Jeremy Clarkson's The Victoria Cross: For Valour

Its like Frodo 😂 i get it, it just sounds ridiculous.

Gsmith

I watched your reaction - which was superb - but all the time knowing the twist at the very end and looking forward to you hearing it. You did not disappoint! I have had the utter privilege of meeting and spending time with Capt Rambahadur Limbu VC at his home in Nepal about 10 years ago. Talking about his time in the Brigade but not his VC and it was immensely powerful to be in his company. He sadly died in 2023 but at a grand old age. The reaction in Nepal and across the Gurkha family was amazing and reflected his status as a National hero.

Nick Beer

This was filmed before Iraq and Afghanistan where VCs were awarded. No matter how much high tech stuff you have, war still comes down to one side vs the other.

Mat

I don't know if anyone had noticed but the man speaking at 1:15:32 was the man who was refused a Victoria Cross

Eric Tull

I agree. Or at least, if people do remember, it is a sadly distorted memory they hold, where suffering becomes heroism etc. I could tell a few stories that my parents told me about WW2 to illustrate my point. It had such a profound effect on their lives - till the day they died just recently - that it has been sad to see what they believed in besmirched by the attitudes of those born after the war and, in particular, the Little Englanderism that they understood to be so dangerous to our future peace and prosperity. I hope that's not getting too political 😜!

Eddy

I'm in now way a history expert, but I like to be informed and I think I've seen the documentaries you mention. I've definitely seen "Know your Ally" but I havent seen a lot about the Kokoda Trail campaign (I'll have to take another look). The sad thing about history like this, is that humanity never seems to remember and learn from it.

Craig Humphries

If you are interested in WW2 history, then I'd thoroughly recommend documentaries about Kokada too, if you don't know it already, because it is another episode of the war that is barely known, so US-centric is most coverage. It is truly astonishing what occurred and probably more moving than the Clarkson films. I do hope they get around to "Know Your Ally" too; unusually, I learnt a few facts I was unaware of about Britain at the time, even though I have spent a great deal of my adult life studying history. It was great getting a perspective from the US Government at the time too, trying to explain to American GIs not to ignore the huge sacrifices my parents generation and older had already made in inflicting the first defeats on the Nazis. In fact, it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when it gets to the part where the narrator talks about how the Brits in "their sardine can" have been patiently building their strength and begin to take the fight to the Nazis; it almost felt like the beginning of War of the Worlds and the description of the Martians slowly and carefully laying their plans!

Eddy

Thanks Eddy! I had no idea that he had done a documentary about the Baltic convoys. I'll definitely try to find it. 👍

Craig Humphries

was kind of hoping i could delete this thread but deleting my original message all i meant to say was i cant stand Clarkson due to the fact hes made racist comments in the past like saying the N word and is currently in the news for trying to allow multi millionaires to avoid paying their inheritance tax so id had enough of hearing about him, and to be fair I only made one comment so I dont see why you are only replying to me by name and not to people like Mark who are going on "hate filled rants" making many many rude comments about me personally.

Brill Smith

Diva's everywhere, we will never be safe :)

Brucey Mitchell (Cheeky)

🙄

David Smith

There is politics in everything we say and write though, is there not, Rob? Even if we are unaware of it. I assume you are referring to Archie (rather than Clarkson!) and I agree that he has said nothing wrong at all, but I do think it is worth pointing out that one could think more deeply about the lessons to be learned from the documentary than to conclude that "British troops are the best ever". Clarkson, I thought, did a fantastic job of pointing out that being awarded a VC was not the result of notions of patriotism, let alone nationalism, but of caring so utterly for one's fellow travellers as to cast aside aside ego, vanity or any concern for self-preservation.

Eddy

In addition to this documentary, I assume you are referring to "The Greatest Raid", since that is already on Mike and Jess' radar, in which case the third WW2 documentary that I am aware of would be one about the Baltic convoys. I can't remember if I watched it a long, long time ago, but it is certainly a fascinating subject and yet another story of the British in WW2 that is shamefully almost unheard of outside (and, I suspect, inside) this country. If the other two are anything to go by, I expect it will be brilliant and deeply moving.

Eddy

This has gotten out of hand fellas. Brill, if you don't like something we post we kindly ask that you skip it. Hopefully, the majority of what we post will be something you are into. It's not worth the negative ripple effect to make a post like this. I think Rob G put it best. His reply is first. It should have been left at that. We don't want people going on hate-filled rants. If you want to sway someone's way of thinking there are better ways to do so. Hurling insults is only going to make things worse. Let's keep it civil please and thank you.

RegenerationNationTV

Poor little victim you are aren’t you , it’s clear you would never find yourself in a position to be responsible for or in command of men who would trust you . It’s always the left that make personal attacks on people from the right . Think about that before you reply . What a disgusting person you are . People like you would never fight a war for what right .

mark barratt

Really, what a petty minded ignoramace you are . How utterly self absorbed you must be . Had you watched this you would have learned something about the types of people who won this award were . They shared one attribute humility . You definitely need some . You would also learn that the hero fought with only one eye , the only thing you have in common with him . Your myopic one eyed perspective makes you the vile person your are who would never put someone else first . Virtue signalling scum .

mark barratt

He won it over 5!days of heroism . Incredible . He clearly was being himself , authentic and unable to allow his comrades to have fallen in vain . Both my Grandfathers and other members of my family fought in ww2 , one great Aunty still had an air raid shelter in her garden in her garden we played in while growing up . Each and everyone of them never talked about the war , as children we wanted to know and asked questions but were meet with stock answers which always steered the conversation on . My poppa landed in a glider during that assault , not at Arnhem . I know he was pinned down and in a foxhole filled with water upto his stomach and was very close to death from hypothermia. He of course never mentioned this . Truly incredible people who Hitler underestimated.

mark barratt

Fantastic video and wonderful reaction. Does anyone know whether Jeremy has ever done another documentary since the two discussed?

Craig Humphries

I have now added the 2 documentaries about Kokoda to the end of the playlist, since between them they run to 25 minutes and give a reasonable idea of both the extraordinary sacrifices made and the attitude of officialdom at the time. The one entitled "One of the last Kokoda diggers opens up about World War II" which interviews Reg Chard, 99, is particularly moving in the way it captures just how his entire life has been overshadowed by that brief period. and the loss of so many of his 'mates'. Unfortunately, they make no mention of possibly the 2 single-most important sacrifices made, which between them might seriously have saved Australia from Imperial Japanese invasion and turned the tide of the war in the Pacific: those of the posthumous VC winner, Private Bruce Steel Kingsbury (https://www.awm.gov.au/wartime/48/fletcher_hero), and Captain Templeton, who was captured at the beginning of the campaign, tortured and killed, but convinced the Japanese before dying that they were facing a huge, heavily-equipped combined Australian/US force rather than the few hundred, mostly newly recruited and poorly equipped young Australian boys that truly stood in their way in the jungle of Papua.

Eddy

In fact, Victorians were well aware of the suicidal nature of the order and the guilt of the officer class in ordering it, and the poem is an admonishment of that and a celebration of the sacrifices ordinary men must make in the face of it. Was there a man dismayed? Not though the soldier knew Someone had blundered. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die.

Eddy

I wrote that he is a racist and did not compare him to Hitler. Sorry if that is somehow offensive, but if you love his references to 'slopes', ie Vietnamese (apparently), while in Vietnam, or taking the piss out of Argentinians about the Falklands War while in Argentina, or using the "N' word, then that needs consideration, does it not?

Eddy

The Chinese cannon referred to here was from the Battle of Balaklava. Where the famous charge of the light brigade took place in 1854. Made famous by Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. “Forward, the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns!” he said. Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. Forward, the Light Brigade!” Was there a man dismayed? Not though the soldier knew Someone had blundered. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die. Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them Volleyed and thundered; Stormed at with shot and shell, Boldly they rode and well, Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of hell Rode the six hundred. Flashed all their sabres bare, Flashed as they turned in air Sabring the gunners there, Charging an army, while All the world wondered. Plunged in the battery-smoke Right through the line they broke; Cossack and Russian Reeled from the sabre stroke Shattered and sundered. Then they rode back, but not Not the six hundred. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon behind them Volleyed and thundered; Stormed at with shot and shell, While horse and hero fell. They that had fought so well Came through the jaws of Death, Back from the mouth of hell, All that was left of them, Left of six hundred. When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made! All the world wondered. Honour the charge they made! Honour the Light Brigade, Noble six hundred! The story is of selfless bravery and sacrifice fitting for a Victoria Cross winner.

Eric Tull

Out of respect for Mike and Jess this prevents me from commenting with what's on my mind and being triggered. Except to say I LOVE JEREMY CLARKSON. I rank him as top entertainment

Eric Tull

Awesome reaction both and thank you for taking the time to watch a little of our history and all the brave men and women who put their lives on the line for our freedoms. Much love from 🇬🇧

Mark Sanders

Clarkson’s one saving grace is that he did once punch Piers Morgan, who he has described as ‘a waste of blood and organs.’

Thomas

Calm down Eddy, he isn’t Hitler.

Rob G

Decent, short informative documentary (although very little mention of the heroic stories involved, I think): https://youtu.be/-G5xpWK67XQ?si=TsOCZCpoJmS8-bYn

Eddy

One very moving documentary which interviews the last surviving 'digger' at 92, but lacks the background info: https://youtu.be/BpwmSVOQJzg?si=jW8L_KZxodauKvkw

Eddy

I've been trying to find a documentary on YouTube about the 'Diggers of Kokoda', as they're known, or the incredible young Australian men who saved Australia from 10 times their number of Japanese and were labelled cowards by their commanding general and that well-known US fascist coward General McArthur (who had run away from the Philippines, leaving his men as prisoners to conclude he was the coward), because their since-recognised bravery and the winning of a posthumous VC seems appropriate as a follow-on to the VC documentary. However, having seen an hour-long documentary that was both moving and informative some years ago, I cannot remember by whom it was made. I have found one or two 15-30 minute long documentaries that are either moving or informative, but none that combine the 2 essential ingredients.

Eddy

Shame really, great documentary regarding real heroes. The Greatest Raid is next, which I am sure you will not watch because you have a political hatred of some sort or other. You are missing out on incredible stories just because you don’t like Clarkson. Not good.

Rob G

Give the guy a break. At least he hasn’t tried to force politics into the mix. I don’t think he said anything particularly bad here tbh.

Rob G

I know it doesn't get watched submitting here but maybe others watching this are interested. Gurkahs - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8pIJglsYUE

Andy Robinson

Brill Smith

You need to watch the Peter Jackson World War 1 documentary where they turn black and white footage into colour with sound its amazing https://youtu.be/IrabKK9Bhds?si=11YghsQK3yjm5yH_

Nathan Daly

A beautiful reaction Mike and Jess, I’ve seen this several times but it never stops being moving. You’ll definitely appreciate the Greatest Raid

Kieran B

There have been some more VCs since this was made but only 3 (all in Afghanistan) Colour Sergeant Joshua Mark Leakey VC is the most recent in 2015, coincidentally he was born in Tampa

Kieran B

The PIAT’s not quite as bad as he paints it here but it definitely has its problems

Kieran B

Our village cemetery in Herefordshire UK has the grave of Private Robert Jones VC who won his VC at the battle of Rourkes Drift as depicted in the film Zulu.

Young Dougy

This is one of the best documentaries I’ve ever watched, on any subject. Just like both of you, the story of Robert Cain VC & the story of the medal itself is eye opening & phenomenal. Clarkson retells this story so well & all the other elements involving other winners complement this great piece of television. I have watched this a couple of times before & it always makes me tear up a little. They were the most wonderful of men & all heroes in their own way. It was gratifying to see both of you being emotionally involved in this which is why your channel is so good to watch. Much love from the NW of England

Frank Mac

In terms of military culture we give far fewer medals and awards

Kieran B

Ha, I got to 28 minutes and yeah... New camera. Joking aside though, it looks great.

Andy Robinson

I do WW2 artillery reenactment and a lot of my group went to Arnhem last year with hundreds of other reenactors as part of a vehicle convoy and to do firing displays at various points - including by the bridge - sadly I wasn’t able to take part but I’m glad they were able to commemorate the anniversary. My town was one of the staging points for the airborne drop too (including gliders) and there’s a panel in the military chapel (St George’s) commemorating them - the other side of the chapel is the names of those that went to my school (it was a church school) that died in both world wars.

Kieran B

I was born I in 1957, just 12 years after the end of the Second World War and 13 years after the Battle of Arnhem. It seems crazy to me that London Olympics were held in 2012, precisely the same distance in time, and yet that glorious English summer seems as though it happened yesterday. It’s also incredible that despite such a tiny time frame, Western Europe always felt like a safe place. It’s an area that witnessed the greatest degree of tyranny under Hitler, yet how quickly it healed.

Thomas

I agree, they are humble but I’m an outsider looking in. And they are.

Archie East

Exactly so. Apart from the inaccuracy of "a tiny percentage of the funding of other nations" when the UK was 6th in the world on military spending behind only the US, China, Russia, India and Saudi Arabia in 2023, the whole point of the VC appears to be the selflessness and lack of self-aggrandisement behind each person awarded. I am sure there are equally brave people right across the world, apart from the small matter that there are Australians, Canadians, Ghurkas and other nationals from the former Empire who are not 'British' who have been awarded the honour.

Eddy

It's a great, interesting and emotional documentary, I saw it back in the day when it was first broadcast on the BBC and my jaw hit the floor when Jeremy said he was married to his daughter. I've watched a few times since with other reactors on YouTube and they're always amazed with the stories. His follow-up doc 'The Greatest Raid of All' will not disappoint.

Fordy7169

I was struck how humble the men who served with Cain were. No talk of being ‘the greatest’.

Thomas

Isn't that missing the whole point of the documentary?

Eddy

I love the Gurkhas, god bless them. There are some really interesting videos on them.

Terrahawk

Fantastic reaction, Mike and Jess. You alway strike the right balance for me and manage to bring your own particular, sensitive insight that adds to my understanding and joy for any subject (barring music reactions, which I won't watch!). I ended up with tears in my eyes like both of you - AGAIN! It doesn't seem to matter how much I watch some TV: it will get me every time.

Eddy

One difference you might not pick up on (I'm still watching), is how we pronounce lieutenant in the UK, it's lef-tenant, but to you it's lieutenant, like loo-tenant.

Andy Robinson

Either Mike got the new camera working or my eyesight has suddenly improved. Volcom jacket and Happy Dad cap in exquisite detail now.

Andy Robinson

Excellent reaction you two and when Jess said she was on the edge of her seat watching this one you can be sure she will be biting her nails off when the reaction to the greatest raid happens, it really is something special.

Rob G

British Troops are the greatest ever. We have a small army and a tiny percentage of the funding of other nations. But individually they are the greatest soldiers on Earth.

Archie East