Walt Disney: A Life in Films

Other

BBC Radio 4 FM

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

BBC Radio 4

Radio 4

Radio 4 (FM)

WaltDisney Podcast

Documentaries

Podcasts

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Mel Giedroyc steps into the magical world of Walt Disney.

Mel Giedroyc steps into the magical world of Walt Disney, exploring his extraordinary life through the stories of ten of the much mythologised genius's best-loved works.

Walt Disney: A Life in Films: 4. Dumbo

4. Dumbo

BBC Radio 4 - Walt Disney: A Life in Films, 4. Dumbo

Mel Giedroyc examines the impact of war on Disney’s company and his 1941 film Dumbo.

Mel Giedroyc examines the impact of World War 2 on Disney’s company and 1941’s Dumbo, a film with a controversial legacy.

Through the stories of ten of his greatest works, Mel Giedroyc examines the life of Walt Disney, a much mythologised genius. A man to whom storytelling was an escape from an oppressive father and a respite from periods of depression.

His name is truly iconic, but how much do we really know about this titan of the entertainment industry? Who was the real Walt and why did a man who moulded Western pop culture in his image end up on his deathbed, afraid that he’d be forgotten?

In this episode, Mel examines the seismic impact of World War Two on Disney’s company. We’ll hear how soldiers swarmed Disney’s LA studio and discover that Disney animations made a remarkable contribution towards the war effort.

Dumbo is a film with a controversial legacy, with problematic racial language and instances of cartoon blackface. Mel uses the troubling elements of Dumbo as a launching point for a wider examination of Walt’s views on race and the accusations of racism that have followed him over the decades. 

Walt Disney: A Life in Films is produced by Novel for BBC Radio 4

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

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Walt Disney: A Life in Films

4. Dumbo

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 4 FM

About BBC Radio 4