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BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

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Bluebird Over the White Cliffs of Dover

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Bluebirds over the White Cliffs of Dover

BBC Radio 4 - Bluebird Over the White Cliffs of Dover

Ian Hislop discovers the chequered history of this musical mainstay of the British nation.

Ian Hislop meets Dame Vera Lynn, veterans, musicologists and even an ornithologist in his quest to find the hidden meaning of this classic wartime song.

Dame Vera Lynn's wartime classic is British, original, but not entirely without controversy. Ian Hislop discovers the chequered history of this musical mainstay of the British nation in its finest hour. Could it really be a song weighed down by politics, propaganda and even a touch of plagiarism? And what about those bluebirds - have you ever seen any in the Dover area?

Ian meets Dame Vera Lynn, veterans, musicologists and even an ornithologist in his quest to find the hidden meaning of this classic wartime song.

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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Bluebird Over the White Cliffs of Dover

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