Watched a great show on TV last night, by the Time Team. It was investigating a place called Shooters Hill in England during WW2. It showed on concrete shelter for protection of falling shrapnel from the air. It also showed a bunker between 2 houses that was used as a command post. They showed a firing of a gun that looked like a machine gun but fired some sort of shell.It had such a kick that a another person would lay across the firer legs so as he wasn't thrown away from the gun. Maybe one of our English friends can tell me more about this place :behindsofa:
Wrong side of London for me John but this Wikipedia link might help Shooter's Hill - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
We don't get that program John ... but it sounds interesting !! I found this about the show ..... ( for others who didn't get it either ! ) ... I'll be interested to see what you find out though !! Time Team | Archaeology | Channel 4 | Tony Robinson
I just found these too .... ! The excavation report published on the Wessex Archaeology website ...... Shooters Hill, Greenwich | Wessex Archaeology Defence of Britain Project Defence of Britain Project | The Council for British Archaeology
Thank you Ctnana and Annie for your websites. I would recommend if anyone has the time to have a look at Annie 1st site as it has articles on what the the team found. They were lucky that some of the home guard are still alive and showed where some of the warsites could be found.
John I think the weapon you saw was the Boyle's (possibly another version) anti tank rifle, useless against German tanks but could at times be handy against fortifications, it was essentially removed from front line units during the scrap in the Western Deserts of Nth Africa. I saw the show to, for you British people Time team i think its channel four show we are getting old shows not a new series down here. The bunker between the two houses was a secret bunker with lots of 1940's bakelite electric setups, they could find no info on it's actual purpose, it was disguised as a garden rockery with a water fixture, they worked out it most probably would of been used as a HQ by the men who were to fight behind German lines in event of successful invasion. The entrance was disguised as a out building or shed. I loved the petrol ambushes, heaps of fuel at top of hill let it flow down amongst tanks etc then fire it explodes big time and burns everything allmost
Cobber, I also liked the drum of petrol bomb for the tanks. What about the false wall at the local pub Good show tonight Queens Calvary on ABC ainkiller:
Thats the 2008 season you are watching, we've just completed the 2009. Keep your eyes open for a Time Team special where a lost WW1 bunker is excavated called Vampyre. Absolutely fascinating as they go down underground with it.
If I remember coreectly the anti-tank emplacement was for this weapon Blacker Bombard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I didn't see the programme (I don't know why) but I'm from near Shooters Hill and I believe there was a rather large AA Battery there defending London and a POW Camp. I think one or both are now a golf course. Cheers Andy
I don't remember them mentioning a POW camp but the did mention the AA site, as well as the barrage-balloon site(s). But it's been a while I saw the program so maybe one of the lads above can tell us. EDIT: Camp 1020 POW Camps in UK - 501 to 1045 And whilst looking for details of the camp I came across this book: Images of Conflict: Military Aerial Photography…Amazon.co.uk: Birger Stichelbaut, Jean Bourgeois, Nicholas Saunders and Piet Chielens: Books According to the publishers, chapter 14 covers Shooter's Hill
I think there was a pre war military hospital there too. (It was turned into apartments before I left London) Anyway it was defo a hospital. Regards
The rifle mentioned above is a Boys not Boyle's and it fired a .50" round similar to a .5" browning aircraft round. Philsr
I found this John ... Wartime memories of Shooters Hill and Woolwich Common. Shooters Hill was of great strategic importance during World War Two forming part of an Anti Invasion Stop Line as well as hosting elements of the defences of London such as Anti-Aircraft Guns and Barrage Balloons. As part of a research and education project, local archaeologist Andy Brockman is recording the military archaeology of the Shooters Hill/Woolwich Common area. This includes both structures such as Pill Boxes, trenches and other sites used by the Army, RAF and Home Guard as well as buildings and sites used by the civilian services such as the Police, Fire and Ambulance Services and the ARP Service Greenwich Industrial History Society, Issue 48
Thank you to all members who have given me websites and or other information re the Time Team show I mentioned. I had not thought much about it before but after seeing the show and the info supplied by members I now understand more about England preparing in case of an invasion by the germans. Once again thank you all
I have just spotted the quote about plough shares - BRILLIANT, do you know where it came from. It's in the same vein as "Talk quietly and carry a big stick". Regards Philsr
Last night time team show was very interesting. It was a dig at FRIAR WASH where they were searching for Roman Temples. They found them and everybody was excited about the find saying that it was of National Importance. Does anyone know what has happened at the site since the TV show ??? lane:
I watched the program last year, thought it mostly guess work and assumption. The thing that really seemed incorrect was the assumption that the bunker was for auxilary units. Every other auxilery unit bunker i have seen is dug out underground and normally hidden in wooded land. Deffinately not in the open in a garden.
Went looking for the Invaders Time Team dug up a few years ago. Here we go: Time Team Bombers in the Marsh Article
