The Machine Gunners (2002)
From Broadcast for Schools.co.uk.co.uk
started20th Sep
2002
ended29th Nov
2002
last rpt14th Mar
2008
6 school years
episodes10
duration15 mins
subject
📚English
age rangeAge 9-11
languageenIn English
The Machine Gunners is a BBC schools radio series from the 2000s, covering English for primary school pupils.
A 10-part reading by Craig Heaney of Robert Westall's children's novel set in World War II, in which a group of boys in a British town find a German machine gun, construct a fort, and mount their own secret war against the enemy.
Episode List
| # | Title | Broadcast |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | A Dead Man's Gun | 20 Sep 2002 |
| 2. | Cat and Mouse | 27 Sep 2002 |
| 3. | A Real Punch Up | 4 Oct 2002 |
| 4. | The Fortress Caparetto | 11 Oct 2002 |
| 5. | Gone to Ground | 18 Oct 2002 |
| 6. | A Prisoner in the Fortress | 1 Nov 2002 |
| 7. | Hunted | 8 Nov 2002 |
| 8. | Fight at the Mudflats | 15 Nov 2002 |
| 9. | Invasion! | 22 Nov 2002 |
| 10. | Advancing Hordes | 29 Nov 2002 |
Credits
| The Machine Gunners by | Robert Westall |
| Abridged for radio by | Ivan Jones |
| Read by | Craig Heaney |
| Music composed & performed by | Jane Livermore |
| Series consultant | Angel Scott |
| Produced by | Katriona McEwan |
Related programmes
- The Machine Gunners (2017)The story was produced again in a new reading for school radio 15 years later.
More
Do you know more about this programme?
Do you know anything that I have missed? Do you have pictures, sounds or videos that fill in gaps? Please get in touch by email!
Want more on this programme?
This site attempts to cover thousands of programmes and it will take ages to update them all. If you would like to see this one updated soon please click on the star to 'vote' for it and I will do my best to prioritise it!
Voting is currently (2026) broken. I'm not sure why. I'll fix it if I can! You can still see a list of all the votes so far.
More programmes
Some random programmes for age 9-11 from the 2000s

