The World War 2 Radio Podcast

This week we have an episode of Author’s Playhouse, Flight to Arras. It first aired on Oct. 5, 1942, over the NBC Red Network. It tells the story of French reconnaissance pilots in the early days of World War 2.

This week our episode consists of two segments. The first is a portion of Winston Churchill’s address to the British people on February 9, 1941, better known as the “Give us the Tools” speech. Our second segment is Abraham Lincoln – The War Years, an episode of Cavalcade of America that aired on February 12, 1941.

This week we have “Escape from the Balkans” an episode of Words at War. It originally aired on NBC on November 23, 1943, and tells the story of Michael Paddap, a correspondent for the London Times in the Balkans during the fighting there in 1941.

Today’s episode features the NBC Evening News from January 31, 1941, with reports from multiple locations.

This week we have “Log Book” an episode of Words at War. It originally aired on NBC on Dec. 21, 1943, and tells the story of a member of the British Merchant Marine before and during the early days of World War 2.

This week our episode consists of two segments. The first is the January 22, 1941, CBS news update from Elmer Davis, recounting the capture of Tobruk by the Allies. Our second segment is an episode of Fibber McGee & Molly, the long-running comedy series. This episode, Piano Lessons, first aired on January 21, 1941, on NBC. 

This week we have a piece of vintage entertainment – “The Mysterious Death of Mrs. Putnam.” This is the debut episode of Inner Sanctum Mystery, one of the most popular radio series during and after the war. This episode originally aired in January 1941.

This week we have FDR’s 1941 State of the Union, better known as the Four Freedoms Speech, originally delivered on January 6, 1941.

This week we have an episode of America Looks Abroad, Prospects for 1941, which first aired Dec. 29, 1940. 

A bonus Christmas episode today: A Christmas Carol, as presented on the Campbell Playhouse on Dec. 24, 1939. It stars Lionel Barrymore as Scrooge and Orson Welles as the narrator. 

This week, our episode features two segments. The first is a report from Edward R. Murrow from London, as broadcast over CBS on Dec. 24, 1940. Our second segment is Winston Churchill’s address to the Italian people from Dec. 23, 1940, as it was carried over the BBC.

This week, our episode features two segments. The first is a short December 16, 1940, CBS news report from Elmer Davis. Our second segment is Seventh Heaven, the Dec. 15, 1940, episode of The Screen Guild Theater, starring Tyrone Power.

This week we have a 1942 episode of Treasury Star Parade, The Modern Scrooge, starring Lionel Barrymore and Fredric March. 

This week, our episode features two segments. The first is a report from London during the Blitz from Edward R. Murrow from December 2, 1940. Our second segment is “The Entertainment Committee,” a 1940 episode of Blondie, one of the longest-running comedies of the old time radio era.

This week we have a special Thanksgiving episode from the Abbott & Costello Show. Turkey Dinner was first broadcast in 1943. Besides featuring legendary comics Bud Abbott & Lou Costello, guest stars include Jane Wyman and Mel Blanc as Bugs Bunny.

This week, we have the November 17, 1940, episode of CBS’s The World Today, offering news updates from Washington and Europe.

This week, we have an episode of Words at War, Lend-Lease, Weapon for Victory, first broadcast on May 23, 1944.

This week, we have an episode of the classic radio series Escape: Flood on the Goodwins, originally broadcast on November 1, 1949. Flood on the Goodwins tells the story of a British fishing boat hijacked by a Nazi spy in the English Channel.

A bonus episode from the Pulp Nostalgia Audiocast. Subscribe at https://anchor.fm/pulpaudiocast .

This week, we have an episode of America Looks Abroad, first broadcast on October 27, 1940. This NBC production from the Foreign Policy Association emphasizes the importance of America preparing its economy for war. More than a year before the United States officially entered the war, it shows how many were already thinking about the coming conflict.

This week, our episode features two segments. The first is a portion of Winston Churchill’s address to the French People, both abroad and under Nazi rule, from October 21, 1940. Our second segment is a 1940 episode of the Aldrich Family, one of the most popular family sitcoms of the old time radio era.

This week, our episode features two segments. The first is a portion of then-Princess Elizabeth’s address to the children of the British commonwealth on Oct. 13, 1940. It was the future queen’s first radio address. Our second segment is an episode of the Jack Benny Program from that same evening. 

This week, we have an episode of Words at War, an NBC anthology series that ran from 1943 to 1945. It was produced in cooperation with the Council on Books in Wartime and presented dramatizations of books written about World War II. Today’s episode, entitled Combined Operations, first aired over NBC on June 24, 1943. It tells the story of the British commandos in the early days of the war.

This week, we have an episode of the classic radio series Escape.  Escape ran on CBS from 1947 to 1954. Although it didn’t come on the air until after the end of World War II, many of its episodes took place during the war. This week’s story is one of those episodes: A Source of Irritation, originally broadcast on July 5, 1953. It takes place in the early days of the war and finds a British f...

This week, we have an episode of America Looks Abroad. This NBC production covers the September 27, 1940, signing of the Tripartite Pact by Germany, Japan and Italy, creating what would eventually become known as the Axis.