Airdate: The BBC at War

History will screen a two part documentary The BBC at War which looks back at how the broadcaster kept the home fires burning and was forged through the crisis of World War II.

Hailed and derided in equal measure, the BBC in 1939 had yet to seal its reputation. With the advent of war, the corporation found itself thrust into a battle against the Nazis, and the machinations of the British government.

This series examines how the conflict transformed the BBC, what impact its broadcasts had at home and abroad, and uncovers the battles that raged with the government over its independence – out of which was forged the template for the modern BBC.

From an early Nazi propaganda coup that forced the BBC into action and how fears of a crisis in morale at home led to class barriers being swept away on the airwaves, to how stubborn determination and technical improvisation enabled broadcasting from the heart of the war zone, BBC at War reveals how World War Two was the making of the BBC – and nearly its breaking.

Tuesday May 24 at 9.00pm on History.