Voices From The Front

On May 8, 1945, the Allied forces formally accepted the surrender of Nazi Germany, officially bringing an end to World War II in Europe. This historic event, which became known as Victory in Europe Day, or V-E Day, offered a long-awaited moment of hope and celebration for millions of people around the world whose lives had been gripped by turmoil, overwhelming devastation and heartbreaking loss throughout the breadth of the war.

May 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the victory in Europe at the end of World War II. As part of the celebration, National Geographic has produced a 60-minute special called WWII in Europe: Voices from the Front. Recent interviews with survivors from all over Europe and the United States allow viewers to look back at an important moment in history when the world united against a terrible enemy.

The Second World War is vanishing into the pages of history. The veterans were once all around us, but their numbers are fast diminishing. While still in their prime many recorded their memories with Peter Hart for the Imperial War Museum.

Christopher Kennedy Lawford’s New York Times bestselling memoir, Symptoms of Withdrawal, offered readers a startling, first-hand look at his own addictions to drugs and alcohol, prompting People magazine to write, “Few have written so well about the joy of drugs, and few are as unsparing about their drug-driven selfishness.”