Here we are 109 years later no survivors nothing but scars on the earth and generations of families wiped out forever. How tragic.

My Grandfather fought in the battle of the Somme in the New Zealand division. He was wounded and only found a couple of days later. We still have the uniform he wore that day. (He survived)

My grandfather served with the Lancashire Fusiliers and participated in the battles all around Ypres.  I don't know how he survived 4 years in the trenches and kept a wonderful sense of humor throughout his life.  He was an amazing  man and a hero to me.

Great uncle fought there, fell within allied lines 1st July 1916 around 07:20 never recovered.

My granddad fought in this, his first battle. He lied about his age and was only 17 at the time. He rarely talked about the war unless pressed and was very emotional when he did. He left me his medals and ribbons but ultimately I was very fortunate to have him because without him, I would never have been born. These men were just incredible. Heroes! Compare and contrast them against the majority of 17 year old men today. This lot don’t know just how lucky they are, yet can’t stop complaining about everything. Thanks granddad and thanks to all those who didn’t make it home.

Imagine, no one is left of WWI. Zero… soon WWII vets will be gone. I’m glad you’re documenting these horrors.

Hi Rob! The film of the men sitting in the sunken lane, waiting to attack, tells us something. Most of the men couldn"t  grasp the terrible future ahead. However the curly haired lad closest to the camera appears to fear the worst, and like all the rest answered the call .  I admire these men.

Those faces. It's difficult to comprehend as to what those poor men were going to face.

i was there on tuesday ,was pleased to see quite a few school trip coaches visiting the sites, they certainly deserve remembering however long time that passes

My great grandfather fell ill with trench disease in Gallipoli and was sent home, disabled for the rest of his life, before his regiment (now Royal Newfoundland Regiment) would  participate in the Battle of the Somme. 68 out of 800 men reported for roll call the next day. If he hadn't fallen ill, my mother, myself, and my daughter might have never existed.

My great uncle Alexander Shannon was with the 36th Ulster Division. At 7’3” he was probably an easy target, yet he was the only soldier from his village to survive that first day!

I've been to the Somme numerous times and to Passchendaele and it always hits me just how overwhelming is the sense of history and the feeling of sadness at what had gone before. There is an atmosphere to old battlefields that is real and tangible. With any luck I'll be there again soon. 😊

To all those WARRIORS may rest in peace...

My grandfather served with the Cambridgeshires. He lost his arm in the "island line" at Festubert just before the regiment moved up to the Somme. That quite likely saved his life.

it is so heartbreaking seeing the faces of the men at sunken lane knowing most probably died shortly after

My Grandfather was with the First Canadian Expeditionary Force at the battle of Cambrai  .He was gassed and never recovered  from the PTSD.

My great uncle,, Stuart Quarterman was killed on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. His brother William was killed the following year.

I remember, as a child, talking to the father of my uncle's wife, when he was a very old man. Luckily for me, he was still sharp at 99 and was also happy to talk of his experiences in WW1, including in the Somme. He'd tell me how the Brits and Germans would sometimes be in the same trenches with barricades set up between them, and how they'd throw grenades over them, at each other. It was fascinating seeing him recollect all those horrific memories, but with a blank expression and even occasionally a smile, recalling all his old pals. Our family subsequently visited the grave of a great uncle, lost in WW1 in 1918 close to the end. Great Uncle William.

Another excellent piece Rob, every time I watch anything from the Sunken Lane, I can sense the quiet tension of the men, trying to come to terms with their fate.

Amazing how little the Sunken Road has changed.  Fully recognizable.  I can't help but consider the irony that 54 years earlier at the battle of Antietam, another Sunken Road figured so prominently in what was the bloodiest day in American history.