On May 8th 1945, Nazi Germany’s surrender to the Allies ended the Second World War in Europe. To commemorate the 60th anniversary of V.E. Day, History Television presents Victory in Europe Remembered, a special week of programming about the decisive events that defeated Hitler’s army and helped bring an end to the Second World War.
Airing nightly at 8 p.m. ET from May 2 to 8, the week will feature more than 40 hours of programming with a full day of programming on Sunday, May 8. Victory in Europe Remembered will feature the broadcast premiere of three Canadian documentaries commissioned specifically for the anniversary.
“V.E. Day is one of those defining moments that changed world history and this week of programming is a way for History Television to recognize the significant contributions Canadians made in the liberation of Europe,” says Cindy Witten, Vice President Programming, History Television.
Victory in Europe Remembered begins with Ten Days to Victory on Monday, May 2 at 8 p.m. ET. This documentary from Montreal’s Cineflix examines the stories of ten different people, including Canadian author Farley Mowat, as they are caught up in the liberation of Europe from the grip of Nazi terror.
The Liberators, produced by Breakthrough Films and airing Thursday, May 5 at 8 p.m. ET, follows passionate Canadian military historian Norm Christie as he chronicles some of the unknown acts of courage Canadians resistance fighters and Special Forces made during the fight to liberate Europe.
Victory 1945, from Vancouver’s Paperny Films, airs Friday, May 6 at 9 p.m. PT/ Saturday, May 7 at 7 p.m. ET. In this two-hour documentary, Canadian war veterans and their loved ones relate personal stories of the final, difficult months of the Second World War.
Victory in Europe Remembered programs include:
Ten Days to Victory (Broadcast Premiere)
Monday, May 2 at 8 p.m. ET (May 8 at 6 p.m. ET)
Ten extraordinary days, ten ordinary characters, ten overlapping stories – coming from all points of the compass – bearing down on the end of the biggest war the world has ever known. Combining large-scale reconstructions with traditional documentary storytelling, Ten Days to Victory evokes the climactic last moments of the Second World War. The program interweaves the stories of ten very different people caught up in the liberation of Europe from the grip of Nazi terror. Their diaries, letters and interviews provide a unique insight into the dramatic events of some of the most gripping and terrifying days in history. Canadian author Farley Mowat is one of the people featured in the program, as he embarks on a daredevil mission to help save the lives of thousands of starving people.
When Hitler Invaded Britain (North American Premiere)
Tuesday, May 3 at 8 p.m. ET
This feature-length drama-documentary tells the true story of just how close Britain came to being invaded in the summer of 1940 and how British life would have changed forever if the Germans had succeeded. The story is told through first-person accounts of key British, American and German eyewitnesses who lived through those extraordinary events. Interwoven with this gripping tale is the unfolding story of what might have been: the horrors of the invasion and occupations, culminating in Britain’s surrender.
Colour of War: Adolf Hitler (North American Premiere)
Wednesday, May 4 at 8 p.m. ET
This documentary tells the story of the rise and fall of Adolf Hitler. For 12 years, Hitler’s overpowering personality dominated the German nation. He led his people from economic ruin to European conquest, devastating the lives of countless people around the world and was on the brink of creating a new world order. Drawing from recently discovered German colour film collections and eyewitness testimony, Colour of War: Adolf Hitler vividly tells the story of Adolf Hitler and his reign of terror.
Colour of War: V.E. Day (North American Premiere)
Wednesday, May 4 at 9 p.m. ET (May 8 at 8 p.m. ET)
Using a combination of witness materials including emotive letters and diaries and an ever-expanding wealth of original colour footage from across the world, Colour of War: V.E. Day provides an intimate, first-hand account of the build up to victory in Europe. This, combined with original radio announcements, speeches and original colour newsreels of the time, brings today’s generations closer to the euphoria people felt as six years of suffering and endurance came to an end.
The Liberators (Broadcast Premiere)
Thursday, May 5 at 8 p.m. ET
The Liberators is a one-hour documentary program about individual acts of courage in the common fight to liberate Europe from Nazi and Fascist tyranny. In the style of the acclaimed First World War series, For King & Empire, we return with enthusiastic Canadian military historian Norm Christie to the battlefields, monuments, cities, crash sites and resistance hideouts of Europe to tell the stories of Canadians whose individual acts of courage led to a greater victory. There, Norm Christie examines how during the Second World War, Canadian resistance fighters, evaders, dam busters and special forces played a crucial, and largely unknown, role in the liberation of Europe.
Victory 1945 (Broadcast Premiere)
Friday May 6 at 9 p.m. PT / Saturday, May 7 at 7 p.m. ET
The Second World War ended in Europe on V.E. Day – May 8, 1945 – but during the final months of the war, many Canadians fighting overseas in Europe and the Pacific wondered if they would live to see the Spring of 1945. In Victory 1945, Canadian war veterans and the loved ones who waited for them back home relate their personal, often heroic, stories of that dramatic wartime period 60 years ago. This two-hour documentary celebrates the personal legacies and reminders of just how important a part Canada and its people played in the victory of 1945.
When the War Came to Germany – Diary 1945 (North American Premiere)
Friday, May 6 at 8 p.m. ET
When American troops started their final invasion of Nazi Germany in mid-February 1945, US-Army cameramen were at their side. They filmed many hours of incredible war footage on 35-mm celluloid. More than a thousand reels have been preserved in American archives; many of them have not been touched in decades. They are for World War II what we have seen so far only from the wars in Vietnam and most recently in Iraq. Embedded with the troops, the cameramen covered many stories of victory and defeat, death and liberation.