Blitz and Pieces - Misplaced Pages

Military museum in Great Yarmouth, England

Blitz and Pieces


Location	Scratby, Great Yarmouth
Type	Home Front and Dad's Army
Owner	Darren Stride
Website	http://www.blitzandpiecesuk.com/

Blitz and Pieces is a museum in Scratby in Great Yarmouth, England, owned and operated by Darren Stride. Based on the British Home Front during World War II and the BBC comedy Dad's Army, the museum is housed in a 1940s prefabricated building, a 1930s wooden military hut and a variety of large sheds. In 2014 the museum was a finalist in Channel 4's George Clarke's Amazing Spaces: Shed of the Year series. The museum is open to the public by appointment.

Origins of the museum

Stride's interest in the 1940s began as a small boy when he watched repeats of the BBC comedy Dad's Army with his late grandfather, John Fenton, who had served as a private in the real Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment during World War II, the regiment that the Home Guard platoon in Dad's Army was based on. Before his death in 2001 he gave his grandson his service medals, which started the collection.

Many of the items in the collection were donated by members of the public or by visitors to the museum. The display in the period chemist's shop was acquired from the Yesterday's World attraction in Great Yarmouth following its closure in 2014.

Blitz Street

The museum is housed along 'Blitz Street', and is based on the British Home Front during World War II; it features two period shops including a chemist's and a grocer's, a fully equipped 1940s kitchen and living room, an Anderson shelter complete with contents, a display of World War II uniforms, helmets and other artifacts, and a reconstruction of Captain Mainwaring's church hall office from Dad's Army.

Captain Mainwaring's office is housed in a 1930s beach hut requisitioned by the military during World War II and features several authentic Home Guard uniforms, a screen-used uniform and webbing from Dad's Army, a collection of Dad's Army memorabilia including original props such as half of the string used during filming of The Deadly Attachment. This was donated by David Croft; the other half is in the collection of Jimmy Perry.

In 2014 Blitz and Pieces was a finalist in Cuprinol's 'Shed of the Year' competition, broadcast by Channel 4.

Gallery

Corner of Captain Mainwaring's office
Corner of the grocer's shop
A view of the 1940s living room
A view of the 1940s kitchen
The Anderson shelter display

References

'Shed of The Year finalists revealed' - Channel 4 Press Release - 16 July 2014
'Shed of the Year' 2014 Finalists - The Independent
'Teen builds Dad’s Army shrine in shed' - Metro - 13 June 2011
'A giant teapot and a mini pub: This year's amazing Shed of the Year nominees' - Daily Express - 15 July 2014

External links

Blitz and Pieces Official Website

52°41′02″N 1°42′46″E / 52.6839°N 1.7129°E / 52.6839; 1.7129

Dad's Army

Characters

Episodes

Adaptations & spinoffs

Merchandise

Other articles

Episodes
Series 1	"The Man and the Hour" "Museum Piece" "Command Decision" "The Enemy Within the Gates" "The Showing Up of Corporal Jones" "Shooting Pains"
Series 2	"Operation Kilt" "The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage" "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Walker"†‡ "Sgt. Wilson's Little Secret" "A Stripe for Frazer"†‡ "Under Fire"†‡
Series 3	"The Armoured Might of Lance Corporal Jones" "Battle School" "The Lion Has 'Phones" "The Bullet Is Not for Firing" "Something Nasty in the Vault" "Room at the Bottom" "Big Guns" "The Day the Balloon Went Up" "War Dance" "Menace from the Deep" "Branded" "Man Hunt" "No Spring for Frazer" "Sons of the Sea"
Series 4	"The Big Parade" "Don't Forget the Diver" "Boots, Boots, Boots" "Sgt – Save My Boy!" "Don't Fence Me In" "Absent Friends" "Put That Light Out!" "The Two and a Half Feathers" "Mum's Army" "The Test" "A. Wilson (Manager)?" "Uninvited Guests" "Fallen Idol"
Series 5	"Asleep in the Deep" "Keep Young and Beautiful" "A Soldier's Farewell" "Getting the Bird" "The Desperate Drive of Corporal Jones" "If the Cap Fits..." "The King Was in His Counting House" "All is Safely Gathered In" "When Did You Last See Your Money?" "Brain Versus Brawn" "A Brush with the Law" "Round and Round Went the Great Big Wheel" "Time on My Hands"
Series 6	"The Deadly Attachment" "My British Buddy" "The Royal Train" "We Know Our Onions" "The Honourable Man" "Things that Go Bump in the Night" "The Recruit"
Series 7	"Everybody's Trucking" "A Man of Action" "Gorilla Warfare" "The Godiva Affair" "The Captain's Car" "Turkey Dinner"
Series 8	"Ring Dem Bells" "When You've Got to Go" "Is There Honey Still for Tea?" "Come In, Your Time Is Up" "High Finance" "The Face on the Poster"
Series 9	"Wake Up Walmington" "The Making of Private Pike" "Knights of Madness" "The Miser's Hoard" "Number Engaged" "Never Too Old"
000!!Specials	"Santa on Patrol"† "Resisting the Aggressor Down the Ages" "Cornish Floral Dance"† "Battle of the Giants!" "Broadcast to the Empire" "My Brother and I" "The Love of Three Oranges"
† Missing episode has been reconstructed using animation. ‡ Missing episode has been recreated with new cast

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