Questions and Answers Episode 54

For this episode of the Old Front Line podcast, we open the virtual mailbag once again for another Questions & Answers special covering some fascinating and lesser-known aspects of the First World War. From observation balloons hanging silently over the trenches to trench foot, white feathers and booby traps in No Man’s Land, this episode explores the realities of life on the Western Front beyond the better-known battles.

We begin by looking at the observation balloons – the so-called Balloonatics – that became such a familiar feature of the wartime landscape. Who manned these vulnerable aerial observation posts? What was life like for the crews suspended high above the battlefield? How many balloons lined the front by 1916, and were they more effective over the flat plains of Flanders than the broken ground of the Somme?

We also examine the infamous White Feather campaign and the pressure placed on young men to enlist, alongside the Derby Scheme which allowed men to attest for service before being called up later. How widespread was the practice, and what impact did it have on those who experienced it?

Inspired by an episode of Blackadder Goes Forth, we then investigate whether anti-personnel minefields really existed in the trenches of the Great War, and explore the grim world of booby traps and explosive devices hidden one the battlefield.

Finally, we answer a question from Australia concerning trench foot and the long-term effects suffered by soldiers who returned to duty after treatment. How badly could damaged feet affect a man’s ability to march, and what happened when he rejoined his battalion?

Join us for another deep dive into the forgotten details and human stories of the First World War.

The book mentioned in the introduction is Jon Woolcott’s Tattooed Hills: Journeys to Chalk Figures published in 2026.

Main Image: The Medical Officer of the 12th Battalion ,East Yorkshire Regiment conducts a foot inspection in a support trench near Roclincourt, 9 January 1918. (IWM Q10622). Image by Thomas Keith Aitken.

Sign up for the free podcast newsletter here: Old Front Line Bulletin.

You can order Old Front Line Merch via The Old Front Line Shop.

Got a question about this episode or any others? Drop your question into the Old Front Line Discord Server or email the podcast.