In Their Footsteps

Julie Bryce never met her Uncle Tommy. Yet, somehow this mother of three from Perth has always felt a strong, strange bond with the man whose World War II service was as extraordinary as it was terrible. When a handsome young Petty Officer Johnson waved his family goodbye on board the HMAS Perth in 1941, nobody, least of all Tommy, could have imagined the fate that lay ahead. He would be aboard not one but two ships which are torpedoed and sunk. He would face a gruelling internment on the Thai-Burma railway. And Tommy would endure the terrifying fire bombing of Tokyo. Tommy's war was extraordinary. Julie's journey will be life changing.

Megan MacDonald is learning to fly. The 39-year-old mother of three and orchardist from central Queensland has 20 hours flying time to her name but is still not permitted to fly solo. Her great uncle, Tony, was not only flying solo after just five hours of training but he was fighting the Germans over the skies of Malta. The Siege of Malta became one of the great air battles of World War II and Tony Boyd was among the best - piloting Tiger Moths and then the legendary Spitfires. In an episode as adventurous as it is poignant, Megan flies in Tony's footsteps and, along the way, changes the way she views her great uncle and her own family.

Gallipoli is Australia's most commemorated battleground, etched deeply into the national psyche. It's also woven deeply into Josh Cavalier's family story: both his grandfather and great grandfather fought among those unforgiving beaches and cliffs. Incredibly, father and son survived the First World War but for generations, combat has left a lasting legacy on the Cavalier men. And it lingers to this day. Now, as Josh, a 30-year-old IT technician, embarks on this journey, he quickly discovers it will be full of surprises. This is a tender story about the relationship between a father and a son - and the need to understand the past in order to look to the future.

Major Albert Moore is a uniquely Australian wartime legend; one of the heroes of Kokoda. But Albert did not fire a single shot. In fact he didn't carry a weapon. That's because Albert was a Salvation Army officer who tirelessly carried coffee, cigarettes and scones right up to the front lines along Kokoda, as Australian forces pushed back the Japanese. Today, Major Moore's 21-year-old great nephew, Nathan Folkes, is walking in his muddy footsteps to ask himself a burning personal question: what would I have done?

Today, some Australians take Special Forces (SAS) for granted, an indispensable arm of our Defence Forces. But it wasn't always so. With the outbreak of World War II, as Australia confronted an expansionist Japan, there were no commandos, no SAS. So, when Billy Brandis enlisted in 1941, he had no idea, after serving with distinction as a signaller, he would be handpicked to join a covert new unit. It would be commonly known as Z Special Unit and in January 1944 Sergeant Brandis is deployed to British North Borneo. Poorly trained or prepared for the operation, Billy is separated from his unit and is lost in the dense and unforgiving jungle. What follows is an extraordinary story of endurance and courage and now, nearly seven decades later, Billy's niece is following in his footsteps to discover the truth.

Terrence "Hippo" Hippisley is larger than life. Meet the Vietnam veteran and you'll have your ear chewed off with a stream of yarns and the cackle of laughter. Hippo is a loveable larrikin. There's only problem: he's long been a stranger to his son, 41 year-old Mark. The two men have drifted apart - the tyranny of time, distance and Hippo's post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the war. Which is why Mark is travelling to Vietnam to understand his dad. It's a journey of discovery, reconciliation and, at times, great humour.