Category: Factual & Arts TV; Radio 4; bbc.co.uk
Date: 21.04.2005
Printable version
V45 - throughout 2005 on 大象传媒 Television, 大象传媒 Radio and online
听
In 2005, it's 60 years since the end of the Second World War, and the nation is preparing for some of the biggest commemorations and celebrations seen since 1945.
听
To mark the occasion, the 大象传媒 will broadcast a range of events and programmes across television, radio and online, transmitting throughout the year, under the umbrella name of V45.
听
This year, national commemorations are not just focused on VE Day (8 May) and VJ Day (15 August), but also include End of the War ceremonial events to be held on 10 July, the official commemoration date marking the end of the war, and this is reflected in the 大象传媒's programming.
听
大象传媒 Television
听
April
听
D-Day To Berlin, 大象传媒 ONE
听
D-Day To Berlin recounts the Allies' struggle from the beaches of Normandy to their ultimate victory in Germany nearly one year later.
听
This three-part series began on Wednesday 20 April with The Struggle To Break Out.
听
The optimism born of the successful D-Day landings quickly begins to fade as the Allies confront a skilful enemy who is determined to throw them back into the sea.
听
British troops become trapped in a terrible battle of attrition, and 60,000 men are killed or wounded in the first three weeks of the campaign.
听
The second programme, Allies At War, looks at the personality differences and radical disagreements in strategy which threaten to create a rift between Eisenhower and Montgomery and burst the alliance open.
听
And the final episode The Dream That Died examines the final few months of the Second World War when crucial decisions will decide the shape of Europe for decades. (NR)
听
In The Footsteps Of Churchill, 大象传媒 FOUR
听
In the Footsteps of Churchill is both a study in character and the story of an extraordinary career.
听
As a soldier at Omdurman Churchill took part in an old-style cavalry charge and was twice recommended for the Victoria Cross.
听
He went on to become a towering figure in British politics, changing parties twice - from the Conservatives to the Liberals and back again - and holding all the great offices of state except Foreign Secretary.
听
He was a journalist and historian, wrote some 80 books and won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
听
The series takes viewers on an exhilarating journey through Harrow, the North-West Frontier, the Sudan, South Africa, 10 Downing Street and his beloved Chartwell; a journey that begins in the aristocratic splendour of Blenheim Palace and ends in the quiet of a country churchyard - the compass of an extraordinary life in a few Oxfordshire acres.
(JW)
听
Wales At War, 大象传媒 ONE Wales
听
1939 to 1945 were six pivotal years that changed the lives of many in Wales for ever.
听
John Humphrys discovers many personal stories in this new four-part 大象传媒 Wales series, a collection of the emotional experiences and dilemmas of Second World War.
听
With a comprehensive new archive of material - gathered from people's own personal memories, pictures and artefacts - the series helps to piece together a full picture of those unforgettable years.
(JW)
听
May
听
A Party To Remember: Live From Trafalgar Square, 大象传媒 ONE, 8 May
听
Sir Cliff Richard, Will Young, Daniel Bedingfield, Katie Melua, Katherine Jenkins, Hayley Westenra and Heather Small are some of the top international artists taking part in this live concert from Trafalgar Square, which marks the 60th Anniversary of VE Day.
听
The musical extravaganza is presented by Eamonn Holmes and Natasha Kaplinsky with special guest appearances from Dame Vera Lynn, Christopher Eccleston, Richard E Grant and Heather Mills McCartney.
听
200 representatives from Veteran groups are also in attendance.
听
Popular songs of wartime feature alongside contemporary tracks in a celebration of both the past and the future; songs are interspersed with readings, original footage and short films about fashion, entertainment and lifestyle in the Forties, transporting the audience back in time.
听
A Party to Remember: Live From Trafalgar Square - VE Day 60th, is being organised by the 大象传媒, The Royal British Legion and the Mayor of London with the support of the London Development Agency.
听
The concert is also broadcast live on 大象传媒 London 94.9 FM and other 大象传媒 Local Radio Stations.
听
大象传媒 Radio 2 will broadcast live features from Trafalgar Square during the event with concert highlights broadcasting later on in the evening.
(LW)
听
We'll Meet Again, 大象传媒 ONE, 8 May
听
As part of the 60th anniversary of Germany's surrender, Des Lynam presents We'll Meet Again, a one-hour special to celebrate the end of the war.
听
We'll Meet Again reunites old friends, comrades and heroes who have carried the memories of each other in their hearts since the war, and tells uplifting wartime stories recounted by those who lived through it.
听
Separated by distance and circumstance for more than half a lifetime, these stories will be brought up-to-date with emotional and surprising reunions.
听
With live studio performances and special guests, We'll Meet Again also gives viewers a taste of what the entertainment of the wartime years would have been like.
(JM)
听
July
听
Britain
At War - The Road To Victory, 大象传媒 ONE
Monday 4 to Friday 8 July
听
For five days, during Veterans Awareness Week,
Huw Edwards presents a series of daily programmes to mark the
60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.
听
Dramatic stories of survival and tales of courage are
told, which show how people endured the war - both at home and abroad.
The series will come live from St James's Park in London, part of which
will be transformed into a 'Living Museum' commemorating the Second
World War.
听
Huw and the team will meet both veterans and visitors
as he retells the story of conflict over 60 years ago.
听
Each day, Jenny Scott talks to the
veterans and visitors who have come to the Living Museum. Darren
Jordon reports on some of the key events in Europe during the
war. Maureen Lipman looks at what life was like on
the Home Front in mainland Britain. And Dick Strawbridge
reports on the conflict in the Far East.
听
Viewers can email, phone or text our experts: social
historian, Juliet Gardiner and military historian Dr.
Simon Trew, who will be on hand during the programme to answer
questions and respond to comments.
听
With additional films reports from Prof. Richard
Holmes; Sophie Raworth; and father and son
team, Peter and Dan Snow, the series charts the course
of the war from its beginnings in 1939 through to its conclusion in
1945 and looks at the impact it had on the United Kingdom.
听
Items featured in the five programmes are detailed below:
听
Monday 4 July, 12.15-1.00pm 大象传媒 ONE
This programme looks at the early years of the war and
how Britain found herself isolated.
听
Darren Jordon reports on the build-up to the Second
World War; Maureen Lipman tells the story of evacuation; Dick Strawbridge
looks at the tensions that led to the conflict in the Far East; and
Prof. Richard Holmes describes how Churchill came to lead the country
through some of its darkest hours.
听
Tuesday 5 July, 12.15-1.00pm 大象传媒 ONE
Darren Jordon tells us the story of the Allied evacuation
from Dunkirk; father and son team, Peter and Dan Snow, are at RAF Duxford,
a Sector Station during the Battle of Britain; Maureen Lipman looks
at what is was like to live through the Blitz; and Dick Strawbridge
is with some veterans of Singapore, hearing their memories of this Allied
disaster in the Far East.
听
Wednesday 6 July 11.30am-12.15pm 大象传媒 ONE
The story of the Battle of El Alamein is told by Darren
Jordon; Dan Snow looks at the global Allied effort required to survive
the conflict; Maureen Lipman continues her reports from the Home Front,
looking at those who refused to fight; Dick Strawbridge tells the harrowing
story of the Prisoners of War in the Far East; and Sophie Raworth tells
the story of a 'U-Boat Killer' from Liverpool.
听
Thursday 7 July 12.15-1.00pm 大象传媒 ONE
Darren Jordon tells the story of the battle of the Atlantic;
Sophie Raworth has been underground at Derby House in Liverpool, HQ
for this crucial Naval battle; Peter and Dan Snow tell the controversial
story of Fighter Command's Bombing Campaign; and Dick Strawbridge continues
his series of films from the Far East from Kohima, where the Allied
fight-back against Japan began.
听
Friday 8 July 12.15-1.00pm 大象传媒 ONE
In the last programme before Sunday's National Commemoration
of the end of the Second World War, Huw Edwards looks at the closing
chapters of the conflict; the events leading to victory in Europe and
Japan; and the days and years that followed.
听
Jenny Scott once again talks to the veterans and visitors
who have come to the Living Museum in St James's Park; Darren Jordon
looks at the final Allied push to Berlin; Maureen Lipman has the story
of how one of Hitler's most feared weapons brought death and destruction
to mainland Britain - the V-weapons; Sophie Raworth takes a look at
the only part of Britain to be liberated from Nazi occupation - The
Channel Islands; and Dick Strawbridge contrasts the dry, official accounts
of battle in the Far East with those of author George MacDonald Fraser,
who describes the difficult fight from a personal point of view. (SS)
听
End Of The War Ceremony, 大象传媒 ONE, 10 July
听
大象传媒 ONE will be covering the day live from 10.30am to
12.15pm and then from 2.00pm to 5.15pm.
听
大象传媒 ONE will be covering a day of ceremonial events
in London to commemorate the end of the Second World War, which will
be attended by veterans and their families.
听
It will be presented by Huw Edwards
with Sir Max Hastings and Colonel John Hughes-Wilson.
听
There will be a service at Westminster Abbey from 11.00am
to commemorate the civilian loss of life and it will be attended by
Her Majesty The Queen.
听
The day will continue with an event at Horse Guards
at 2.30pm, remembering the sacrifice and celebrating the victory won
in front of 12,000 veterans of both the armed forces and civilian services
who suffered and fought through the Second World War.
听
Following this, the standards of veterans' organisations
will process along the Mall to Buckingham Palace, where the Royal Family
will make their traditional appearance on the balcony to view a flypast
of aircraft which took part in the aerial struggles - both above the
UK and across the world.
听
The day will culminate in a poppy drop from the Lancaster,
escorted by Spitfires and Hurricanes from the Battle Of Britain Memorial
Flight.
听
More information on Horse Guards Commemoration
3.00-4.00pm
听
At 3.00pm there will be a special event on London's
famous Horse Guards Parade, where hundreds of musicians, singers, actors
and celebrities will come together in a Pageant telling the story of
the Second World War.
听
This hour-long Festival of Commemoration, in the presence
of Her Majesty The Queen, will combine poignancy, comedy,
unique archive footage and memorable music of the time.
听
Well-known celebrities such as Jane Horrocks,
Simon Callow, Bruce Forsythe, Joe
Pasquale, Dame Vera Lynn and the current 'Forces'
Sweetheart,' Claire Sweeney, will impersonate some
of the great stars of the period in a Forties-style show.
听
The Festival is also a time of reflection and remembrance
- and will include a March On of 200 standards; the Last Post relayed
from an overseas war grave; a two-minute silence; and music from a spectacular
tri-service Military Band and the 200-strong Bach Choir - allowing the
veterans present on Horse Guards and those watching on TV to mark this
anniversary with dignity.
听
A 大象传媒 Production. (KB/NR)
听
Hiroshima, 大象传媒 ONE
听
At 8.15am on 6 August 1945, the first atomic bomb was dropped over the Japanese city of Hiroshima, killing nearly 100,000 people instantly.
听
Those who managed to survive - in spite of the lethal heat-blast, the colossal shockwave and the invisible effects of gamma radiation - told stories of a living nightmare.
听
This drama-documentary is set in the three weeks from the first test explosion in New Mexico to the eventual dropping of the bomb, and shows what it was like to live through a nuclear explosion.
听
It includes a host of visual techniques, including archive footage, CGI, miniature models, prosthetics and pyrotechnics to illustrate all the different stages of the explosion.
听
Everything is based on facts, drawn from survivors' testimony, never-before-seen interviews with the last remaining members of the air crew and witnesses to the political decisions, official documents, diaries and archive film.
听
Hiroshima puts the explosion in its historical and political context, examining the evidence and records to build a detailed account of the reasons for the decision to bomb the city.
A 大象传媒 Production. (KB)
听
After The War, 大象传媒 TWO
听
After The War, a new three-part series, looks at the burning issues around 1945 - what happened when war ended; how peace was restored; and how the Allies set about the reconstruction of Nazi Germany.
听
After The War: Churchill examines the man who led the nation through its darkest hours of thew Second World War and brought victory to Britain.
听
After announcing a snap General Election, Churchill toured the country where he was rapturously received by enormous crowds.
听
But in a shock defeat, Churchill was voted out of office and Clement Attlee and the Labour Party took control of the country.
听
The programme follows Churchill on the ups and downs of the campaign and talks to people who were there including his daughter Mary Soames, his secretary Elizabeth Nel, his translator at Potsdam, Hugh Lunghi, and many others.
听
Labour activists at the time - such as Tony Benn and Denis Healey - also take part as does Janet Shipton, Attlee's daughter.
听
After The War: Germany shows the full destruction of Nazi Germany after seven years of war and how the Allies were faced with having to rebuild the country.
听
After The War: Hirohito examines the Japanese Emperor's reign and the role he played during the Second World War.
听
A 大象传媒 Production. (KB)
听
大象传媒 Radio
听
Coming Home, Radio 4, 9 to 13 May
听
Coming Home, a landmark series for Radio 4, celebrates the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War throughout the week beginning Monday 9 May.
听
Charles Wheeler presents five personal interpretations of what the end of the war meant to people in Britain and across the world.
听
Taking that unique moment as its starting point, Coming Home traces the way in which the previous six years of hostilities led to the realisation that the world had irrevocably changed.
听
Coming Home is on 大象传媒 Radio 4, daily, Monday 9 to Friday 13 May at 9.00am. (EH)
听
Random Edition, Radio 4, 6 May
听
Random Edition joins in Radio 4's season of programmes to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War with a VE Day special on Friday 6 May.
听
As ever, a single newspaper from history provides the stories.
听
The archive newspaper selected is the News Chronicle for Wednesday 9 May 1945.
听
Its VE Day reports whisk round the country to describe everything from loaves being stolen from a baker's van in Oxford, to a 'cease fire' bugled in Sheffield by Joseph Revitt, who sounded the same command in 1918 outside the very railway carriage where the Armistice was signed.
听
Random Edition VE Day Special is on 大象传媒 Radio 4 on Friday 6 May at 11.00am. (EH)
听
bbc.co.uk
听
People's War
听
The People's War website exists to capture memories and experiences of those who lived through the Second World War.
听
The site went live in 2003 and continues to look for more stories.
听
So far, People's War has worked with community centres and libraries around the UK to encourage people who lived through the war to visit and contribute their stories to the website.
听
This year People's War is looking for storygathers - sons, daughters, grandsons, granddaughters and even neighbours of those who were alive during the Second World War.
听
Their recollections and experiences are invaluable.
Visit bbc.co.uk/ww2 for more information.
(NR)
