GEN Z - Military Awareness

Added: 2026-05-09

[00:00:00]Welcome back troops. Let's tab 59.

[00:00:04]Where am I today? I'm still in Lincolnshire. I'm in Bomber County, but I've come out with a good mate of mine that's up visiting me at the moment, Richard from the History Veteran UK. You want to do a bit of content, catch up?

[00:00:16]We haven't seen each other for a while.

[00:00:18]And uh so we're out and about and in fact for fans of his channel, he is just walking up the road now. to see him over my shoulder there doing his video. It's a bit windy, so I hope it's not playing the mic up. Try and get somewhere shelter to do my video. So, I was talking about I wanted to talk about Gen Zed and their awareness of our military history because it's May the 6th today and let's get around here out the wind. It's May the 6th today and this it's Wednesday. This Friday is uh May the 8th, which of course is the anniversary of VE Day, Victory in Europe Day. It's 81st anniversary of the end of the war in Europe. Obviously, as you know, the war continued out in Japan. Boys are fighting out in Burma and we got VJ day in the August, but May was V day. It's finally over. Now, I saw an article on the news and I've read a little bit in the media and you have to be careful where you get your news from. I know.

[00:01:26]And apparently there's been a poll and I who does these polls and gets this information. Apparently, it's been a poll and they found out that a very small percentage I like 30% of Gen Z Gen Zed know what VE Day is or what it was. And they were actually walking around the streets talking to people, you know, going up to some Gen Z person, giving them a microphone and going, "Do you know what V day is?" And they just had no clue.

[00:01:54]So why is that? Well, I think it's a couple of things. I mean, why would it be relevant to them now?

[00:02:02]They don't sort of they won't have so much. And the difference was when I was younger, ill, when I was younger and I was at school, some of my teachers were World War II veterans. I remember my math teacher, Mr. Metaf, I think his name was. And math teacher, and he was a Spitfire pilot. He'd been a Spitfire pilot in World War II. I don't know if he's in the Battle of Britain. I can't remember, but he was certainly a veteran Spitfire pilot from the war. And uh if we wanted to get out of doing maths, we go. So could you you used to fly Spitfires in the end? He go give us a little war story or something or tell us about something and we get out of I lose half the math lesson. That's why I can't add up. But like I say, my uncles would serve, my aunties all served in World War II.

[00:02:49]So everywhere, you know, growing up in the 60s and 70s, so many people that you could come into contact with were World War II veterans. Of course, now for Gen Z, there's a much bigger disconnect. So, I think that's partly the problem. I don't know what is taught in schools, how much is taught in schools. My granddaughter's school, for instance, they do quite a lot when it leads up to Remembrance uh day or remembrance Sunday, they have little poppy displays.

[00:03:17]So, they get some history. I saw some of their artwork they put up. Uh but that's primary school level. I don't know what happens after that, but it appears to me that you you know, people slag Gen Zed off and oh, they don't know about our history. They're not interested. I don't think it's they're not interested. I just don't think they've been brought up with it. Not not in anyone's fault. It's like I say, I was surrounded with World War II veterans at school and in the in fact, I remember we had a postNCO. If there's anyone from 94 locating regiment watching this, you might remember he we had some parade or other and he come out in his number two dress and he had a World War II ribbon. I think he got like a defense med. So he might have done something right at the end of the war and this would have been in the early mid70s.

[00:04:06]So he was actually a World War II veteran. And I'm pretty sure, you know, you look back at some of the old footage news clips of the army in the 60s and 70s, there a lot of World War II veterans still knocking about. So, I say we were surrounded by it. But Gen Z, I don't think they're going to um get the same exposure as we are. But like I say, when it's taught in secondary schools, I think it's going to vary from school to school, isn't it? You know, some some schools are going to pay more attention to to to that part of history. And a lot of history is being rewritten, I've heard, but I don't know. I don't want to get political. But this is old RAF Wood Spa. The history veteran UK is up there now. You can see the runways actually walking up one of the taxi ways. There isn't a great deal here from what we've seen so far. We had to ring up the National Trust and get a code to actually walk in the site. It's free, but you have to ring up. And where I've just been stood here by this uh very nicely patinaed metal sculpture here. Let me spin you around so you can have a look at it.

[00:05:11]Here we go. So, it says it's got the lanks there as you can see and a couple of mosquitoes above them. I think it says uh and it says Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust RAF Woodh Hall Spa. And then over here they got a couple of benches less we forget with the doves of peace there and another bench exactly the same. There's a little kiosk but I don't know what it is all locked up. Somebody obviously use a stag on there. You got these lakes. It's wonderful lakes.

[00:05:41]There's one over that side there. And pan down the road there. You can see the history veteran UK in the distance walking back down with his selfie stick.

[00:05:50]Another lake across there. There isn't a great deal to see here, but we thought we'd just stop past. He wanted to do a bit about um the Dam Busters.

[00:06:01]Uh and 617 Squadron. I think that's what he's doing it about. Uh and that's what he did. So, please now go over to his channel, The History Veteran UK. I'll put a link in the description. Go across and have a look at his channel. He's up here with me for he got up here yesterday. We did a little sitdown chat together, not an interview, but we sat down last night and just caught up together and we put it on film and I know he's going to post that on his channel. So, if you want to see me and him catching up, we've known each other since the 80s. We serve together.

[00:06:31]That'll be an interesting watch. I'm looking forward to watching it myself.

[00:06:34]We did have a drink and a laugh. So, you can pick that video up on his channel.

[00:06:38]You also see the one he's doing right now, RF Wood Spa. We're going on. We went to Coningsby, RF Coningsby. Um the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight of Base there. The Lank apparently is away at the moment in Duxford for repairs.

[00:06:53]It's not flying this season. There was um a hurricane and a Spitfire out on the apron. Um but they weren't flying today.

[00:07:03]So there was a few typhoons obviously, but nothing was flying. So we didn't get any footage up there. I think after this we're going to be going towards Spillsby. There's an old RAF base there apparently. Spillsby. I've never been to Spilsby. I've lived up here 5 years now.

[00:07:19]I've never It's only up the road from my house. Never been there. Uh but Richard from History Veteran UK wants to go there and do a video on that. So I say look out for that. I think as well I've never been interviewed on YouTube. No one's ever I've never been interviewed period, apart from the police a couple of times when I was younger, but I've never been interviewed and uh I think maybe History of Vet UK Richard will possibly be interviewing me and if it works out and we do it, he'll put that up on his channel. So that could be a laugh. So that's all for now. If you're new to my channel, you haven't subscribed, please consider it. I'm not saying do it. I'm saying consider it.

[00:08:00]Till next time troops from myself and Richard from the history veteran UK. So Rich, >> hello. Till then stay safe. Remember let's tap.