EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal ➼ https://nordvpn.com/ww2hq Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

More James Donaldson, he is great. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Bovington is legendary for a reason. The sheer volume of vehicles they have is astonishing!

But I will still say the most impressive and most amazing tank-display I've ever seen, was at a small Danish museum a few years ago. At Sønderborg castle, where they had a MAGNIFICENT exhibition about WWI, specifically Danes in the German army (at the time, Schleswig-Holstein were entirely under German control ... we got Northern Schleswig back after WWI, following a plebiscite). Now, a relatively small museum like that can't afford to go borrowing a WWI tank. I mean, goodness gracious, the cost would be -prohibitive-.

So instead, the people behind the museum played a visual trick on people. They set up the exhibition in such a way that as you came around a corner and through a small hallway they had created using blocking screens and temporary walls, you suddenly step out into a German trench ...

As if you were stepping out of one of their underground dugouts ... officer's quarters, enlisted men's sleeping quarters, something else entirely, it doesn't matter. The effect was, to anyone who knows the first thing about WWI, and I've spent most of my life studying that conflict ... VERY believable.

And over the top of the trench you see about a quarter of a British, male Mk V tank about to obliterate you under its treads.

And it was made entirely of cardboard.

But it was made SO well, and to such precise measurements that for about six or seven seconds, I felt my throat constrict and my knees buckle under me, and for those precious, PRECIOUS few seconds, as I stared into the rolled up cardboard barrel of a 6-pounder naval gun pointing RIGHT down at me, I fully, FULLY understood the absolute horror these beasts would've instilled in German infantrymen in the trenches. It was UTTERLY terrifying, because it was completely, totally unexpected. There was no warning. There were no background sounds of gunfire and men shouting as you might expect in many museums. It was simply the visual impact of something so monstrously large, coming over the lip of the trench that was otherwise keeping you REASONABLY safe and for those few moments, you knew ... without a shadow of a doubt ... that you were about to be turned into marmelade under those awful treads.

I've NEVER seen a more effective tank-display anywhere.

And it was all made from cardboard ...

I stood in awe at it.

I absolutely NEED to make a pilgrimage to Bovington. Maybe I'll come for Tankfest next year 👀

James and Al are easily my favorite WWII experts, when I stroll YouTube looking for exceptional content.

Last night, I spent a couple of hours with Al Murray and a Tiger. I regret nothing.

Al - Here's a fact for you, nearly 50% of the tanks defending Moscow in 1941 were British.  The T-34 and KV-1 might be iconic but there were not enough.  It was the mighty British Valentine and Matilda who were the absolute tip of spear repelling the full might of the Nazi war machine.  Russians don't like to give credit and everyone knows their shortcomings especially in an Eastern front winter, but ok tank, is better than no tank at all and by god, the British tanks were in the right place at the right time.

the Churchill is just a reminder that they should've gone with Brunel rather than Stephenson

1:14 that's why the Sherman needed a loader's hatch.

That young fella is brilliant

If I ever get to the UK, I'll never leave the Tank Museum and probably the IWM and Duxford as well! Great video yet again from Al - you two need to come to NZ and check out Peter Jackson's collection of aircraft and his WW1 stuff. Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre a must, also Auckland Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT). Arohanui from New Zealand!

the tank museum's presenters really are superb -  they know their subject inside out. so informative.

A bit rude about the Sonderkraftfahrzeug 2 (Sd.Kfz.2)/Kleines Kettenkraftrad HK 101/Kettenkraftrad/Kettenkrad, it was designed as a light artillery tractor, specifically designed for airborne operations to tow things like the 2.8cm schwere Panzerbüchse 41 (sPzB 41), 3.7cm Panzerabwehrkanone 36 (PaK 36), 4.2cm Panzerabwehrkanone 41 (PaK 41) & 5cm Panzerabwehrkanone 38 (L/60) (PaK 38 (L/60)). The fact that the tracks gave it a much better off-road capability than a standard motorcycle (especially in the sand of Africa & the mud of the Soviet Union) gave it an alternate life as a courier vehicle in parallel to the motorcycles also used for that purpose. It could also transport up to 350kg of supplies in a specially designed trailer, & variants were modified to lay communications cables & for use as aircraft tugs.
BTW, no, I'm not a Nazi tech fanboy, I just think this vehicle is highly underappreciated for what it could do.

It’s crazy how that turret design on that Tiger 2 is the exact reason tiger 131 survived intact.

Keep doing sponsor segments as good as this and we won’t skip past them 😂. Loved the uncut version of James’ rant too: more of please!

Great presentation Al. Eye opening with the Churchill. Neat welds on the frontal armour. M Dad did his trade as a boilermaker welder at Dorman Long during the first few years of the war and welded some of the Mulberry Harbour sections used in Normandy. Then he was released from his "protected" trade and joined the RN early 44. Came to Australia in 1945 at the back end of the war and vowed he would leave Middlesbrough and live in Australia. I'm glad he did!

Seen most of these before. But love going over them again.

Tanks called Grant and Lee, is that one for the North and one for the South.

While you’re servicing that AVRE lads, can you look out for my beret which fell into the engine compartment of an AVRE when I was first being introduced to in August 1982?

David willey spotted in the background during the fury segment