Assault Guns
German War Files - Hummel, Mobile Artillery
German War Files - Military Vehicles And Half Tracks

Awesome links Wardog, thanks, haven't seen these before.