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1. A War Footing

4 Extra Debut. Ed Stourton describes the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s wartime journey, the boredom of the Phoney War and the reporter’s experiences. From 2018.

The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ 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 ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ was and what it stood for.

In this first episode, Ed describes how the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ 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 ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'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 ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'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 ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2018.

15 minutes

Last on

Tue 8 Nov 2022 02:00

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Credits

Role Contributor
Reader Edward Stourton
Author Edward Stourton
Abridger Anna Magnusson
Producer Pippa Vaughan

Broadcasts

  • Mon 8 Jan 2018 09:45
  • Tue 9 Jan 2018 00:30
  • Mon 7 Nov 2022 14:00
  • Tue 8 Nov 2022 02:00