Episode 0 - Beneath the Western Front: The Tunnellers’ War Begins

At dawn on 7 June 1917, the earth beneath Messines Ridge exploded, tearing the landscape apart and signalling one of the most dramatic victories of the First World War. This episode begins with that moment and descends into the hidden world that made it possible: the underground war fought by tunnellers beneath the Western Front.

This prologue introduces the origins of mining warfare, explaining how trench stalemate forced both sides to dig beneath no-man’s-land in a deadly contest of listening, counter-mining, and massive underground explosions. It traces the rapid creation of specialised tunnelling companies within the British Army, their offensive, defensive, and counter-mining roles, and the engineering ingenuity that turned civilian mining skills into weapons of war.

The episode then focuses on Australia’s unique contribution. Drawing on the nation’s goldfields and coal mines, the Australian Mining Corps was raised and later divided into the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Australian Tunnelling Companies. These men - miners, mechanics, carpenters, and engineers - were deployed to some of the most dangerous sectors of the front, including Ypres, Hill 60, Vimy Ridge, and Messines, where their work proved decisive but came at enormous personal cost.

Beyond the tactical achievements, the episode explores who the tunnellers were, how they lived and worked underground, and the constant dangers they faced: cave-ins, enemy explosions, gas, flooding, exhaustion, and close-quarters combat in the dark. It also reflects on the long-term consequences of this hidden war, including illness, delayed deaths, and a legacy that remained largely unknown for decades.

Finally, the episode sets the stage for the series ahead. Having established the broader history and significance of tunnelling warfare, it introduces the personal story that will guide the narrative forward: that of Alphonsus (Albert) Joseph Edwards of the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company. Episode 2 will follow his journey from civilian life in Australia into the depths of the Western Front, and into a war fought beneath the war itself.