James Holland reports from Washington as he continues to research his forthcoming book on the battle for Sicily. Reporting from inside the US archives, James explains his research methods and reads from the forgotten accounts and intriguing diary entries of

Merry Christmas from We Have Ways of Making You Talk. Over the next 12 days Al and James are reading extracts from some of their favourite books about the Second World War. Today Rachel Holland is reading an extract from

Chapter 16: The Cauldron, by Zeno In September, 1944, the British 1st Airborne Division found itself in a fierce battle for the Dutch city of Arnhem. Al Murray reads the story of a single platoon trapped in the smoking ruins

Chapter 12: The Cauldron, by Zeno In September, 1944, the British 1st Airborne Division found itself in a fierce battle for the Dutch city of Arnhem. Al Murray reads the story of a single platoon trapped in the smoking ruins