Episode 14 - Closing In

Episode 21 - 400 Shells Per Minute

This episode covers February 5-10, 1940: the Allies plan to occupy Norway’s ports to cut off German iron ore, while the Soviet assault on Finland’s Mannerheim Line intensifies with up to 400 shells per minute. Łódź Ghetto is established, Blaskowitz’s SS atrocity complaints are sidelined, a double agent dismantles German espionage in America, Roosevelt publicly defends Finland, and Manstein’s transfer leads to Hitler embracing his invasion plan.

Episode 20 - Wave After Wave

This episode covers January 28–February 4, 1940, when the Winter War shifts from Finnish resilience to Soviet attrition. Daladier defends liberty, Hitler vows victory despite Germany's fragile economy, and the Soviets hint at peace talks. Personal stories include a Norwegian boy's birthday aboard a U-boat, the first German plane shot down in England, Meyerhold's execution, Prague's stations renamed to erase Czech identity, and Frank Sinatra's debut recordings.

Episode 19 - No Hour to Lose

This episode covers January 21-27, 1940: HMS Exmouth lost with all hands, British-Japanese naval tensions, the Enigma code breakthrough at Bletchley Park, French army stagnation, Charles de Gaulle’s ignored warnings, pivotal Nazi decisions on Auschwitz and the Final Solution, Krivitsky’s missed exposure of Kim Philby, South Africa narrowly staying in the war, and Churchill’s urgent call for action as WWII intensifies.

Episode 18 - Europe in the Deep Freeze

This episode covers January 11–20, 1940, as the Winter War pauses; the Soviets regroup and retrain, preparing a new offensive. Finland faces starvation and freezing Soviet troops in isolated forest pockets. Europe endures record cold, women pilots join the RAF, Allies break key Enigma codes, Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet premieres under blackout, the Three Stooges lampoon Hitler, resistance is hunted in Warsaw, Vatican Radio exposes Nazi atrocities, and Churchill envisions a united future.

Episode 17 - Dead Men on the Road

This episode of History Date Night covers January 1940: Finland shatters Soviet divisions at Raate Road, Britain starts food rationing and expands conscription, Unity Mitford returns after a failed suicide attempt, and a German navigation error in Belgium leads to a major change in the invasion plan of France. Warsaw endures starvation and atrocities, while China's collaborationist government is exposed as a sham. Key events set the stage for decisive shifts in WWII.