UK Computing History – Part 1: Bletchley Park Legacy — The Machines That Started It All

Right, I’m back in the workshop. The soldering iron’s warm, the bench is a mess, and everything feels exactly as it should. But while I was travelling in the UK, I may have… accidentally filmed an entire trilogy about the British history of computing. This episode is Part 1, and we’re starting with the legacy that made TNMOC possible: Bletchley Park, the birthplace of so much of the modern computing world. In this video you’ll see: • the machines that powered wartime codebreaking • the engineering behind the Bombe and WITCH • early computing architectures that shaped everything that came after • how these ideas connect directly to the machines and repairs I do in the workshop today I also met some wonderful people who were more than happy to talk about restoration and repair techniques, and I hope to chat with them on camera next time I visit. If you enjoy this episode, please leave a comment and let me know what you thought. And of course, like and subscribe so you don’t miss the next part of the trilogy. Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:35 Chapter One - The Bombe 05:29 Chapter Two - Alan Turing 08:51 Chapter Three - Heath Robinson 10:11 Chapter Four - Colossus 11:58 Chapter Five - EDSAC 14:16 Chapter Six - W.I.T.C.H. 16:55 Chapter Seven - Elliot 803 and 804 18:46 Chapter Eight - ICL2900 20:02 Chapter Nine - Home Computers 22:32 Chapter Ten - Cray Supercomputers 28:11 Epilogue Further viewing: • ‪@tnmoc‬excellent demonstrations, restorations, and deep dives into the machines featured in this series. • ‪@BletchleyParkTrust‬talks, archival material, and historical context behind the codebreaking work.