Robert W. Brown is a former SAS operator who served in four different military forces. He spoke with me about his book and some of his experiences. (Pen and Sword Military, Published: March 23, 2021)
Tags: Books, audio interviews, author, podcast, Pen and Sword, South Africa, SAS, Britain, Rhodesia, Iraq, special forces, special air service, faith, Pen and Sword Military
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Jan Slimming is a publishing professional who was six when she first heard of Bletchley Park, but it was decades later that she was compelled to research and write about this little-known part of her mother’s life. We spoke about the book, her mother’s code-breaking career and her father’s WWII captivity. Codebreaker Girls: A Secret Life at Bletchley Park (Pen and Sword Military, 2021)
0:38 – Jan talks about why she wrote about her mom’s WWII work at Bletchley Park.
5:39 – Jan talks about what the book focuses on.
10:44 – Jan talks about everyone at Bletchley Park being billeted nearby.
12:34 – Jan talks about the training or lack of among the Park personnel.
14:35 – Jan talks about how her parents met.
16:46 – Jan talks about the skills they used for code breaking.
20:49 – Jan talks about her mother’s relatives who also worked in code breaking.
23:24 – Jan talks about what her mom did after the war.
24:51 – Jan talks about her mom not talking about working for the India office.
26:49 – Jan talks about how she broke the book down.
28:31 – Jan talks about her research.
31:26 – Jan talks about touring Bletchley Park.
35:18 – Jan talks about going back to England for her research.
38:25 – Jan talks about wanting to know if her mother was assigned to finding the 18th division.
40:23 – Jan talks about her mother going through a nervous breakdown after the war.
45:45 – Jan talks about other people who had relatives at Bletchley Park reach out to her.
52:39 – Jan goes into detail about touring Bletchley Park.
53:54 – Jan talks about security at Bletchley Park.
57:30 – Jan talks about her mother meeting Ian Fleming and knowing Alan Turing.
1:00:21 – Jan is on Pen and Sword and on Facebook at Jan Slimming Author.
Nathan Gorenstein is a former reporter and editor for The Philadelphia Inquirer, where he covered city and state politics. He is also the author of Tommy Gun Winter, the story of a Boston gang from the 1930s that included an MIT graduate, a minister’s daughter, and two of Gorenstein’s own relatives. He recently published a biography of John Moses Browning. We spoke about Browning and the history of firearms. The Guns of John Moses Browning: The Remarkable Story of the Inventor Whose Firearms Changed the World (Scribner, 2021)
0:40 – Nathan talks about why he wrote a book on Browning.
3:00 – Nathan talks about having been a reporter.
4:40 – Nathan talks about the gun industry and Browning.
6:47 – Nathan talks about Browning’s early life and education.
11:58 – Nathan talks about the quantities the Browning’s made their guns in and how they ran their business.
14:37 – Nathan talks about why Browning’s designs stood out.
18:14 – Nathan talks about Browning’s competitors.
21:44 – Nathan talks about the popularity of Browning’s guns.
26:41 – Nathan talks about the wars Browning’s guns were used in.
29:45 – Nathan talks about Browning’s guns being adapted for aircraft.
32:21 – Nathan talks about unusual Browning designs.
36:22 – Nathan talked about Browning’s personal interest in shotgun.
37:45 – Nathan talks about the resources he used.
42:47 – Nathan talks about the things that surprised him.
46:00 – Nathan wonders what Browning might think of modern gun use.
47:40 – Nathan talks about Browning’s wife.
48:52 – Nathan talks about Winchester.
55:39 – Nathan can be found at NathanGorenstein.com
