BOMBS IN COVENTRY
Two Talks: The 1939 IRA Bombing of Broadgate | The 1940 Coventry Blitz
2.00-4:30pm Thursday, 8 May 2025 (VE Day)
John Laing Centre, Coventry Cathedral
£10.00. Doors 1:30pm.
Ticket price includes refreshments.
Proceeds will be donated to Coventry Cathedral.
Join Coventry historians Adam Wood and Adam Neale for two illustrated talks at the John Laing Centre, Coventry Cathedral to commemorate VE Day, discussing two of the most notorious incidents from the city’s past.
THE 1939 BOMBING OF BROADGATE: ADAM WOOD
On 25 August 1939 a bicycle was parked up against the kerb outside Astley’s shop on Broadgate, with a deadly cargo in its carrier basket. At 2.30pm a huge explosion threw passers-by to the floor and blew the glass from the windows of shops and offices the length of the street. More than sixty people were injured, a dozen seriously, and five people lost their lives. Hear the human stories of those involved.
THE COVENTRY BLITZ OF 1940: ADAM NEALE
On the night of 14 November 1940 the biggest air raid in history began. Bombs began to fall on one of the oldest cities in England. Learn what really happened: was it preventable? And hear of the heroic struggles and real life testimonies of people who were there as the city burned.
