World War II Investigator (magazine)

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Trilisser, M. A.
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World War II Investigator (magazine)

#1

Post by Trilisser, M. A. » 25 Jun 2022, 12:27

Apparently in the late 1980s a magazine by that name existed, but finding any details on it seems to be impossible. Who published it and how many issues were actually published etc.?

archiveruk
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#2

Post by archiveruk » 03 Jul 2022, 22:56

Hello,

I believe the magazine you are referring to is World War II Investigator published in the UK by a company linked to the late Robert Maxwell. It ran from April 1988 to December 1988. Each magazine contained a number of articles by well known historians, the editor was Charles Messenger.

I have all the magazines that were published.

Lee


VanillaNuns
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#3

Post by VanillaNuns » 04 Jul 2022, 05:09

Hi Lee,

I've got them too - 12 issues so they must have ran into 1989.

Someone is listing issue 13 on eBay right now, so there must be more of them:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WORLD-WAR-IN ... 2122940242

I purchased my 12 issues a few years ago on eBay for about £2.50 each but the individual issues now are incredibly expensive.

Was this not the magazine that exposed Wilhelm Mohnke's crimes and led to the case being re-examined?

archiveruk
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#4

Post by archiveruk » 04 Jul 2022, 22:34

I did not realise there were more. The local W H Smith just stopped stocking them. I thought maybe it stopped being published due to poor sales. I was annoyed as I had bought the binder to hold the magazines.

Lee

Ian Sayer
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#5

Post by Ian Sayer » 16 Jul 2022, 11:09

To answer your questions. I was the founder and owner of World War II Investigator. The Editorial Board consisterd of General Sir Anthony Farrar-Hockley, Professor M R D Foot, Professor Doktor Jurgen Rohwer and Professor Earl F Ziemke. The magazine was published in its original format from April 1988 until December 1988 at which time it was sold but continued publication under the title World War Investigator. Five issues were published under the new ownership before it ceased publication. I believe , under my ownership, it achieved sales of around 17000 copies per month which eventually dropped to around 12000 or 13000. We had no connection with the Maxwell family other than printing a story about how he won his MC. Yes it is true that the magazine exposed Wilhelm Mohnke's crimes and led to the case being re-examined in the UK, Canada, the USA and Germany. I subsequentl wrote a book about it 'Hitler's Last General' (now out of print). The magazine was available internationally. Unfortunately we had to print 100000 copies just to sell between 12000 and 17000 copies and after 9 issues I realised it was no longer financially viable to run it so it was sold and the new owner who changed the format somewhat found a similar situation and ceased publication after producing five issues.It was a pity because we covered some extraordinary stories. The last one under my ownership December 1988 carried the untold story of Sir Laurence Van der Posts wartime military service which was a far cry from the the public and his publishing house's perception. As it was my last issue it failed to catch the attention of the media but 13 years later I was approached by his official biography who used my material in the chapter on his wartime service. The Daily Mail began serializing the book but the second instalment (his questionable war service) was scheduled to appear on the 16th September 2001. Of course, and rightly so, the media were dealing with nothing else other than 9/11 at that time. For anybody who is interested in the investigation of unusual WW2 stories my first book 'Nazi Gold' is still in print (revised edition 1998)or you may like to take a look at my last book 'Hitler's Last Plot' published in 2020 and also available on Amazon.

VanillaNuns
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#6

Post by VanillaNuns » 20 Jul 2022, 14:23

Thanks Ian.

It was a great magazine and it's a sad indication of the UK publishing industry that, even now, in 2022 so many great magazines have now ended.

The internet is great. But you still can't beat an old fashioned magazine. With the recent demise of "After the Battle" things look grim...

To fellow members, if you get the chance to pick up these 12 issues on eBay or at a military show, then snap them up if they are reasonably priced. There's tons of interesting content within... 😎 👍

Ian Sayer
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#7

Post by Ian Sayer » 20 Jul 2022, 14:29

Thanks VanillaNuns. I agree. It was a pity. I was offered After the Battle by the owner whom I have known for many years but I am only a couple of years younger than him otherwise.......

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Hans1906
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#8

Post by Hans1906 » 20 Jul 2022, 15:57

I liked "Purnell's History of the Second World War" in the early 1970s, the magazine was av. in just the "Montanus" bookshop in the city
of Oldenburg, for about 6,- to 8,- Deutsche Mark.

I was intrigued, an early encounter with our subject, I had to find all the editions...

Purnell's History of the Second World War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purnell%2 ... _World_War

I soaked up these paperbacks like a dry sponge, the illustrations at the time were simply terrific, you didn't see anything like that from German publishers.

As always, German typefaces were purely technical, straight to the point, often boring, the magazines from England literally hit the nail on the head, that's how it was. :D


Hans
The paradise of the successful lends itself perfectly to a hell for the unsuccessful. (Bertold Brecht on Hollywood)

Flegeo89
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Re: World War II Investigator (magazine)

#9

Post by Flegeo89 » 02 Mar 2023, 21:34

If anybody wants a full set of Purnell’s History of the First World War (volumes 1-8) and also the full set of Purnell’s History of the Second World War. Let me know, I have recently come across full sets and I am looking to sell at the right price. I am able to ship internationally

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/39449033610 ... media=COPY

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/39449034026 ... media=COPY

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