Over the last couple of years, I have written a series of blogs about a couple of mysterious notebooks found in the KV 2/27 file on Josef Jakobs at the National Archives. The two notebooks, one blue and the other black, belonged to a lad named Kenneth Clifford Howard. Given that there was not a […]
Mysterious Notebook at the Court Martial of German Spy Josef Jakobs Read More »
A few weeks ago (August 4, 2017), the HD Paranormal film on Bella in the Wych Elm was released and screened to an audience of 400-plus people in Stourbridge Town Hall. According to audience reviews, it was a very engaging film. There are a few reviews of the film which offer some tantalizing hints of
HD Paranormal Film – Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm – Untold Secrets (2017) Read More »
I came across a few interesting news articles from 2015 that, while a bit far afield from the story of Josef Jakobs, are intriguing nonetheless (see links below). The stories centre on some Dutch farmers in Norfolk who were apparently building secret airfields and hangers for Germany’s invasion of England. For 4 years, commencing in
The Mystery of the Red Barns in Norfolk Read More »
A number of spies were executed in England during World War I, most of them were shot at the Tower of London, and one, Robert Rosenthal was hanged at Wandsworth Prison in July 1915. Carl Hans Lody was the first spy to be caught and executed. He was buried in the East London Cemetery in
Marking the Graves of World War I Spies in England Read More »
There’s been a flurry of activity around Jan Willem Ter Braak the last couple of weeks. The media has learned that a gravestone is going to be placed on his grave and there have been a couple of articles that have come out. The Cambridge News and the Daily Mail have similar articles that both
Flurry of Activity around Jan Willem Ter Braak Read More »
Well, there is always something new. I came across a blog post on the C11 (Compilation 11) website. This is a rather dubious site that has a bunch of posts about “The 10 most…” and the “The 13 most…”. Why one should expect accuracy from such a site is a bit of a mystery… but…
Web Review – Compilation 11 Site – 12 of the Weirdest Secrets of World War 2 Read More »
The sad tale of Engelbertus Fukken, alias Jan Willem ter Braak has recently been published in more detail by Jan Willem van den Braak (no relation). The author’s persistent research tracked down relatives of the unfortunate Fukken who filled in some of his background story. Their astonishment at having such an infamous character in their
Marking the Grave of Engelbertus Fukken a.k.a. Jan Willem ter Braak Read More »
The Book The London Cage; Lt. Col. A.P. Scotland, O.B.E.; Evans Brothers Limited; London; 1957. Summary I purchased a copy of The London Cage several years ago and got around to reading it this past week. The London Cage was one of a series of interrogation centres run by MI19. It was commanded by Lt.
Book Review – The London Cage – Alexander Paterson Scotland – 1957 Read More »
The Book Rough Justice – The True Story of Agent Dronkers, the Enemy Spy Captured by the British; David Tremain; Amberley Publishing; The Stroud, Gloucestershire; 2016. Summary Johannes Marinus Dronkers was a poor sod of a guy. A Dutchman who struggled to make a living in Nazi-occupied Holland, he was an easy mark for the
The Book Bella in the Wych Elm – In Search of a Wartime Mystery – by Andrew Sparke – 2014 and 2016 Summary I came across reference to this book through the HD Paranormal site – the people who are doing a film on Bella in the Wych Elm (due to be released in August
Book Review – Bella in the Wych Elm by Andrew Sparke – 2014 Read More »