https://irving.video/videos/watch/b19c218a-cada-41e5-958e-19510d4dec84 OverviewBBC Radio 4 reunion programme examining the 1983 Hitler Diaries hoax. Irving discusses his involvement as a historian who was initially approached about the documents, his early skepticism, and his eventual role in warning publishers of their inauthenticity. The broadcast reunites Irving with journalists Philip Knightley and Magnus Linklater from the Sunday Times, and Gerd Heidemann, the Stern reporter central to the fraud. Topics coveredInitial approach by document authenticator August Prisac and Irving's skepticism about Hitler's diary-keeping habits 00:05:04, Otto Günther's account of seeing a diary entry about the Rudolf Hess flight to Scotland 00:06:00, Irving's recognition of red flags: printing errors on Goering's letterhead and handwriting inconsistencies 00:07:00, Heidemann's first encounter with alleged diaries at Fritz Stiefel's collection near Stuttgart in 1980 00:08:00, Suspicious provenance materials including "Mein Kampf Vol. 3" and Hitler's alleged dinner jacket with Bormann authentication 00:09:01, Irving's December 1982 conclusion that the documents were forgeries and his written warnings to involved parties 00:10:00, The Sunday Times' decision to publish despite Irving's warnings and parallel competition with Stern 00:11:01, Hugh Trevor Roper's authentication and the comparison to the earlier Mussolini Diaries fraud 00:12:02, Key momentsIrving acknowledges falling victim to "greed": "You see something like that, you want it to be genuine, you put all doubts and scepticism to the back of your mind" 00:06:00, On the absurdity of the collection's contents: Irving notes that had he seen Mein Kampf Vol. 3 in its brass-inlaid cassette and the forged dinner jacket earlier, "I would have abandoned my greed-filled thoughts much earlier" 00:09:01, Irving's regret at missing the initial opportunity: after hearing Günther's account, he says "I kicked myself. I kicked myself. I thought, you've missed the scoop of the century, you idiot" 00:06:00, SourceRecorded as a BBC Radio 4 Reunion programme broadcast on 7 September 2008. Sue McGregor presented the reunion format, which brought together the key figures involved in the 1983 scandal—Irving, journalists from the Sunday Times, and Gerd Heidemann speaking via interpreter from Hamburg. Originally produced and broadcast by the BBC. About this archive: irving.video preserves the lectures, interviews, and TV appearances of historian David Irving. All videos are captioned, every transcript is searchable. Books at irvingbooks.com. Sat, 20 Jun 2026 02:06:56 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://irving.video https://irving.video/lazy-static/avatars/217f0272-12b9-4650-9c50-a2b60755061b.jpg https://irving.video/videos/watch/b19c218a-cada-41e5-958e-19510d4dec84 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://irving.video/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.