Combat Dealers
Upcoming episodes
Jan 21st
600p
THE ITALIAN JOB
Bruce and Hus are on Italian road-trip. From Venice to Lake Garda they meet up with dealers whose objects tell the incredible story of Italy in WWII. Italian kit is going-up in value; if Bruce can increase his stock while it’s cheap and sit on it as it rises in value, it’s money in the bank. And it’s a perfect excuse to take in the sites of northern Italy. Back at base, Freddy and his son are rebuilding an authentic German troop carrier from scratch. But they only have two weeks as Bruce has found a dealer who wants to try before he buys when they meet at a Dutch military fare. So Freddy must get the transporter built, running and ready to ride.
Jan 22nd
100a
HIDDEN HEROES OF D-DAY
Bruce’s latest military acquisition is the fuselage of an original D-Day Dakota aeroplane. He wants this forgotten hero of history hung up and on display for all his clients to marvel at. Nick and Phil get the task of making this happen! With the 72nd D-Day anniversary coming up Bruce decides to travel to France buying up behind the scenes D-Day kit and vehicles that other dealers often overlook. On the way he investigates landing beaches, battle grounds and even gets to fulfil one of his bucket list items, a D-Day parachute jump out of a beloved Dakota! For Bruce, life doesn’t get much better than that!
Jan 22nd
600p
THE PINK PANTHER
Christmas has come early for military artefacts dealer Bruce Crompton when he gets his hands on an incredibly rare German Panther tank. In its original undercoat this one is more pink than camouflage. There are just two working models in the world and fully restored his could be worth as much as five million pounds. But that's easier said than done - to do it up Bruce and his team must scour Europe to track down authentic parts, whilst mechanics, the twins, call in a WWII tank expert to do some detective work to uncover the secrets of the Panthers past; which ends with an explosive revelation about how the tank met its sticky end in the war.
Jan 23rd
100a
BATTLE OF BRITAIN
Delivering an original WW2 American Jeep to a client Bruce is amazed at what he stumbles on. Peter Monk restores and rebuilds original WW2 Spitfires from scratch out of his workshop on the historic airfield, Biggin Hill. Peter has another challenging buy for Bruce, to find him a super rare fully restored German army jeep called a Kubelwagen for his museum. Never one to shy away from a profit or a challenge, Bruce and Freddy hit the road buying up Battle of Britain items to flog to Peter. The twins also have a challenge of their own; Bruce has asked them to prepare some WW2 artillery guns for export to Australia. The problem is, Aussie importation laws are very different to our own.
Jan 23rd
600p
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE
A Hollywood armourer is looking for props for a new blockbuster movie. On his shopping list is authentic Cold War Russian anti-aircraft guns. This could be a big money deal for Bruce. The only problem is, he doesn’t have any and Russia is a tricky place to source items quickly. But Bruce knows where he might find such items – Finland. At the end of WWII, Russia took 10% of Finnish territory so lots of WWII and Cold War items can still be found there. So Bruce and Hus head to icy Finland on his own Mission Impossible.
Jan 24th
100a
WORLD WAR ONE
Bruce is stunned by an incredible collection of objects once owned by twentieth century icons; from Marilyn Monroe’s bracelet to a watercolour painted by Hitler. But it’s a unique pen that ended WWI that sends Bruce hunting WWI items, including a soldiers medal from the worst battle in the history of the British Army - the Battle of the Somme. On a single day 70,000 troops were killed or wounded and medals from it are amongst the most precious. But there is a puzzle. Bruce’s medal has two names on it not one? And he wants to get to the bottom of this WWI mystery
Jan 24th
600p
THE SHERMAN
Bruce is over the moon with his latest purchase; a super-rare, running Sherman tank! But before he flogs it on he wants to increase its authenticity and therefore its value. Through some Sherlock Holmes detective work Freddy discovers what could be a Sherman graveyard in the depths of Normandy and so he and Bruce hot foot it to the continent. In Blighty the Twins are tasked with finding out exactly how a British Sherman tank would have looked on a battlefield 70 years ago. Helped out by a 91 year old WW2 tank Veteran called Tom, they gain a helpful and somewhat harrowing insight into life in a tank.
Jan 25th
100a
FRENCH RESISTANCE
Bruce turns all ‘Allo Allo’ when a client asks for items relating to the brave men and women of the French Resistance. To source such rare treasures, Bruce heads to Southern France to meet a Resistance veteran who recounts details of daring missions carried out against the German occupiers. Bruce then discovers a barn full of Resistance artefacts including armbands worn in battle. Meanwhile the twins fix up a World War two drop basket and parachute that the RAF used to deliver the very guns Bruce finds in France and fires in the battle of the submachine guns.
Jan 26th
300p
BATTLE OF NORMANDY
A Texan millionaire is flying over to England to buy Bruce’s super rare WW2 German Kettenkrad. A cross between a motorbike and a mini-tank, this little beauty could net Bruce a whopping £130,000! But only if it’s running so that’s where twins Nick and Phil come in, with just a week before the visit they have to get the 70 year old vehicle battle ready and looking brand new. But the ‘Krad isn’t the only kit the rich Texan’s after, so Bruce and Freddy hot foot it to northern France, hunting down German and American relics from the battle of Normandy. If it all goes to plan this could be the deal of Bruce’s year.
Jan 26th
400p
SAS
A Hollywood movie about the wartime SAS needs a jeep, but not just any jeep. This one has to look like it’s just left the forests of occupied France circa 1944. These are the vehicles that the maverick soldiers of the very first SAS units made their own. They added fuel tanks, bullet proof windscreens and guns, lots of big awesomely destructive machine guns used to take out the enemy in surprise drive through shootings executed deep behind enemy lines. And when the world’s toughest regiment meets the world’s toughest military dealer it can only end one way - A massive nerve jangling explosion.