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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

5th September 1940. For 58 days the RAF had been pummelled by Luftwaffe raids on airfields and aircraft factories, suffering 350 aircrew casualties but destroying some 600 Luftwaffe aircraft. The following evening Home Forces issued alert No.3 "Invasion probable within 3 days".

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

For some visitors a visit to any attraction can cause anxiety about what to expect when they arrive, so to help our volunteers and work experience students have been working on a new sensory map. To pick one up when you visit please ask at reception and we'd love to hear your feedback.

Photo colour of a new museum sensory map, showing the different height levels of the museum and areas with conflicting noise, bright lights or busy areas

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Today we mark the 81st anniversary of the end of the Second World War and remember all those who served and those who made the ultimate sacrifice in that terrible conflict.

photo colour, an RAF radar trailer (type 86) at the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum, draped in red poppy display and with a rainbow in the background

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Today is the Panavia Tornado's 52nd birthday! On this day in 1974 the first took to the air, and through several variants continued to serve until 2019. The clip below is taken from the 1985 film Fighter Controller. You can experience a Tornado at the museum by climbing into the cockpit of our F3

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

We were very pleased to show aviation artist Mark Postlethwaite around the museum recently, as he researched a short film about the specific Defiant that Airfix adopted for their model kit. You can watch Mark's moving tribute to an aircraft and her crew here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xagq...

youtube.com

The Amazing history of the Airfix Defiant N3333

YouTube video by Wingleader Films

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

An amazing day celebrating all things SR-71 at the American Air Museum at IWM Duxford today, meeting the real crews, demonstrating the heat resistant strength of the Blackbird's materials and a bit of friendly competition between the IWM volunteers and the RAF cadets on the reaction test!

Photo colour the SR-71 blackbird reconnaissance aircraft at the American Air museum in the UK

Photo colour volunteer Clive demonstrates the resistance of different metals to heat using a heat gun

Photo colour Imperial War Museum volunteers compete on the computer reaction test game

Photo colour a model SR-71 blackbird painted black and covered in silver and gold signatures of pilots and crew members on a red table cloth

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

Whilst we tire of the AI slop filling social media (including from some high-profile museums), it's our pleasure to share this beautiful montage of our museum created by talented work experience student Daisy last week. The art shows some of her favourite objects in the museum, see Alt text.

Art, colour, colouring pencil drawings of objects at the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum, clockwise from top left: bloodhound missile, spitfire, 259 radar, plotting table, RAF ensign, Cold War ops room, Jaguar aircraft and radar console. Drawn by work experience student Daisy.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

It's worth us repeating that we are probably the coolest museum in Norfolk right now! The Cold War room in particular is the best place to be at the moment, not only for the wonderful talks delivered by our expert volunteers, but it is also pleasantly cool in here!

Photo, colour, the cold, Cold War ops room full of illuminated display boards, radar screens and buttons

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Today marks the 82nd anniversary of Operation Overlord - otherwise popularly known as 'D-Day'. Here at the museum we have an exhibition of the little-known stories from that day in our Gallery, featuring the men and women who had vital roles in the successful landings and the ensuing battles inland.

photo, black and white, of the RAF crew of a motor launch in 1944. The crew are 6 men and one woman, all in RAF uniforms and hats, standing on the top of the launch which has a mast and lots of rigging and flags behind them

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

17,340 a year, 578 a week - that's how many hours our volunteers put in to our museum in 2025. Without them we wouldn't even be able to open, let alone give an excellent experience to our visitors.

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langhamdome.bsky.social @langhamdome.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

We are now open 5 days a week.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

The RAF Air Defence Radar Museum has dropped out of the White House concert

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Julie McDowall @nuclearwar.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

Happy Threads Day. May we see many more.

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Iain Ballantyne @iainballantyne.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

'The Battle of the Denmark Strait: Clash of the Titans that Lasted Eight Minutes'. The opening engagement of the famous Bismarck Action on this day in 1941 during WW2 was a brutally short fight that saw great loss of life in a very short space of time. Article www.bismarckbattle.com/battle-of-de...

German battleship Bismarck engaging HMS Hood and HMS Prince of Wales. Image: US NHHC.

Sinking of HMS Hood: Painting by J.C. Schmitz-Westerholt, depicting Hood's loss during her engagement with the German battleship Bismarck on 24 May 1941. HMS Prince of Wales is in the foreground. Courtesy US Army/via US NHHC.

HMS Prince of Wales firing a salvo with her 14-inch guns during the Battle of the Denmark Strait, 24 May 1941. Image by Dennis Andews.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

Perfectly timed for #ColdWarWeek we were joined by Burkhard and Dieter Dreyer, German exchange officers who served in the RAF in the '70s and '80s at West Drayton and Neatishead respectively. You can hear Dieter describe his service here thanks to WISE Archive: www.wisearchive.co.uk/story/the-ge...

Photo, colour, three men in casual clothes standing below a sign that reads 'Royal Air Force Neatishead'. From the left to right the men are Dieter Dreyer, Kevin Pellat and Burkhard Dreyer, all former RAF officers, Dieter and Burkhard were Luftwaffe exchange officers.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

This week sees the beginning of #ColdWarWeek and we've been honoured to be joined by not only Elton John but also Bernie Taupin (if you squint a bit)! #ColdWarHistory #coldwarweek

photo, colour, shows the wonderful Cold War presenters John and Ian very much in the spirit of the week, standing in front of our Bloodhound missile dressed in 1980s clothing, John on the left is imitating Elton John with feather bower and boater hat, Ian is dressed in double denim

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

We love having great reviews left on TripAdvisor and Google, or in our visitor book. But we should also say we'd rather you didn't touch our amazing staff...

Photo of the comments made in a visitor book at the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum stating "nice to be able to touch amazing displays and staff"

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

We're very proud to have received the Tripadvisor Travellers' Choice Award 2026! Thanks to all of our visitors for writing such wonderful reviews, and a big thanks to the volunteers who dedicate their time and skills in engaging with visitors and creating this special museum.

graphic, colour, of the Tripadvisor Travellers' Choice Award 2026, awarded to the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum, recognising the excellent reviews written by visitors

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Inspiration please! We're planning a small exhibition as part of Cold War Week in May. What 5 things come into your head when you think of the 1980's? I'll start with my 5, (I was born 1984) Dire Straits, Fireman Sam, crispy pancakes, birthday cakes in the shape of a train, Greenclaws.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

This week we've got more Easter egg hunts, talks in the Second World War and Cold War Ops room, cockpits to explore and our ever-popular Lego room.You can find out more about the Bloodhound system - even the chance to push the big red button. Open until Saturday this week,10am-5pm each day.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

It's International Day of Happiness, and we're very happy to announce we'll be reopening tomorrow Saturday 21st March! Some of you will be familiar with the Sector Clock - if not come and find out from our Second World War team. But do you know why adverts for clocks show them at 10:10?

Photo, colour, a Sector clock used by the royal air force in wartime to help coordinate information coming into the filter rooms. The clock shows numbers 1-12 as well as an outer ring of seconds. Red, yellow and blue triangles point outwards between every hour, and the hands are pointed at the 10:10 position

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Dr Cathryn Pearce @cathrynpearce.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

#NavalHistory people! Help! Our local museum has a life raft we're trying to research. Does anyone know anything about it? It is triangular, and is stamped with a 1940 date.

Image of the life raft, showing the triangular shape. It is a light brown colour.

Image showing the information printed on the raft: It says C2176, then D.R.Co. Jul 1940, and Mid/30.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

Not long now until the museum reopens for the 2026 season, and make sure you're following us to stay up to date on our latest events! From 21st March step back into our award-winning, volunteer-run attraction that explores the history of the people and technology involved in the UK's air defences.

photo, colour, illuminated buttons from a radar console in the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum's preserved operations room

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women #iwd and who better to feature than Group Captain Joan Hopkins from 'Fighter Controller' a BBC 1985 documentary about RAF Neatishead and its Cold War role.

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The Crusader Project @crusaderproject.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

On 27/28 February 1942 the British executed Operation BITING, raiding a radar installation at Bruneval to gain insights into German radar technology. In is one of the forgotten little episodes of the desert war, they tried the same thing in December 1941 at Benina, but seem to have failed.

rommelsriposte.com

Before Bruneval – Chasing Radar in Libya

Background 28 February 1942 was the day of Operation BITING, the Bruneval raid (see this link), in which a combined operation managed to obtain German radar equipment from a Würzburg site, which le…

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

It's been wonderful to see so many visitors today, especially so many new people! We'll have more science activities tomorrow from 10am, and you can get yourself one of our new badges to show everyone you enjoyed your visit!

Photo, colour a circular badge with "I was dragged to the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum and enjoyed it" written on it

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

The museum won't be open tomorrow, we'll be at the Forum, Norwich for the norwichsciencefestival.co.uk But we haven't forgotten Valentine's Day, see, we found this lovely heart shaped plotting counter for you. Does anyone know why it is a different shape to the regular arrow shapes?

photo, colour, a red heart shaped metal counter, the counter is worn with blunted dark edges and scuffs

photo, colour, plotting table counters from an RAF filter room, the counters are thin metal painted either red, blue or yellow. The counters have been placed on the squared white table with black lines

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

Today is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science By 1944 the UK's radar stations and filter rooms were largely operated by the WAAF. Chain Home owed greatly to Dr Mary Taylor who carried out the calculations for Robert Watson-Watt when first experimenting with radar. (see Alt text)

photo, black and white, clockwise from top left, Dr Mary Taylor, British mathematician and theoretical physicist. She carried out the research and calculations for Watson-Watt and Wilkins when experimenting with using radio waves to detect aircraft.
Top right, a WAAF (unnamed) moves information tags on a tote board inside a fighter control post.
Bottom, Women's Auxiliary Air Force personnel pose for a photo outside their wooden hut in the grounds of the Petersfield Hotel, Horning, Norfolk in the 1940s. The women were based at RAF Neatishead and RAF Coltishall.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

Just a week to go before the Norwich Science Festival norwichsciencefestival.co.uk You can come and see us and loads of other great organisations Saturday 14th February at the Forum, running activities throughout the day, with a special ticketed quiet hour starting from 9:30am-10:30am.

norwichsciencefestival.co.uk

Norwich Science Festival

Norwich Science Festival is an epic celebration of all things science, which takes place every year, throughout Norwich and at The Forum, during the February Half Term!

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

One from the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum archives: January 1992 Wing Commander Knapman explains a sortie to Mr Bert Edwards. Mr Edwards was the winner of a local radio auction, with the prize being the chance to control an RAF fighter aircraft from RAF Neatishead.

photo, colour, two men sit at a radar console. The console has banks of white buttons and a yellow tracker ball which the RAF Wing Commander is controlling.

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Stephen Schwartz @atomicanalyst.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

At this moment 40 yrs ago, the Space Shuttle Challenger’s external fuel tank exploded and the shuttle disintegrated 73 seconds after liftoff from Kennedy Space Center, killing all 7 astronauts aboard. Investigators later found failure of O-ring seals in the right solid rocket booster was the cause.

A formal color portrait of the STS-51-L crew of the Challenger, wearing their blue flight suits and holding their spacesuit helmets. On the left side of the table at which the three in front are seated is a model of the space shuttle with its external fuel tank and solid-rocket boosters.

Top row: Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis, and Judith Resnik

Bottom row: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, and Ronald McNair.

The space shuttle Challenger clearing the tower moments after launch on January 28, 1986. A flock of startled birds is visible in the foreground.

A color photograph showing the moment the external fuel tank and the Challenger exploded, sending the two solid rocket boosters off in opposite directions.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

A sneaky peak of what the hardy volunteers have been up to this week, building a viewing platform for the Leyland Hippo cabin, repainting handrails and attempting to upgrade some of the computers from Windows Vista...can you guess which is causing the most headaches?

Photo, colour, of inside a workshop, a large green lorry stands with a metal staircase against it as well as tools and ladders

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

Instead of grit bins, we might just get a couple of these

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

#Onthisday 1946 The UN Atomic Energy Commission was founded "to deal with the problems raised by the discovery of atomic energy." It proposed for “the elimination from national armaments of atomic weapons” and the use of atomic energy “only for peaceful purposes.” It was disbanded in 1952.

photo, black and white, showing representatives of various nations at the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission in January 1946, the US representative was Bernard Baruch, Sir Alexander Cadogan was the United Kingdom's representative

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

#OnThisDay 17th January 1991 Operation Desert Storm began five weeks of strikes on Iraq. The UK element, Op Granby, involved RAF Tornados, Jaguars, Buccaneers, supported by Victors, Tristars, Hercules and Nimrods as well as Chinooks and Pumas.

photo, colour, front cover of the 1991 RAF Yearbook, a special publication about the air war in the Gulf. The cover has a painting, by Hardy, of a Tornado Gr1 and a Blackburn Buccaneer jets flying over an Iraqi airfield. The jets are painted a beige sandy colour and both have cartoon nose art. The aircraft are dropping dark green laser guided bombs and the sky is filled with explosions from anti-aircraft sells exploding, a surface to air missile is climbing behind the jets.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

We're excited to be working with the wonderful Sheringham Little Theatre in showing the classic Cold War thriller The Hunt for Red October at 2pm on Friday 24th April 2026. Our volunteers will be on hand for a Cold War Q&A afterwards. sheringhamlittletheatre.com/shows/the-hu...

sheringhamlittletheatre.com

The Hunt for Red October: Screening and Q&A

Join us in collaboration with RAF Air Defence Radar Museum in Neatishead, in as we bring the classic 1990 film, The Hunt for Red October to the big screen once again. A brilliant Soviet submarine capt...

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The Aviation Show @theaviation.show · 08/01/2026

✈️New Episode✈️ For 40 years, NATO and Soviet naval air power vied for control of the seas. This week, @michaelnbooks.bsky.social joins us for a whistlestop tour of naval aviation over the cold seas of the Cold War. 📺: youtu.be/Zwl9jJns3gk 🎧: pod.fo/e/3746eb @ospreypublishing.bsky.social #avgeek

A four-engined Soviet Tu-95 Bear, likely making enough noise to cause the escorting Royal Navy Harrier of 801 NAS and US Navy Grumman F-14 Tomcat of VF-142 Ghostriders, permanent hearing issues. Image: San Diego Aviation Museum

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

With Norfolk recording the lowest temperature so far this winter (-12.5), it's a balmy -1 inside the museum today! The museum remains closed until Spring, with our hardy volunteers continuing to prepare for reopening.

Photo, colour, the entrance to the RAF Air Defence Radar Museum with the ground covered in snow

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

'You've heard of Elf on the Shelf, now get ready for...'

A toy brown horse is pulling a red sleigh, a piece of radar equipment is sticking out of the sleigh too. The piece of equipment is something that guides radio waves to an aerial

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Buckinghamshire Archives @bucksarchives.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

slow day in the office so figured we'd start some beef with museums

That Tom Gauld meme of the two opposing nations perfectly mirrored, but edited to be between archives and museums.

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 20/12/2025

Well it's that time of year again, so time for several days of our most excellent followers answering that tired question: 'You've heard of Elf on the Shelf, now get ready for...' (We're starting strong for this one)

Hard to do without giving away clues, but it's a mashup of a 1980s lead singer from a popular British band and a critical piece of radar equipment that you can often find in your kitchen

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

One from the #RAFADRM archives: 'Home in a tent' Christmas Day 1942 for the RAF 303 Signals Unit in Benghazi, Libya, looking a bit glum having been flooded out the previous night due to a horrific rainstorm.

archive photo, black and white, four men around the open flap of a large tent, three sit on boxes looking sad due to horrible wet weather flooding the tent. The men are dressed in various coats and jackets of the RAF Signals Unit they belong to, a German infantry helmet is perched on a can in the foreground.

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Cold War Conversations Podcast @coldwarpod.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

Fascinating 1988 documentary showing Warsaw Pact officers observing NATO exercises among many other nuggets. youtu.be/PucaA4kxmBs?...

youtu.be

Frontline/TIME: The Defense of Europe (1988)

YouTube video by ScanRange

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Classic Warbirds @classicwarbirds.co.uk · 18/12/2025

#OnThisDay in 1939, the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was established, over 130,000 aircrew would be trained under the scheme. ▶️ www.canada.ca/en/air-force... #ww2 #WorldWar2

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

Earlier this year we had a visit from BBC Radio Norfolk's Edd Smith to set a conundrum and investigate this secret part of Norfolk. You can hear what Edd discovered at the link below. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

bbc.co.uk

Secret Norfolk - The Norfolk museum that guards Britain’s skies. - BBC Sounds

The RAF Air Defence Radar Museum, is home to the longest running active radar site.

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Classic Warbirds @classicwarbirds.co.uk · 13/12/2025

#OnThisDay in 1942, Squadron Leader Brian Lane, 25, was posted missing while serving with No. 167 Squadron. He was last seen chasing a pair of Fw 190s over the North Sea. During the war, he wrote Spitfire! About his experiences during the Battle of Britain. #ww2 #WorldWar2

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RAF Air Defence Radar Museum @rafadrm.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

We are becoming quite popular as a filming location 😉 I'm sure I recognise that lady mannequin from our Radar School events at Halloween! A pleasure to host the wonderful Marc Valentine and his band at the museum www.marcvalentine.co.uk m.youtube.com/watch?v=N9n6....

m.youtube.com

Marc Valentine - You Are The Jet (Official Music Video)

Marc Valentine's new single released December 5th on @WickedCoolRecords . https://linktr.ee/marcvalentine

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