Auntie's War

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BBC Radio 4 FM

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Edward Stourton

Anna Magnusson

Pippa Vaughan

Auntie's War by Edward Stourton: 1. A War Footing

1. A War Footing

Auntie's War by Edward Stourton

BBC Radio 4 - Auntie's War by Edward Stourton, 1. A War Footing

Ed Stourton describes how the BBC adapted to being on a war footing.

4 Extra Debut. Ed Stourton describes the BBC’s wartime journey, the boredom of the Phoney War and the reporter’s experiences. From 2018.

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

In this first episode, Ed describes how the BBC adapted to being on a war footing, the boredom of the Phoney War and the experiences of reporters sent to France.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. 

It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton

Abridged in five parts by Anna Magnusson. 

Producer:  Pippa Vaughan

A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2018.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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Edward Stourton's account of the BBC during the Second World War.

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Auntie's War by Edward Stourton

1. A War Footing

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