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Episode details

World Service,30 Jul 2026,26 mins

A battle that changed Ireland

The Documentary

Available for over a year

The 1st of July 1916 is still one of the deadliest days in the history of warfare. Nearly 20,000 men from the British Army and 6,000 German soldiers were killed on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. The World War One battle would last another four months and was one of the first examples of industrial warfare; three million men fought in it, over a-million soldiers were wounded, missing or killed. Jordan Dunbar investigates how, 110 years on, the battle still affects people and communities, and discovers new insights about its impact on his own family and on the history of Ireland. Presenter: Jordan Dunbar Producer: Louise Hidalgo Sound engineer: Neil Churchill Technical assistant: James Shearing Editor: Rebecca Henschke

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