Come for the day or stay for the whole weekend, everyone’s welcome as we dive in to the amazing stories of the Second World War. Catch up with like-minded friends – bring the whole family! It’s a fun-packed event, hearing and chatting to your favourite historians, getting to see some serious hardware, living history and much much more.
STAND BY: FULL PROGRAMME COMING SOON, WATCH THIS SPACE!
Everyone’s welcome – We Have Ways Fest is open to all! There’s no other history festival quite like it, as WHWF is based on the No.1 military history podcast starring historian James Holland and comedian Al Murray. Top historians, veterans and authors come together alongside a huge display of military vehicles and hardware – plus living history, with traders, music, food and drink, and a whole lot more.
Meet the experts. Chat to them. Grab a pint, pitch a tent. From war waffle and talks to thrilling demos of iconic vehicles and weapons, We Have Ways Fest is a *must* for anyone interested in the Second World War. WHAT’S NOT TO LIKE?!
Enjoy talks and discussions from the biggest names in Second World War history. Join top historians, authors, and distinguished veterans as they take to the stage at our three talk venues.
Our arena is home to thrilling displays of iconic and rare vehicles from the Second World War, brought to life through the expert knowledge of our historians.
We Have Ways Fest is more than just talks and tanks. We’ve got live music, performances, wargaming, modelling, traders, and brilliant festival food and drink. With camping and glamping onsite, join us for the whole weekend.
Enjoy talks and discussions from the biggest names in Second World War history. Join top historians, authors, and distinguished veterans as they take to the stage at our three talk venues.
This year, we'll have 'The Battlefield'. Historians will be in our main Arena, adding vital context to the incredible range of restored, often rare military hardware on display.
We Have Ways Fest is more than just talks and tanks. We’ve got live music, performances, wargaming, modelling, traders, and brilliant festival food and drink. With camping and glamping onsite, join us for the whole weekend.
WE HAVE WAYS FEST 2024 – 19, 20, 21 JULY
The UK’s No. 1 Second World War Festival
Want to take part in We Have Ways Fest 2024?
Military exhibitors and traders can contact us now.
The Fighting on Film Podcast is hosted by military historians Robbie McGuire and Matthew Moss. Each week they uncover forgotten gems and showcase both the best and worst of the war film genre. Robbie is a writer/researcher for the ‘Operations Room’ Youtube channel and Matthew is a respected firearms historian writing books on the PIAT and Sterling Submachine gun.
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Giles Milton is the million-copy, internationally bestselling author of thirteen works of narrative history. His books have been translated into twenty-five languages. His most recent book is The Stalin Affair: The Impossible Alliance that Won the War. One of Giles’s previous works, Nathaniel’s Nutmeg, is currently being developed into a major screen project. Giles is the writer and narrator of the acclaimed narrative podcast series, Ministry of Secrets, produced by Sony and available on all platforms.
George Hoad is a 16-year-old member of the Independent Company and an avid fan of history, in particular the history of the Second World War. He started listening to the podcast in 2021, and has been afflicted ever since. This is George’s third time at the festival and his first time as a speaker. He is a member of the Combined Cadet Force and enjoys playing Second World War video games.
Jenny Grant is a Postgraduate Researcher at QMUL, researching the Anglo-Polish Agreement of 1939 and its legacy. The granddaughter of Poles who were deported to Siberia, her long-standing fascination with the Second World War and the Polish experience inspired her to study History at Oxford and SSEES. Active on Twitter as @SIlenceInPolish, she has spoken at IWM Duxford and the NAM about the Polish Armed Forces in the West. She has written numerous blogs and articles and appeared on several podcasts and videos, including the ‘Military Masterminds’ documentary series and the CWGC’s series of films, as well as organising conferences on the Polish experience of the Second World War.
Stuart Bertie is the official photographer of We Have Ways Fest. He is also a qualified architect, practising in East Devon. He was a lecturer in Architecture at the University of Portsmouth for a number of years, exploring urban design, landscape, building, culture, art, and philosophy. Pairing this experience with his keen interest in all things Second World War, he has recently been studying the wide reaching influence that architects had on the period in history, and how their legacy can be seen in the landscape today.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris neque nunc, vehicula quis finibus quis, laoreet in nulla. Morbi eu consectetur sapien. Morbi quis nulla iaculis metus aliquet gravida. Phasellus eget nunc facilisis, varius nisi sit amet, ullamcorper mauris. Nulla at arcu commodo, sollicitudin dolor eget, dictum dolor. Proin sed magna in enim venenatis bibendum. In hac habitasse platea dictumst.
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris neque nunc, vehicula quis finibus quis, laoreet in nulla. Morbi eu consectetur sapien. Morbi quis nulla iaculis metus aliquet gravida. Phasellus eget nunc facilisis, varius nisi sit amet, ullamcorper mauris. Nulla at arcu commodo, sollicitudin dolor eget, dictum dolor. Proin sed magna in enim venenatis bibendum. In hac habitasse platea dictumst.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris neque nunc, vehicula quis finibus quis, laoreet in nulla. Morbi eu consectetur sapien. Morbi quis nulla iaculis metus aliquet gravida. Phasellus eget nunc facilisis, varius nisi sit amet, ullamcorper mauris. Nulla at arcu commodo, sollicitudin dolor eget, dictum dolor. Proin sed magna in enim venenatis bibendum. In hac habitasse platea dictumst.
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris neque nunc, vehicula quis finibus quis, laoreet in nulla. Morbi eu consectetur sapien. Morbi quis nulla iaculis metus aliquet gravida. Phasellus eget nunc facilisis, varius nisi sit amet, ullamcorper mauris. Nulla at arcu commodo, sollicitudin dolor eget, dictum dolor. Proin sed magna in enim venenatis bibendum. In hac habitasse platea dictumst.
Joe ‘Hush-Kit’ Coles has spent over twenty years immersed in military aviation history. He created the brilliantly irreverent and well-informed Hush-Kit aviation blog, vlogs and books. Joe has interviewed hundreds of combat pilots and travelled the world in search of thrilling tales from the dark exciting world of aerial warfare. He has published over 1000 articles in print and online, edited best-selling aviation periodicals, and had work published in all major languages. He loves the Westland Whirlwind and the Hawker Typhoon in equal measure.
Dr Alexandra Lloyd is Fellow by Special Election in German at St Edmund Hall, and Lecturer in German at Magdalen College and University College, University of Oxford. Her research interests include cultural memories of war and dictatorship, representations of children and childhood, and graphic literature. She is the author of Childhood, Memory, and the Nation: Young Lives under Nazism in Contemporary German Culture and Defying Hitler: The White Rose Pamphlets.
Flight Lieutenant Matt Doncaster RAF cfs (Ret’d) was in the RAF for more than 27 years, working both as a fast jet and multi-engine pilot. From Sierra Leone in the Harrier GR7, to Iraq and Afghanistan in a Boeing C17, he also taught air-to-air and air-to-ground weaponeering and tactics on the Hawk. Matt’s last flying tour was as the Standards Pilot at the Empire Test Pilot School at Boscombe Down.
James May is a journalist, author, television presenter and publican, perhaps best known for shows such as Top Gear and The Grand Tour. An aficionado of Second World War history and war planes in particular, James has appeared on the podcast and at We Have Ways Fest. His latest book, Marvellous Vehicles, was published in 2023.
Dr Waitman Wade Beorn is a historian of the Holocaust, public scholar and Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He is the author of Marching Into Darkness: The Wehrmacht and the Holocaust in Belarus and The Holocaust in Eastern Europe: At the Epicentre of the Final Solution. His most recent book is Between The Wires: The Janowska Camp and the Holocaust in Lviv. Waitman is the host of The Holocaust History Podcast. He is also a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and a former cavalry officer.
Ian Pegg has a lifelong interest in the history of war and conflict. With the launch of his debut book, Death and Heroes: Army Chaplains in World War 2, Ian brings the story of Chaplains and their role in the Second World War to life, telling their personal stories, the impact they had on others and their heroism throughout the War.
Steve is the Regimental Researcher at the Green Howards Museum and a battlefield guide. With an MA in British First World War Studies from Birmingham University, Simon’s research credits include titles such as John Powell’s 2018 study of General Sir Edward Bulfin, Hugh Sebag-Montefiori’s 2016 look at fighting on the Somme and Terry Finnegan’s 2015 assessment of the American battlefield experience during the First World War.
GREEN HOWARDS ON SICILY – SATURDAY THE ARSENAL
Also known as Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own Yorkshire Regiment, the Green Howards made their mark on Sicily in 1943. Steve Erskine has worked with the Green Howards Regimental Museum for several years, and now takes us out to Sicily….
James Holland is the co-host of the podcast We Have Ways Of Making You Talk. He is the best selling Second World War historian in the UK. He has published more than 20 books about the conflict and is the BBC’s regular expert on all Second World War matters. As well as hosting We Have Ways Fest, James runs Chalke History Festival – the largest history festival in Europe.
James Jefferies is a PhD Candidate and Assistant Lecturer at the University of Essex specialising in the war in the air during the Second World War and its place in British cultural memory. James is an assistant lecturer at the University of Wolverhampton and has previously taught at Northeastern University London and at Jesus College, Cambridge and Corpus Christi, Oxford. He has been published numerous times including in the Journal of Twentieth Century History, has also appeared and worked on TV documentaries such as Smithsonian TV’s Air Warriors documentary series, and has given talks at numerous conferences and events.
Stephen Fisher is an archaeologist and historian specialising in 20th-century warfare and maritime history. He has been researching landing craft and the D-Day fleets for a number of years, working on a huge range of projects which have made him uniquely qualified to discuss Sword Beach.
Previous work has included advising on the restoration of LCT 7074, the world’s last surviving D-Day Landing Craft Tank, and compiling a comprehensive assessment of the Second World War archaeology of the New Forest National Park. At present he undertakes archaeological surveys of the New Forest and sails with National Geographic/Lindblad Expeditions as a historian.
Jane is an author and freelance historian, having abandoned her career in the legal profession to pursue her lifelong obsession with the Second World War. She is the author of two books (with another two on the way) and is obsessed with the Handley Page Halifax, Where Eagles Dare and RAF Bomber Command. Her latest research focuses on Bomber Command’s little-known minelaying operations, and the Lofoten Commando raids. Jane is the winner of the RAF Museum’s Academic Award 2023 for her research on the minelaying campaign. She can usually be found in the archives or up a fjord.
Louise Provan has an MA in Military History from the University of Wolverhampton. She initially specialised in naval history in the period leading up to the outbreak of the First World War, but an interest in oil as a vital natural resource has led to her obsession for the less well known theatres of conflict in the Middle East and Central Asia
Kate Brett studied English, German and Museology at university, and is now Historian and Curator at the Naval Historical Branch in Portsmouth. She studies the Second World War from all sides of the conflict, drawing on little-known foreign documents.
Rowland White is the author of six critically acclaimed works of aviation history: Vulcan 607, Phoenix Squadron, Storm Front, Into the Black, Harrier 809 and most recently, Mosquito, as well as a compendium of aviation, The Big Book of Flight. Born and brought up in Cambridge, Rowland studied Modern History at Liverpool University. When he is not writing about aeroplanes, he works in publishing at Penguin Random House.
Ben Mayne is a Second World War battlefield guide and historian whose interest and research focuses on northwest Europe, specifically Commando Operations, the build up to D-Day and the Normandy Campaign. With years of experience walking the ground and taking hundreds of passengers on tour, Ben has also travelled extensively with veterans across the UK and Europe hearing first hand accounts on the ground. He currently works alongside the Taxi Charity Military Veterans.
John Buckley is Professor of Military History at the University of Wolverhampton where, alongside a range of other courses, he runs a part-time MA in Second World War Studies and leads battlefield tours to Northwest Europe. He is author of Monty’s Men: The British Army and the Liberation of Europe, British Armour in the Normandy Campaign 1944, The Royal Air Force: The First Hundred Years (with Paul Beaver), and The RAF and Trade Defence: Constant Endeavour. His most recent books have focused on counter-factual history, with Armchair General: Can You Defeat the Nazis? examining the Second World War.
Henry Winter is one of this generation’s most respected football writers. He has covered the Premier League for The Independent, The Telegraph and The Times. Henry has reported on the England football team for more than 20 years and is the writer of Fifty Years of Hurt: The Story Of England Football.
Dan Todman is Professor of Modern History at Queen Mary University of London. His books include the co-edited Diaries of Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke, and Britain’s War: Into Battle 1937-1941 and A New World 1942-1947. Dan was the first academic historian to appear on the We Have Ways podcast and this is his third appearance at the festival. He is currently working on a history of cities in the Second World War.
Roger Moorhouse is a historian and author specialising in Nazi Germany, Poland and World War Two in Europe. He is author of a number of books, including Killing Hitler (2006), Berlin at War (2010), The Devils’ Alliance (2014), The Forgers (2023), and the critically acclaimed First to Fight (2019), which was awarded the Polish Foreign Ministry History Prize in 2020. Roger’s books have appeared in more than 20 languages. A Fellow of the Royal Historical Society since 2015, Roger was awarded the Order of Merit of the Polish Republic in 2020 for services to Polish history.
Megan Kelleher is the Historian and Academic Access Manager at the Royal Air Force Museum. She recently completed her PhD at the University of Kent, where her thesis focused on death and grief practices in Britain after the First World War. Megan’s research interests include death and bereavement practices in relation to modern conflicts, and particularly the legacy of war dead commemorated at home. She is currently researching the commemoration and care of Second World War dead in Britain.
Dr Magnus Pahl trained as an officer in the German Armed Forces before studying history at the Bundeswehr University in Hamburg. From 2007, he served as a research associate at the Military History Research Institute, Potsdam. He wrote his doctoral thesis about the intelligence division of Hitler’s General Staff (Fremde Heere Ost. Hitlers militärische Feindaufklärung), which was published in German, Polish, and English language. He worked at the Bundeswehr Museum of Military History from 2011 to 2021 as a head of Department and curator, his latest exhibition being Hitlers Elitetruppe? Mythos Fallschirmjäger/Hitler`s Elite Warriors? The Myth of the German Paratroopers in 2021. He wrote his second book about the German perspective on the Battles of Monte Cassino. He has been working in Potsdam again since 2021.
A native of New Orleans, Joseph Ricci serves as the Historian for the Battle of Franklin Trust. Joseph holds a Master’s Degree in History from Southeastern Louisiana University. For the last two years, he has written extensively for the Dispatch Magazine, produced the Dispatch Podcast, appeared in several BOFT Films productions, in addition to leading tours of the three historic homes and the surrounding battlefields. Joseph is a frequent speaker to Civil War Round Tables and has been a guest on several podcasts, Additionally, he has contributed essays published in the Emerging Civil War Series, and is the producer and host of Home Brew History Podcast which is available on all podcast platforms.
Al Murray is the co-host of We Have Ways Of Making You Talk. Al, with his alter-ego The Pub Landlord, is one of the most recognisable and successful comics in the UK. He is a regular on many popular British television programmes. Al is also a keen historian and aficionado of the Second World War.
