Thanks For Your Service Podcasts

Welcome to our 85th podcast for Thanks for your Service.  Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Scattered throughout many towns of Australia are Avenues of Honour- a memorial avenue of trees, with each tree symbolising a person who has served in war. Just before Remembrance Day 2025, I visited the town of Kingston in Victoria.  Julie Baulch and Leah Armstrong from the Friends of the Avenue joined me to talk to me about the Kingston Avenue of Honour. The wind forced us to take refuge in the Commercial Hotel in Kingston- which also houses the Kingston Avenue of Honour Memorial Wall and resource centre. The website for the avenue is  www.kingstonavenueofhonour.org.au We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to our 84th  podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Referred to as the forgotten war, thousands of Australians- from service men and women, news correspondents, war artists, Qantas crew, volunteers such as Red Cross nurses served in the Burma campaign during WWII.  Andrew Kilsby and Daryl Moran co-edited a book on aspects of our involvement in the forgotten war. That's the podcast for today.   Daryl and Andrew’s next book, titled ‘Resolute The Australian Air War in Burma, 1942-1945’ is being launched at the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance on 19 October 2025 and tickets are available on the Shrine website.  We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 83 rd podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Another podcast about the home front.  We are staying in rural Victoria in Australia to learn about the role of the Cressy Aerodrome during World War II. The website for Cressy Aerodrome is www.cressyaerodrome.com.au We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to our 82nd podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Who would have known that during WW2 the Goulburn Valley in Victoria housed nearly 10,000 Prisoners of War and internees in 7 purpose built camps.  John Gribben joins us to give an incredible insight into these camps. After I recorded this podcast, and as part of a school holiday road trip, I packed up my 2 boys and we headed to Shepparton and met up with John who took us out to see the site of Camp 1 and the German War Cemetery..  We visited the Tatura Wartime Camps Museum and thanks to Bill who showed us around.  I will post some photos and videos up to our social media feeds.  We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 81st podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net I recently attended a military conference in Melbourne hosted by Military History  & Heritage Victoria.  One of the reasons I enjoy attending these conferences is that you never stop learning about aspects of military history.  In today’s podcast, we learn about German U-Boat activity in Australian waters during WW2, Japanese military flights over Melbourne and Hobart, and learn about Military History  & Heritage Victoria. The MHHV website is here. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 80th podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Anzac Day 2025 marks the 110th anniversary of the commemoration of the landing at Gallipoli.  When thinking of places linked to the Gallipoli campaign, you may have heard of places such as Egypt and Lemnos, however you may not have heard of Imbros. In today's podcast, Jim Claven tells us about the importance of the island of Imbros to the campaign. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 79th podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net The theme so far this year with our podcasts has been books.  That theme continues with this podcast and our chat with author, Ian W Shaw.  Ian has written a number of books related to Australian military history on a wide range of topics. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

elcome to our 78th podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Who would have known that Rowville, a suburb of Melbourne, hosted a Prisoner of War Camp during WWII.  Author Darren Arnott tells us about the history including his book about a darker chapter of the camp. You can find Darren's book at https://darrenarnott.com/ We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 77th podcast for Thanks for your Service and the first for 2025. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Ceylon, modern day Sri Lanka, was a strategic point for the allies in WW2 including hosting thousands of Australians.   Meg Adams has recently contributed to a book titled In the fight- Australians and that war in Burma 1942-1945.  Meg talks to us about the contributions and support of allied troops in Ceylon by units and some of the volunteers and aid workers including some remarkable women. Meg’s chapter is titled Proud of their part- Volunteers in Ceylon.  The book 'In the fight- Australians and the war in Burma 1942-1945' is edited by Andrew Kilsby and Daryl Moran and is published by Big Sky Publishing. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to our 76th podcast for Thanks for your Service and the last for 2024 Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting one of Australia’s leading military historians at a conference hosted by Military History & Heritage Victoria.  Professor Peter Stanley joins us from Canberra and tells us about his career and his books..many books… Seasons Greetings to all our listeners wherever you are listening from. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast.  If you have any special requests or suggestions for our podcast, please get in touch. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to our 75th podcast for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, X and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Who would have thought the 1st AIF had cycling battalions.  Ally Roche from the Australian War Memorial, herself a cycling enthusiast joins us to tell us about these units. You can find out more information on the cycling battalions on our website. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 74 for Thanks for your Service.  Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military.  You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net The Shrine in Melbourne recently hosted an advance screening of a new documentary titled ‘Anzac-The Greek Chapter’.  It tells the story of the Anzacs in Greece during the 1941 campaign, as told by the veterans themselves.  Jim Claven, Secretary of the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee joins us to tell us more. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Do you have a relative who has served in the Australian military? Our family military history research packages sources records to better understand the service and experience of those who served.  You can find out more information on our website. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 73 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net On the 5th of August 1944 there was a mass prisoner of war escape from a POW camp in Cowra, New South Wales.  Cowra is preparing to commemorate the 80th anniversary of what is called the Cowra Breakout.  Let's find out more. You can find out more information on the anniversary at the Cowra Council website at www.cowracouncil.com.au We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 72 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net One of the special things about doing these podcasts is coming across what I call hidden treasures of Australian military history located in our own backyard.  Who knew for example of a WW2 secret maintenance base for Flying boats in rural Victoria which we covered in podcast number 5, or the secret special forces camp in suburban Melbourne at Park Orchards that we covered in podcast 57.  Last summer, I took the boys to Werribee in Melbourne where an original WW2 hangar houses the only remaining B24 Liberator in the Southern Hemisphere and is one of only eight still existent in the world. We join Paul Rorke as he takes on the tour of the Liberator and the restoration project. The website for the b24 Liberator Restoration is www.b24australia.org.au The restoration project also welcomes any donations and you can find more information on their website. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to podcast number 71 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net This month, March 2024, marks the 80th anniversary of the Great Escape.  Many people have heard about the mass escape of allied POWs from Stalag Luft III in March 1944 which was immortalised in book and film.  You may not know a lot about the Australian POWs who took part.  Canberra author Kristen Alexander joins us to tell us more. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to podcast number 70 for Thanks for your Service and out first podcast for 2024. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net In 2023, the National Archives of Australia reached a significant milestone, having digitised more than one million World War II records. These records include names, photos, enlistments, movements, transfers, promotions and fates, which are now being made available online free-of-charge. Rebecca Penna joins us to tell us about this milestone. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.   

Welcome to podcast number 69 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Our next guest gives as remarkable insight into the Australian army’s vital yet probably least known units- Unrecovered War Casualties - Army.  Major Cameron Clarke joins us to tell us more. We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. We will be back with you in January 2024.  Seasons Greetings, thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 68 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net Christmas time is nearly upon us and if you are looking for idea for a present, keep listening. My exposure to WW2 prisoners of war were shaped by movies such as the Great Escape and The Wooden Horse.  Kristen Alexander joins us to talk about her latest book titled Kriegies: The Australian Airmen of Stalag Luft III. It’s a fascinating insight into the life in captivity of Australian POWs.   A signed edition of the book can be ordered through www.alexanderfaxbooks.com.au We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 67 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net One of the great experiences of doing these podcasts is coming across remnants of Australian military history that not a lot of people know about.  Who knew that Ballarat in Victoria played a major role in training RAAF personnel during World War 2.  Peter and Janet from the Air Force Association of Ballarat joins us to talk about 1 WAGS (Wireless Air Gunnery) school. The website for 1 WAGS is https://www.1wags.org.au/  We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice. 

Welcome to podcast number 66 for Thanks for your Service. Our focus is on historical topics relating to the Australian military. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.  Just search for Thanks For Your Service.  Our website is www.thanksforyourservice.net  .  You can also email us at info@thanksforyourservice.net If you have ventured into a local park in Australia you may have come across a remnant of the colonial era of our military past…an old canon or gun.  John Rogers has spent considerable time and effort in researching Victoria’s guns. The website for the guns is www.cerberus.com.au/victoriasguns We are keen to hear your feedback by leaving a review on your podcast app.   Your reviews helps new listeners find our podcast. You can help support this podcast via Patreon or Buymeacoffee.  The links are on our website and facebook page. Your support helps us with the production of this podcast. Thanks for listening and thanksforyourservice.