Winter 2023 Video Updates

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all having a good start to 2023. Here's a comprehensive update on what the channel is working on for release in the next two months or so. 

As you might recall from earlier updates, one of my biggest frustrations of late is the upload frequency on the channel. We massively increased the quality of the videos over the last 12 months, which dramatically better animation quality, but the number of videos released declined as a result.

We managed only 14 videos last year vs 13 between June-Dec in 2021. So a key objective this year is to release more content- I'm setting a target of around 20 for the year, but of course this will vary depending on how much work is required for each. 

The basic format I'm pursuing at the moment is to produce one video a month as 'standalones' - videos about a story that can be fully covered in one video, that are less relatively intense in research terms, to form the backbone of regular content. An example of this kind of video is the Jervis bay video from November. 

On top of this, there will be more intermittent serialised content, which will take on bigger topics, and will come out closer together. Think the Falklands War series we did last year. 

Shinano

Before I get into things that are coming up, a quick reflection on the frankly absurd success we had on the Shinano video just before Christmas. Almost 3,800,000 views in not much over 40 days is a ridiculous number, and not one that I ever really thought Historigraph would get near. 

Thank you all for your support - you are all a part of this success. Without the help of patrons, the channel would never have come this far. 

Glowworm

The first video that will be published this year is the long-planned one on HMS Glowworm, a destroyer which rammed a German heavy cruiser off the coast of Norway in 1940. 

This was originally planned for November before being delayed by some animation difficulties. It should be ready for publication around 18th Feb, with early access for Silver Patrons and above from around Friday 11th Feb

Malacca 

Next up will most likely be a video on the Battle of the Malacca strait, where a group of Allied destroyers sank the Japanese cruiser Haguro in mid-1945. 

Estimated release date for this one is 18th March 

Battle of the Atlantic 

A lot of my time in recent weeks and months has been on the big project for Winter 2023- that being the Battle of the Atlantic. 

I've almost finished the scripts for what will be three videos on this topic, which I'm planning to publish from late march into april, around Easter. 

Episode 1 will deal with the threat of the U-Boats, detailing how their campaign had a serious impact on the Allied war effort particularly in the first half of 1942.

Episode 2 will then cover the 12 months from June 1942 to 1943, covering how the Allies then crushed the U-boats under their weight of their production, climaxing with the devastating U boat losses of 'Black May'. 

Episode 3 will do a deep dive into the Liberty Ship - the humble merchant ship which was produced in such colossal quantities it buried the U-boat offensive almost on its own and- in my view- was the most important war-winning weapon. 

If we can manage to get these videos done in the approximate timescale I'm hoping, then we'll have produced two more than at the same stage last year. 

Well, that's the hope ;)

Josh