In this 80th anniversary special, we tell the remarkable story of D-Day, from the months of meticulous planning and preparation that made it possible, to the invasion itself and the fierce fighting that followed as the Allies fought to liberate France. We celebrate some of the heroes of Operation Overlord, speak to D-Day veterans as they share their experiences, and discover the Allied leaders who conceived, shaped and executed the ambitious plans.
WELCOME
THE ROAD TO D-DAY • Thoughts of a return to France started as soon as the last British soldiers were evacuated in 1940, but it would take four years of fighting and planning before the Allies were ready
ENGINEERS IN THE FIRING LINE • Everyone’s contribution would be important on D-Day, but the engineers would play a particularly critical role
THE REHEARSALS • The Allies were desperate to gain experience of amphibious landings, but those experiences were not always positive
WHY WAS NORMANDY CHOSEN FOR D-DAY? • For Hitler’s Fortress Europe to crumble, a perfect location had to be chosen for the largest amphibious invasion in history
THE TRAGEDY OF SLAPTON SANDS
RAMPART OF THE REICH • Hitler sought to defend his European empire from Allied attack with a massive series of fortifications. The Atlantic Wall was the first line of defense for ‘Fortress Europe’
HITLER’S BUILDERS • The Organisation Todt was the Third Reich’s preeminent construction force and built Hitler’s Atlantic Wall
THE D-DAY DECEPTION • Allied efforts to deceive the Germans as to the time and place of the invasion of northern Europe, codenamed Operation Fortitude, were comprehensive and contributed heavily to the success of the Normandy invasion
D-DAY’S BODYGUARD • Protecting D-Day in a web of deceit, Fortitude was but one part of Operation Bodyguard, the overall deception effort to protect the Normandy invasion
ARCHITECTS OF VICTORY: LEADING OVERLORD • A core group of Allied military leaders conceived, shaped and executed Operation Overlord, the campaign that began the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi oppression
THE WORLD HOLDS ITS BREATH • In the early hours of June 6, 1944, an Allied invasion of Europe began that would change the course of the war, heralding the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany
A HEARSE ABOVE THE CLOUDS • Despite not having weapons or engines, gliders played a vital role in the successful Allied invasion of northern France
B-26 MARAUDER • Nicknamed the ‘Flying Torpedo’, this US Army Air Force war bird played a vital role during Operation Overlord
BOMBERS OF THE USAAF • The other aircraft that the USA used to bomb Germany and Japan into submission
PERILOUS AIRBORNE INSERTION • Three Allied airborne divisions, inserted by parachute and glider, were tasked with seizing key objectives and holding until relieved in the predawn hours of D-Day
EISENHOWER VISITS THE 101ST • Troops in good spirits as the supreme commander of the Allied expeditionary force comes to visit prior to their insertion
HITTING THE BEACHES • On the morning of June 6, 1944, Allied troops came ashore in Normandy, battling German resistance to initiate the ground campaign of Operation Overlord
RANGERS AT POINTE DU HOC • A handful of US Army Rangers scaled cliffs and assaulted German gun emplacements that threatened Utah and Omaha beaches
THE LANDINGS • The deployment of Allied troops on June 6
ANATOMY OF AN… LCVP (landing craft vehicle personnel) • Created by a little-known manufacturer in New Orleans, the Higgins boat was the small landing craft that changed the war
THE BEACHHEAD AND BEYOND • Consolidating their foothold in Normandy, Allied forces pushed inland and kept pressure on the Germans immediately following...