Worcester Moments - "Woodbine Willie" Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy

In the mud and blood of the Western Front, military chaplains fought to bring solace and hope, amongst the most famous of them was Worcester vicar the Reverend Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy - known as Woodbine Willie.  Volunteering in 1914 as a zealous fighting man, he told his congregation 'there can be no shirking'. But he soon saw the futility of the conflict writing: ' Waste of blood, waste of tears: waste on youths most precious years". As the conflict progressed, he focussed all his energy on bringing help and comfort and his trademark became his 'box of fags', as he distributed cigarettes with reckless bravery which won him a military cross. Surviving the war, Woodbine Willy returned to Worcester to become a popular vicar crusading for social justice. Historian and author of 'Worcester Moments', Andrew Reekes tell his story.

Om Podcasten

HWM On Air - the audio channel of History West Midlands – tells the enthralling stories of the people who shaped the heart of England and the world beyond. These programmes introduce you to fascinating people and events - from Anglo Saxon warrior kings; to radical thinkers driving forward the Industrial Revolution; and, the great political orators of the 19th and 20th centuries, in the historic counties of Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Let us take you on a journey onto battlefields; into cathedrals; and, through the forests where Shakespeare walked as well as those cradles of modern industry Birmingham. Stoke-on-Trent and the Ironbridge Gorge.