iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

1/4: Our next tour is underway & this is possibly the most complex itinerary we have put together. Over 10 days, 2 American guests will follow in the footsteps of the 482nd AAA Battalion, tracing their father's wartime journey from Utah Beach all the way to modern-day Czechia.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

3/3: That's where we help. Stand in the places that changed the world alongside an expert guide. Let SGWT orientate you, deepen your understanding, and support you every step of the way during your special journey through history. 📩 sophie@sophiesgreatwartours.com

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

2/3: What our guests tell us, again and again, is that history books educate and inform, but there is absolutely no substitute for being on the ground, seeing and feeling.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

1/3: What you see here is one guest standing in the French 1914 trench line, the others in the German trenches. Two sides of No Man's Land just metres apart.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Do I know anyone heading to the National Archives before the end of the month at all? If so I have a little favour to ask pretty please.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

#OTD 110 years ago, the First World War's longest battle began. Today the battlefields of Verdun are a haunting reminder of the brutality of all-out mechanised war. Read more about what you can see on a visit to #Verdun: tinyurl.com/ezkaskm5

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Remembering today Lieutenant Edward Lough Dees, 'D' Coy, 8th Btn Durham Light Infantry. Died 25 Jan 1941 in the OFLAG VII POW camp. Eddie was wounded and captured in the retreat to Dunkirk. On this day he was sketching at a window in his block when he was shot by a guard. Always remembered..

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

2026: Our private battlefield tours are designed for travellers who want more than surface history, blending Europe’s battlefields, cities, and stories into journeys with real purpose. Read on: tinyurl.com/3sz8ys6f

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Remembering today Cdr Henry Thew Rust DSO RN, my cousin (twice rem) lost today with the crew of HMS BRAMBLE whilst escorting Convoy JW51B from Loch Ewe to Murmansk. BRAMBLE met the German heavy cruiser ADMIRAL HIPPER and engaged to defend the convoy. Heavily outgunned, she was lost with all hands.

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

Thinking of all my friends in the Falkland Islands today as they commemorate 'Battle Day' - Battle of the Falklands 1914. Look it up - it's a great story! Picture is HMS INVINCIBLE and HMS INFLEXIBLE during the battle (seen from HMS KENT), and the other pic is the 100th anniversary in 2014...

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 07/12/2025

7 December 1941. Japanese forces attack Pearl Harbour, bringing America into the war. Great Uncle Ralph Henderson was at Turner Field, Georgia with the USAAF in the final days of his pilot training under the Arnold Scheme. I often wonder how they all found out, and how the mood changed that day...

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

4th December 2025. 1/2: Deliveries from home were a god send for soldiers, a letter, parcel of food, socks or cigarettes. Writing from France in 1918, Sgt Sam Avery U.S. 32nd Div thanked his sister for a gift that had made its way across the Atlantic: “Your parcel saved the day.”

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

Remembering today P/O Ralph Henderson DFM RAFVR and his crew, lost on this overnight 22/23 November 1943. Always remembered for their ultimate sacrifice whilst doing their duty...

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

When SGWT began, I imagined we’d simply be a licensed travel company, organising tours to battlefields. Over time, we’ve become something much deeper: a place for families to connect, discover & honour their own stories. Read more about our work here: tinyurl.com/5n7xbs7c

tinyurl.com

Bespoke Tours to the First & Second World War Battlefields

When I first started Sophie’s Great War Tours, I imagined we would simply be a travel company, organising journeys to the First World War battlefields and sharing the history with care. My aim was to ...

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

Remembrance for me is about storytelling and keeping the memories alive of those who gave their all in the service of our country. Some of my family remembered today...

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

@societyarmy.bsky.social @lmbd1418.bsky.social Brilliant talk last night Lucy thank you - I learnt a great deal and am now very much looking forward to reading your book! I also now need to find out who was operating the Landing Craft - RN, RM or Army!

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

www.cwgc.org/our-work/sus... This is important! No solutions yet, but good understanding of the cause, and on the hunt for a long-term, sustainable and ecologically friendly answer...

cwgc.org

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

I know it is VJ day, but in 1940 the Battle of Britain was raging. Some local history - on 15 Aug 1940, two Junkers Ju-88 aircraft were shot down in a field barely half a mile away from us, and only 5 minutes apart... ½ www.ropleyhistory.org.uk/village-hist...

ropleyhistory.org.uk

Luftwaffe Bomber Crash in West Tisted August 1940

The 15th August 1940 was a very busy evening during the Blitz and, on a sortie to bomb RAF airfields ...

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Lucy Betteridge-Dyson @lmbd1418.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

I am so proud to be a Burma Star Memorial Fund scholar & ambassador, because they work tirelessly to commemorate & educate on the war in the Far East 365 days a year, not just on #VJDay. Please take some time today to learn a little more about their work & archive burmastarmemorial.org

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

Celebrating Falkland Islands Day, remembering our many happy years living and working on the Islands, and of course thinking of our many Falkland friends on-Island and around the world on their adventures!

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Steve Smith @stevesmith1944.bsky.social · 12/08/2025

Today marks the 110th Anniversary of the 1/5th Battalion Norfolk Regiment going into action at Kuchuk Anafarta Ova & it's the subject of my next book which is out in November #WW1 #Norfolk #Gallipoli #history

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 13/07/2025

Any Indian Army / Burma experts out there? I'm trying to track down the Mention-in-Dispatches & Citation for Conductor Walter Horace Swift, Indian Corps of Clerks, serving with HQ 71st Indian Infantry Bde during the Arakan Campaign Feb-Sep 43, then Chittagong Oct-Dec 43.. Thanks in advance!

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Tony Long @ceo.globalfishingwatch.org · 27/06/2025

I am in France to help raise some money in the fight against Prostate Cancer. We follow the route of the Tour de France Grand Depart. 115miles. Wish me luck, I am not well prepared in terms of miles in the saddle but I will get it done! Please help PCUK if you can www.justgiving.com/page/tony-lo...

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 25/06/2025

Access up to 25% off thousands of hotels worldwide, until the end of October! Whether you're dreaming of exploring a new city, want a beach resort escape or something entirely unique, get in touch to see what we can secure for you. 📩sophie@sophiesgreatwartours.com

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

💥CHALLENGE TIME: Can I beat your hotel prices? Have you got a trip coming up? Are you searching for hotel deals online? As a travel agent, I have access to travel agent only rates & I pass those savings directly to YOU. ⬇️

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Tim Godden @tjgodden.bsky.social · 23/06/2025

Today is the final day to grab a 20% discount on anything in my online shop and to get your name in the metaphorical hat to win a print of your choice. Why not take a look? #ww1 #ww2 #illustration

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Tim Godden @tjgodden.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

This offer and the competition runs until Monday. Why not take a look to see if there is something that takes your fancy?

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

One of our expert guides is taking history into the classroom with a Zoom lecture on the Battle of the Somme. We’re proud to support schools by bringing the stories, sacrifices, & lessons of the #FWW directly to young learners, making the past personal, powerful, & unforgettable.

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Tim Godden @tjgodden.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

It’s my birthday tomorrow so from now until Monday you can get 20% off across all my originals and prints with the code BIRTHDAY25 Like & share this post to have a chance to win a print of your choice. You can find all available works here: timgodden.co.uk/shop #ww1 #ww2

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

Our next tour is out today. SGWT expert Romain, is taking a British couple around Normandy for two days, following in the footsteps of our guests father who landed on Gold Beach. #2WW

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Steve Smith @stevesmith1944.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months... stevesmith1944.wordpress.com/2019/06/06/p...

stevesmith1944.wordpress.com

Private 6206710 John Francis T Caudwell

D-Day 75 1st Battalion Royal Norfolk Regiment 6th and 7th June 1944 The Bn took up old positions on ROVER and after checking, the casualties were found to be 40-50…’ From the war diary of the 1/R.N…

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 29/05/2025

Another successful tour through Verdun completed with 3 American guests who were quiet at the end. Verdun leaves people that way. The silence there isn’t empty, it forces you to think deeply about everything you thought you knew about the 1WW. It's a heavy place.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

Our next tour is out today. We're honoured to support a journalist on a journey to the battlefields of the Somme & Ypres, seeking not only to walk the ground where history unfolded but to connect with the stories of the countless men who gave their lives there. #wewillrememberthem

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

110 years ago today, 30 April 1915, Private Edward Gregson Rust died of wounds. Lying in the care of the CWGC at Hazebrouck Cemetery, the unique detail of the epitaph on his headstone shows he was highly thought of by his colleagues for his bravery and devotion to duty. Never forgotten…

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

Where Wednesday: Waterloo, Belgium ✅Learn about the Battles of Quatre Bras & Ligny ✅Climb the Lion’s Mound - get amazing views of the battlefield ✅Walk to Hougoumont Farm ✅Visit the brilliant museum ✅Finish the day with a Waterloo Beer 📩sophie@sophiesgreatwartours.com

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Steve Smith @stevesmith1944.bsky.social · 10/04/2025

Today is our final full day touring the Somme & we will be looking at a timeline between March & September of 1918 following the war for Edwin Byron Kelsey who served with the 7th Buffs. This is on a tour arranged by @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social #WW1 #FWW #Somme #history

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

Remembering tonight the crew of 83 Sqn Lancaster OL-B / ED313. They were returning from a raid over Stuttgart when intercepted and shot down. The Pilot, Flt Lt Norman Mackie DSO DFC & Bar, put up a determined evasion but the damage to the Lancaster was too great and he ordered the crew to bail out.

Lancaster OL-B / ED313 - "Long Night Ahead" by Philip West

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𝟙𝟜𝟙𝟠𝕔𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 @fourteeneighteen.co.uk · 22/02/2025

Well, I am finally over the hump of work in writing my next book, and I have found ways to offload a couple of other things in my life, so capacity has opened up again. My research work for private clients is back in business and open for orders! www.fourteeneighteen.co.uk

fourteeneighteen.co.uk

Fourteeneighteen – WW1 British Army records research services from Chris Baker

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

And we're off for 2025! Team member Francis has created a tailor-made tour of the West End of #London in the First World War, for two American guests today. #1WW #ExpertGuides

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

#OTD in 1916 just after 7am, the German artillery bombardment erupted, signalling the beginning of the First World War's longest battle. The landscape around #Verdun would never be the same again & more than 700k French & German men would become casualties.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

An awful lot of time goes into planning, organising, researching & delivering a bespoke tour. Getting testimonials like this, make it all worthwhile. Shout out to Jo Hook on guiding this tour last year. Brief to Jo, bring to life the Great War for a 13 year old. Nailed it.

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

When you hear a witness, you become a witness. Please carve out some time to listen to the incredible testimony of Mala Tribich: vimeo.com/201856270

vimeo.com

Holocaust Memorial Day 2017 Live Webcast with Mala Tribich

500 schools across the UK joined together to hear one survivor's remarkable story

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

To my chagrin I’m a couple of days late remembering & honouring my cousin Lt Edward Lough Dees, 8th Bn Durham Light Infantry. Wounded and captured in the retreat to Dunkirk, Eddie was a POW at the Laufen camp when he was shot on 25 Jan 41 by a guard for “sketching at a window”. Always remembered..

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 15/01/2025

Notable milestone day today - and first of my 2025 goals achieved too!

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 02/01/2025

2025: Step into History with Sophie's Great War Tours. We don’t just take you to historical treasures, we ensure every step is unforgettable. ✅Expert guides to enrich your journey & bring history to life 🧳Seamless planning by your trusted travel agency ✅ATOL protected

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 24/12/2024

Another brilliant choice, thank you Sophie!

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 23/12/2024

This years advent calendar theme has been around individuals that have served and saved. There is no one else that fits the bill of service, than our late Queen. tinyurl.com/3mwncvru

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Bill Dawson @homesickpenguin.bsky.social · 24/12/2024

Christmas Eve 1942. HMS BRAMBLE, commanded by Cdr Henry Thew Rust DSO RN (my 1st Cousin, 2 x removed), were 2 days out of Loch Ewe escorting convoy PQ18 rendezvoused with the main destroyer group off Seidesfjord, Iceland to continue passage to Murmansk....

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Sophie's Great War Tours @sophie1wwtours.bsky.social · 22/12/2024

Advent Calendar - Day 22 - Simon Wiesenthal Holocaust survivor and credited with 1000+ Nazis brought to justice. tinyurl.com/27wta38d

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