logo
episode-header-image
Aug 29
43m 51s

The Second Map: 2. The Secrets in the Sa...

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

In Episode 2 of The Second Map, the war against Japan enters a new phase. Some of the most significant battles of the Second World War were fought on the Asian front - including by the 14th Army, which was known as ‘The Forgotten Army’, even at the time. It was formed after a string of defeats to Japan and was made up of nearly a million men, the majority from India and across the British empire. Their main aim: to win Burma back. Assisting them was a remarkable British woman from North London who became known as “The Jungle Queen,” and the tribal group she was living with. Their intervention would be critical. And we hear rare voices from Japanese forces, as the war shifts against them. 

Creator, Writer and Presenter: Kavita Puri Series Producer: Ellie House Script Editor: Ant Adeane Sound Designer: James Beard Series Editor: Matt Willis Production Coordinators: Sabine Scherek, Maria Ogundele Commissioners for Radio 4 and The World Service: Dan Clarke, Jon Zilkha

Original music: Felix Taylor Archive Curator: Tariq Hussain Voice actor: Dai Tabuchi Translators: Hannah Kilcoyne, Sumire Hori

With thanks to Dr Diya Gupta, Dr Vikki Hawkins, Dr Peter Johnston, Professor Rana Mitter and Tejpal Singh Ralmill.

Up next
Sep 5
The Second Map: 3. The Battered Suitcase
<p>As people back home partied in the streets, celebrating victory in Europe in May 1945, war wasn’t over for the many thousands of soldiers and civilians on the Asian front. For those in Japanese prison camps, or fighting in distant jungles, it wasn’t always over on the day Japa ... Show More
44m 7s
Sep 5
The Fort: Trailer
<p>For the first time, commanders, soldiers and pilots who served in Afghanistan tell their story of the gruelling assault on Jugroom Fort - and an astonishing rescue mission.</p> 
2m 47s
Sep 7
The Fort: 1. The Plan
<p>Afghanistan, January 2007. </p><p>It's a piece of military daring that went down in history: Three Royal Marines and a Royal Engineer hold on to the side of Apache attack helicopters, heading into battle to recover a fallen comrade.</p><p>Those involved in a gripping, almost u ... Show More
14m 28s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 19
The Cold War
For decades after the Second World War, the Soviet Union and the United States of America were locked in a conflict of ideology that took the planet to the brink of catastrophe. Known as the Cold War, it was an era of paranoia, fear and mutual suspicion, where the contest for sup ... Show More
57m 50s
May 2024
Introducing Shadow War: China and the West
The rise of China is the defining challenge of our times - has the west been slow to wake up? Gordon Corera investigates the rise of China in Shadow War: China and the West. 
2m 55s
Oct 3
Who’s Going To Win The Future? Dan Wang on China’s Engineers vs. America’s Lawyers | GoodFellows | Hoover Institution
<p>One great power (China) has a relentless thirst to build that comes with a terrible human cost, while its main rival (America) is a more lawyerly and free society that’s prone to stifling ideas both good and bad. On the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic ... Show More
1h 7m
Oct 17
Starmer ally: Come clean on relations with China after spy row
It’s been a week where the politics of the Middle East and Britain’s relations with China have loomed large over Westminster. For all the backslapping and goodwill of Sharm el-Sheikh, will the ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners in Gaza pave the way for a political s ... Show More
31m 34s
Nov 6
Xi Jinping’s World of Treachery and Sacrifice
<p>Last week’s meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping may have brought a respite in the trade war. But it hardly touched the more fundamental drivers of U.S.-Chinese rivalry, a rivalry that has come to shape more and more dimensions of geopolitics, the global economy, and be ... Show More
56m 45s
Oct 5
88. China vs Google: When Beijing Took on Silicon Valley (Ep 1)
"Like many other well-known organisations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis." This was the striking public statement from Google's chief legal officer in January 2010. What began as a major security incident - a "highly sophisticated and targeted attack ... Show More
41m 52s
Feb 2024
A life in the American century
<p>With the United States’ presidential election just a few months away, the stakes go far beyond domestic politics. The results will decide the future of American foreign policy, at least for the next four years. In the corridors of power in Washington, US policymakers will need ... Show More
37m 6s
Jul 2024
Taiwan’s 100-Year Rise From Japanese Colony to Monopoly Producer of Microchips
When global supply chains were shut down in 2020 and messily rebooted after COVID lockdowns ceased, one island nation emerged as the most important player in getting critical components to factories around the world. That was Taiwan, which produces 90 percent of the world’s advan ... Show More
43m 5s
Apr 2025
History's Secret Heroes: Series 3: Dudley Clarke: The Great Deceiver
In Cairo, an eccentric British army officer draws on magic tricks learned from his grandfather in order to fool the Nazis. Will the enemy fall for his illusions? Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of dece ... Show More
28m 44s
Nov 13
Q&A: Corruption Scandal, AI Surrender Videos, and the International Space Station
Ukraine has been rocked by a major corruption scandal surrounding the country's energy sector, amidst ongoing Russian attacks on electricity infrastructure. An alleged $100m scheme, involving money laundering and kick backs, has led to the resignation of senior ministers and engu ... Show More
28m 47s