Segment: Imperial War Museum
Episode: Viking Ep 5 – British Isles Explorer
Air Date: 17th November 2019
Presenter: Trevor Cochrane

The British Isles Explorer starts in London with an excursion that looks at Britain’s wartime history.

• The excursion takes guests into Churchill’s War Rooms, located deep within a secret bunker.
• The bunker is full of documents and artefacts uncovering the strategies, techniques and bravery of the men and women behind the dangerous, secretive missions.
• You’ll be able to visit the room where Churchill broadcast his speeches over the BBC, and his bedroom, outfitted with special curtains to cover sensitive maps should there be anyone in his room without security clearance
• The tour heads to the Imperial War Museum, which was established in the midst of WW1 with the aim to preserve history and tell the stories of how war impacted the people of the British Empire
• Stories of people’s wartime experience are told through a world-class collection of objects, documents, photography and film.
• During the height of WW2, tanks were being produced so quickly that many weren’t even painted before being sent to the front.
• Spitfires were developed in the 1930s, and were originally going to be called Shrews.
• The wings are based on bird’s wings, giving it a fantastic turn ability, and was an incredibly fast plane that lasted through the entirety of WW2.
• Museums like this give us a chance to learn from the mistakes of the past, in the hopes that we never make the same mistakes again.