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{{short description|British television documentary series |
{{other uses|World at War (disambiguation)}}{{short description|1973 British television documentary series}} |
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{{other uses|World at War (disambiguation)}} |
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{{more citations needed|date=April 2018}} |
{{more citations needed|date=April 2018}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date= |
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}} |
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{{Use British English|date=July 2012}} |
{{Use British English|date=July 2012}} |
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{{Infobox television |
{{Infobox television |
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'''''The World at War''''' is a |
'''''The World at War''''' is a 26-episode British [[Documentary film|documentary]] television series that chronicles the events of the [[World War II|Second World War]]. Produced in 1973 at a cost of £900,000 ({{Inflation|UK|900000|1973|fmt=eq|cursign=£|r=-5}}), it was the most expensive [[Factual television|factual series]] ever made at the time.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rts.org.uk/article/memories-world-war |title=Memories of a world at war |website=[[Royal Television Society]] |date=2 July 2015 |access-date=31 March 2019 }}</ref> It was produced by [[Jeremy Isaacs]],<ref name="G.a">{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2013/oct/28/how-we-made-world-at-war |title=Jeremy Isaacs and David Elstein: how we made The World at War |author=Anna Tims |website=[[The Guardian]] |date=28 October 2013 |access-date=31 March 2019 }}</ref> narrated by [[Laurence Olivier]] and included music composed by [[Carl Davis]].<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/periods-genres/film-tv/world-at-war-theme/| title=The World at War theme: Carl Davis| publisher=Classic FM| accessdate=7 June 2022}}</ref> The book, ''The World at War'', published the same year, was written by [[Mark Arnold-Forster]] to accompany the TV series. |
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''The World at War'' attracted widespread acclaim and |
''The World at War'' attracted widespread acclaim and now it is regarded as a landmark in British television history.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/tv/100/list/list.php |title=BFI | Features | TV 100 List of Lists |access-date=19 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911083558/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/tv/100/list/list.php |archive-date=11 September 2011 }}</ref> The series focused on a portrayal of the experience of the conflict: of how life and death throughout the war years affected soldiers, sailors and airmen, civilians, [[concentration camp]] inmates and other victims of the war.<ref name="G.a" /><ref name="book-3-TDC">{{cite book |last1=Rosenthal |first1=Alan |title=The Documentary Conscience: A Casebook in Film Making |date=1 July 1980 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0520040229 |page=65 |edition=first |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KOpYTIx2GKYC&dq=Susan+McConachy&pg=PA64 |access-date=3 September 2021}}</ref> |
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== Overview == |
== Overview == |
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Jeremy Isaacs had been inspired to look at the production of a long-form documentary series about the Second World War following the [[BBC]]'s broadcast of its series ''[[The Great War (TV series)|The Great War]]'' in 1964. |
[[Jeremy Isaacs]] had been inspired to look at the production of a long-form documentary series about the [[World War II|Second World War]] following the [[BBC]]'s broadcast of its series ''[[The Great War (TV series)|The Great War]]'' in 1964. The BBC series, produced in collaboration with the [[Imperial War Museum]], featured a mix of contemporary film footage from [[World War I|the period]] and film recreations, which soured relations between the BBC and the Museum.<ref name=WAW>{{cite news |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/forty-years-on-the-world-at-war-has-lost-none-of-its-power-1.1541471 |title=Forty years on, 'The World at War' has lost none of its power |last=Hennessy |first=Mark |date=27 September 2013 |newspaper=The Irish Times |access-date=10 February 2020 }}</ref> As a consequence, Isaacs was determined to have his programme be as authentic as possible. |
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''The World at War'' was commissioned by [[Thames Television]] in 1969. |
''The World at War'' was commissioned by [[Thames Television]] in 1969. The government had halved its levy on television advertising revenue, with the proviso that the money which the independent television companies saved must be reinvested in programmes. Isaacs persuaded Thames to use the money to pay for the production of his Second World War documentary.<ref name=WAW /> The series took four years to produce, at a cost of £900,000 ({{Inflation|UK|900000|1973|fmt=eq|cursign=£|r=-5}}), a record for a British television series. It was first shown in 1973 on [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]. |
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The series featured interviews with major members of the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] and [[Axis Powers|Axis]] campaigns, including |
The series featured interviews with major members of the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] and [[Axis Powers|Axis]] campaigns, including witness accounts from civilians, enlisted men, officers and politicians. The interviewees included [[Sir Max Aitken]], [[Joseph Lawton Collins]], [[Mark Wayne Clark|Mark Clark]], [[Jock Colville]], [[Karl Dönitz]], [[James "Jimmy" Doolittle]], [[Lawrence Durrell]], [[Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon|Lord Eden of Avon]], [[Mitsuo Fuchida]], [[Adolf Galland]], [[Minoru Genda]], [[W. Averell Harriman]], Sir [[Arthur Harris]], [[Alger Hiss]], [[Brian Horrocks]], [[Traudl Junge]], [[Toshikazu Kase]], [[Curtis LeMay]], [[Vera Lynn]], [[Hasso von Manteuffel]], [[Bill Mauldin]], [[John J. McCloy]], [[Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma|Lord Mountbatten of Burma]], Sir [[Richard O'Connor]], [[J. B. Priestley]], [[Saburo Sakai]], [[Albert Speer]], [[James Stewart]], [[Charles Sweeney]], [[Paul Tibbets]], [[Walter Warlimont]], [[Takeo Yoshikawa]] and historian [[Stephen Ambrose]]. |
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In the programme ''The Making of "The World at War"'', included in the DVD set, |
In the programme ''The Making of "The World at War"'', included in the DVD set, Isaacs explains that priority was given to interviews with surviving aides and assistants rather than recognised figures. The most difficult person to locate and persuade to be interviewed was [[Heinrich Himmler]]'s adjutant [[Karl Wolff]]. During the interview, he admitted to witnessing a mass execution in Himmler's presence.<ref name="G.b">{{cite news |last1=Jeremy |first1=Isaacs |title=Susan McConachy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2006/nov/23/obituaries.mainsection |access-date=3 September 2021 |work=The Guardian |date=23 November 2006}}</ref> Isaacs later expressed satisfaction with the series's content, noting that if it had not been secret, he would have added references to British codebreaking at [[Bletchley Park]]. In a list of the [[100 Greatest British Television Programmes]] which was compiled by the [[British Film Institute]] during 2000, voted for by industry professionals, ''The World at War'' ranked 19th, the highest-placed documentary on the list. |
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In a list of the [[100 Greatest British Television Programmes]] compiled by the [[British Film Institute]] during 2000, voted for by industry professionals, ''The World at War'' ranked 19th, the highest-placed documentary on the list. |
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== Episodes == |
== Episodes == |
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The series has twenty-six episodes. Isaacs asked [[Noble Frankland]], |
The series has twenty-six episodes. Isaacs asked [[Noble Frankland]], director of the Imperial War Museum, to list fifteen main campaigns of the war and devoted one episode to each.<ref name="G.a" /> The remaining eleven episodes are devoted to other matters, such as the rise of [[Nazi Germany]], home life in Britain and Germany, the experience of [[Netherlands in World War II|occupation of the Netherlands]], and [[the Holocaust]]. Episode one begins with a [[cold open]] describing the massacre at the French village of [[Oradour-sur-Glane]] by the ''[[Waffen SS]]''. The same event is referenced again at the end of Episode twenty-six, accompanied by the "[[Dona nobis pacem]]" (Latin for "Grant us peace") from the [[Missa Sancti Nicolai]], composed by [[Joseph Haydn]]. The series ends with Laurence Olivier saying "Remember". For all but three episodes ("The Desert", "Home Fires", and "Remember"), the last scene of each episode either ended as a photograph or would be a [[freeze-frame shot]] of a film, and then change to a textured photograph before the credits roll. They would show the textured photograph only when ''The World at War'' logo appeared in both "The Desert" and "Home Fires" episodes. In the "Remember" episode, it would show the fire used during the title part as the credits roll before extinguishing itself at the end.<ref>{{Citation |last=Thames Television - Jeremy Isaacs |title=The World at War (1973) - Thames Television |date=1973-10-31 |url=http://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973-thames-television-world-war-two |access-date=2024-01-24 |publisher=Thames Television}}</ref> |
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{{Episode table |background= |overall= |title= |airdate= |episodes= |
{{Episode table |background= |overall= |title= |airdate= |episodes= |
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|Title = A New Germany (1933–1939) |
|Title = A New Germany (1933–1939) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|10|31|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|10|31|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The rebirth of Germany and growth in power of the [[Nazi Party]] leading up to the outbreak of war. Interviewees include [[Konrad Morgen]], [[Hugh Greene]], [[Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin]], |
|ShortSummary = The rebirth of Germany and growth in power of the [[Nazi Party]] leading up to the outbreak of war. Interviewees include [[Konrad Morgen]], [[Hugh Greene]], [[Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin]], {{Interlanguage link|Werner Pusch|de}}, [[Christabel Bielenberg]], [[Siegmund Weltlinger]] and [[Emmi Bonhoeffer]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Distant War (September 1939 – May 1940) |
|Title = Distant War (September 1939 – May 1940) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|7|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|7|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The [[Invasion of Poland|invasions of Poland]], the [[Winter War]], the [[Battle of the River Plate|sinking]] of the ''[[German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee|Graf Spee]]'', the "[[phony war]]" and [[Norwegian Campaign |
|ShortSummary = The [[Invasion of Poland|invasions of Poland]], the [[Winter War]], the [[Battle of the River Plate|sinking]] of the ''[[German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee|Graf Spee]]'', the "[[phony war]]" and [[Norwegian Campaign]] and the elevation of [[Winston Churchill]] to [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]]. Interviewees include [[Lord Boothby]], [[Rab Butler]], [[Bernard Kops]], [[Lucy Faithfull, Baroness Faithfull|Lucy Faithfull]], [[Antony Lyttelton, 2nd Viscount Chandos|Lord Chandos]], Admiral [[Charles Woodhouse]], Sir [[Sir Martin Lindsay, 1st Baronet|Martin Lindsay]] and Sir [[Jock Colville|John "Jock" Colville]]. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|EpisodeNumber = 3 |
|EpisodeNumber = 3 |
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|Title = |
|Title = France Falls (May–June 1940) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|14|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|14|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = French politics, the [[Maginot Line]], the [[Saar Offensive]], [[Blitzkrieg]] warfare and the [[Nazi invasion of France]] and the [[Low Countries]]. Interviewees include General [[Hasso von Manteuffel]], General [[André Beaufre]], [[Lawrence Durrell]], General [[Siegfried Westphal]], [[Gordon Waterfield]], General [[Walter Warlimont]] |
|ShortSummary = French politics, the [[Maginot Line]], the [[Saar Offensive]], [[Blitzkrieg]] warfare and the [[Nazi invasion of France]] and the [[Low Countries]]. Interviewees include General [[Hasso von Manteuffel]], General [[André Beaufre]], [[Lawrence Durrell]], General [[Siegfried Westphal]], [[Gordon Waterfield]], General [[Walter Warlimont]] and Major General [[Edward Spears]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Alone (May 1940 – May 1941) |
|Title = Alone (May 1940 – May 1941) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|21|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|21|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The [[Battle of Britain]], |
|ShortSummary = The [[Battle of Britain]], defeats in [[Battle of Greece|Greece]] and [[Battle of Crete|Crete]], [[Battle of Tobruk (1941)|Tobruk]] and life in Britain between the [[evacuation at Dunkirk]] and [[Operation Barbarossa]]. Interviewees include [[Anthony Eden|Lord Avon]], [[J. B. Priestley]], Sir [[Sir Max Aitken, 2nd Baronet|Max Aitken]], Lieutenant General [[Adolf Galland]], Sir John "Jock" Colville, [[Robert Wright (British historian)|Robert Wright]], [[Ray Holmes]] and a group of survivors of [[The Blitz]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Barbarossa (June–December 1941) |
|Title = Barbarossa (June–December 1941) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|28|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|11|28|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = After dominating southeastern Europe through force or intrigue, Germany begins |
|ShortSummary = After dominating southeastern Europe through force or intrigue, Germany begins [[Operation Barbarossa]], the invasion of the [[Soviet Union]]. Despite several quick victories, the invasion fails after the [[assault on Moscow]] in winter. Interviewees include General [[Walter Warlimont]], [[Albert Speer]], [[Paul Schmidt (interpreter)|Paul Schmidt]], [[Grigori Tokaty]], [[W. Averell Harriman]] and Sir [[John Russell (diplomat)|John Russell]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Banzai!: Japan (1931–1942) |
|Title = Banzai!: Japan (1931–1942) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|5|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|5|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The rise of the Japanese Empire, the [[Second Sino-Japanese War|Sino-Japanese War]], the [[Soviet-Japanese border conflicts]], [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl |
|ShortSummary = The rise of the Japanese Empire, the [[Second Sino-Japanese War|Sino-Japanese War]], the [[Soviet–Japanese border conflicts|Soviet-Japanese border conflicts]], [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]] and the early Japanese successes in the [[Battle of Malaya]] and [[Battle of Singapore]]. Interviewees include [[Kōichi Kido]], [[Toshikazu Kase]], [[Minoru Genda]], [[Mitsuo Fuchida]], [[Masatake Okumiya]], [[Takeo Yoshikawa]], [[Sir John Smyth, 1st Baronet|John Smyth]] and [[Ichiji Sugita]]. |
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}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = On Our Way: U.S.A. (1939–1942) |
|Title = On Our Way: U.S.A. (1939–1942) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|12|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|12|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The [[United States non-interventionism|opposition]] by |
|ShortSummary = The [[United States non-interventionism|opposition]] by factions to the United States of America's entry into the war, [[Lend Lease]], [[U-boat]] attacks on Atlantic convoys and American responses, the mobilisation of America after Pearl Harbor, the [[Philippines campaign (1941–1942)|loss of the Philippines]], the [[Doolittle Raid]], [[Battle of Midway|Midway]] and [[Guadalcanal Campaign|Guadalcanal]]. Interviewees include [[W. Averell Harriman]], [[George Ball (diplomat)|George Ball]], [[Norman Corwin]], [[John Kenneth Galbraith|Ken Galbraith]], [[John J. McCloy]], [[Edison Uno]], [[Paul Samuelson]], [[Isamu Noguchi]], [[Jimmy Doolittle]], [[Richard Tregaskis]], [[Minoru Genda]], [[Mitsuo Fuchida]], [[J. Lawton Collins]] and [[Vannevar Bush]]. |
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}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = The Desert: North Africa (1940–1943) |
|Title = The Desert: North Africa (1940–1943) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|19|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1973|12|19|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = [[Western Desert |
|ShortSummary = [[Western Desert campaign|The Desert War]], starting with Italy's invasion of [[Egypt]] and the attacks and counterattacks between Germany and Italy and the Commonwealth forces, the [[Axis powers|Axis]] defeat at [[Second Battle of El Alamein|El Alamein]]. Interviewees include General [[Richard O'Connor]], Major General [[Francis de Guingand]], [[Siegfried Westphal]], Field Marshal [[John Harding, 1st Baron Harding of Petherton|Lord Harding]] and [[Lawrence Durrell]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Stalingrad (June 1942 – February 1943) |
|Title = Stalingrad (June 1942 – February 1943) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|2|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|2|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The mid-war German situation in Southern Russia resulting in the [[Battle of Stalingrad]] |
|ShortSummary = The mid-war German situation in Southern Russia resulting in the German defeat at the [[Battle of Stalingrad]]. This episode features only Olivier's narration and has no interviewees. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Wolf Pack: U-Boats in the Atlantic (1939–1944) |
|Title = Wolf Pack: U-Boats in the Atlantic (1939–1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|9|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|9|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The [[submarine]] war emphasising the [[North Atlantic]]. Tracks the development of |
|ShortSummary = The [[submarine]] war emphasising the [[North Atlantic]]. Tracks the development of the convoy system and German submarine strategy. Interviewees include Grand Admiral [[Karl Dönitz]], [[Otto Kretschmer]], Captain [[William Eyton-Jones]], Captain [[Gilbert Roberts (Royal Navy officer)|Gilbert Roberts]], Vice Admiral Sir [[Peter Gretton]], Air Vice Marshal [[Wilfrid Oulton]], [[Peter-Erich Cremer]] and [[Raymond Hart]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Whirlwind: Bombing Germany (September 1939 – April 1944) |
|Title = Whirlwind: Bombing Germany (September 1939 – April 1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|23|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|23|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The development of British and American [[Strategic bombing during World War II|strategic bombing]] |
|ShortSummary = The development of British and American [[Strategic bombing during World War II|strategic bombing]]. Interviewees include [[Marshal of the Royal Air Force]] Sir Arthur Harris, [[Albert Speer]], Brigadier-General [[James Stewart]], [[Hamish Mahaddie]], [[William Reid (VC)|William Reid]], General [[Leon W. Johnson]], General [[Curtis LeMay]], [[Wilhelm Herget]], [[Werner Schröer]], Lieutenant General [[Adolf Galland]] and General [[Ira C. Eaker]]. |
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|Title = Tough Old Gut: Italy (November 1942 – June 1944) |
|Title = Tough Old Gut: Italy (November 1942 – June 1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|30|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|1|30|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = The difficulties of the [[Italian Campaign (World War II)|Italian Campaign]] beginning with [[Operation Torch]] in [[North Africa]], the [[Allied invasion of Sicily|invasion of Sicily]]; [[Allied invasion of Italy|Salerno]], [[Operation Shingle|Anzio]], [[Battle of Monte Cassino|Cassino]] and the capture of [[Rome]]. Interviewees include General Sir [[Kenneth Strong]], General [[Mark Wayne Clark|Mark Clark]], Field Marshal [[John Harding, 1st Baron Harding of Petherton|Lord Harding]], [[Bill Mauldin]], [[Wynford Vaughan-Thomas]] and [[Siegfried Westphal]]. |
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|Title = It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow: Burma (1942–1944) |
|Title = It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow: Burma (1942–1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|6|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|6|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The jungle war in [[Burma Campaign|Burma]] and [[India in World War II|India]]—what it "lacked in scale was made up in savagery". Interviewees include [[Mike Calvert]], [[Sir John Smyth, 1st Baronet| |
|ShortSummary = The jungle war in [[Burma Campaign|Burma]] and [[India in World War II|India]]—what it "lacked in scale was made up in savagery". Interviewees include [[Mike Calvert]], Sir [[Sir John Smyth, 1st Baronet|John Smyth]] and [[Vera Lynn]] (the episode title is the name of one of her songs), and [[Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma|Lord Mountbatten of Burma]]. |
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|Title = Home Fires: Britain (1940–1944) |
|Title = Home Fires: Britain (1940–1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|13|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|13|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = Life and politics in Britain from post-Battle of Britain to the first [[V-1 (flying bomb)|V-1]] attacks. Interviewees include |
|ShortSummary = Life and politics in Britain from post-Battle of Britain to the first [[V-1 (flying bomb)|V-1]] attacks. Interviewees include Rab Butler, [[Manny Shinwell, Baron Shinwell|Lord Shinwell]], [[Oliver Lyttelton|Lord Chandos]], [[Tom Driberg]], [[Anthony Eden|Lord Avon]], [[Michael Foot]], [[Cecil Harmsworth King]] and [[J. B. Priestley]]. |
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|Title = Inside the Reich: Germany (1940–1944) |
|Title = Inside the Reich: Germany (1940–1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|20|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|20|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = German society |
|ShortSummary = Changes in German society as the fortunes of war are reversed. Censorship and popular entertainment, German industry, the recruitment of female, foreign and slave labour, Allied bombing, German dissent—including the [[20 July plot]], and the mobilisation of the ''[[Volkssturm]]'' towards war's end. Interviewees include [[Christabel Bielenberg]], [[Friedrich Luft]], [[Albert Speer]], [[Emmi Bonhoeffer]], [[Otto John]], [[Traudl Junge]], [[Richard Schulze-Kossens]], and [[Otto Ernst Remer]]. |
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|Title = Morning (June–August 1944) |
|Title = Morning (June–August 1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|27|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|2|27|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = [[Operation Overlord]] starting with the failed [[Dieppe Raid]], followed by battles in the [[Battle of the Bocage|Bocage]], the Allied breakout and [[Battle of Falaise|Falaise]]. Interviewees include [[Goronwy Rees]], Lord Mountbatten of Burma, [[Kay Summersby]], [[James Stagg]] and Major General [[J. Lawton Collins]]. |
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|Title = Occupation: Holland (1940–1944) |
|Title = Occupation: Holland (1940–1944) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|13|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|13|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = Life in [[Military history of the Netherlands during World War II|the Netherlands]] under German occupation, when citizens chose to resist, collaborate or remain passive. Interviewees include [[Gerben Wagenaar]], [[Florentine Rost van Tonningen]], [[Loe de Jong]] (who also served as adviser for this episode), [[Jetty Paerl]] and [[Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands]]. |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Pincers (August 1944 – March 1945) |
|Title = Pincers (August 1944 – March 1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|20|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|20|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = [[Operation Dragoon]], the [[liberation of Paris]], the Allied |
|ShortSummary = [[Operation Dragoon]], the [[liberation of Paris]], the Allied occupation of France and the failure of [[Operation Market Garden]], the [[Warsaw Uprising]], the [[Battle of the Bulge]] and the [[Operation Plunder|crossing of the Rhine]]. In the East, the [[King Michael's Coup|Romanian coup]] and the Soviet advance through Ukraine to East Prussia. Interviewees include Lieutenant General [[Brian Horrocks]], [[Wynford Vaughan Thomas]], General Sir [[Kenneth Strong]], General [[Hasso von Manteuffel]], Major General [[Francis de Guingand]], [[W. Averell Harriman]], General [[Siegfried Westphal]] and Major General [[J. Lawton Collins]]. |
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|Title = Genocide (1941–1945) |
|Title = Genocide (1941–1945) |
||
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|27|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|3|27|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = Begins with the founding of the [[Schutzstaffel| |
|ShortSummary = Begins with the founding of the [[Schutzstaffel|SS]] and follows the development of Nazi racial theory. It ends with the implementation of the [[Final Solution]]. Interviewees include [[Karl Wolff]], [[Wilhelm Höttl]], [[Rudolf Vrba]], [[Primo Levi]], [[Richard Böck]], [[Anthony Eden|Lord Avon]] and Rivka Yosilevska. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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Line 166: | Line 163: | ||
|Title = Nemesis: Germany (February–May 1945) |
|Title = Nemesis: Germany (February–May 1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|3|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|3|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The |
|ShortSummary = The invasion of Germany by the Allies, the bombing of [[Dresden]], and the events in the ''[[Führerbunker]]'' during the [[Battle of Berlin]]. Interviewees include [[Albert Speer]], [[Traudl Junge]], [[Carola Stern]], [[Elena Rzhevskaya]], [[Heinz Linge]], [[Eberhard Bethge]], Major Anna Nikulina and [[Friedrich Luft]]. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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Line 172: | Line 169: | ||
|Title = Japan (1941–1945) |
|Title = Japan (1941–1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|10|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|10|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = Japanese society during wartime and how life is transformed as the country suffers defeats including the [[Doolittle raid]], [[Battle of Midway|Midway]], [[Operation Vengeance|the death of Isoroku Yamamoto]], the [[Battle of Saipan]], [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa]] and the relentless [[air raids on Japan|bombing of Japanese cities]]. Interviewees include [[Toshikazu Kase]] and [[Naoki Hoshino]]. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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Line 178: | Line 175: | ||
|Title = Pacific (February 1942 – July 1945) |
|Title = Pacific (February 1942 – July 1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|17|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|17|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = Battles on tiny islands in the [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]], aimed towards the Japanese heartland. Following the [[bombing of Darwin]], the Japanese are turned back at [[Kokoda Track campaign|Kokoda]], [[Battle of Tarawa|Tarawa]], [[Battle of Peleliu|Peleliu]], the [[Philippines campaign (1944–45)|Philippines]], [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima]] and finally [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa]]. Interviewees include [[Roy Marlin Voris|Butch Voris]] and Frank Manson. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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Line 184: | Line 181: | ||
|Title = The Bomb (February–September 1945) |
|Title = The Bomb (February–September 1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|24|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|4|24|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = The [[Manhattan Project| |
|ShortSummary = The [[Manhattan Project|atomic bomb]], the ascendency of President [[Harry S. Truman|Harry Truman]], emerging splits in the Allies with [[Joseph Stalin]], the [[atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]] and the [[Soviet invasion of Manchuria]], leading to the [[surrender of Japan]]. Interviewees include [[Toshikazu Kase]], [[Yoshio Kodama]], [[Koichi Kido|Marquis Koichi Kido]], Major General [[Charles Sweeney]], Brigadier General [[Paul Tibbets]], [[Alger Hiss]], [[W. Averell Harriman]], [[Anthony Eden|Lord Avon]], [[McGeorge Bundy]], [[John J. McCloy]], General [[Curtis LeMay]], [[Hisatsune Sakomizu]], [[Kiyoshi Tanimoto]], [[Robert Oppenheimer]] (before his 1967 death), and [[James F. Byrnes]] (before his 1972 death). |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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Line 190: | Line 187: | ||
|Title = Reckoning (April 1945) |
|Title = Reckoning (April 1945) |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|5|1|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|5|1|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = |
|ShortSummary = Post-war Europe including the Allied [[occupation of Germany]], [[demobilisation]], the [[Nuremberg Trials]] and the genesis of the [[Cold War]]. The episode concludes with summations about the costs and consequences of the war. Interviewees include [[Charles Bohlen]], [[Stephen Ambrose]], [[Kay Summersby]], [[Anthony Eden|Lord Avon]], [[W. Averell Harriman]], [[Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma|Lord Mountbatten of Burma]], [[Hartley Shawcross, Baron Shawcross|Hartley Shawcross]] and [[Noble Frankland]]. |
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}} |
}} |
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{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
{{Episode list/sublist|The World at War |
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|Title = Remember |
|Title = Remember |
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|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|5|8|df=y}} |
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|1974|5|8|df=y}} |
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|ShortSummary = How the war |
|ShortSummary = How the war was experienced and remembered by its witnesses. Interviewees include [[Lawrence Durrell]], [[Jesse Glenn Gray|J. Glenn Gray]], [[Bill Mauldin]], [[Wynford Vaughan-Thomas]] and [[Noble Frankland]]. |
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}} |
}} |
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}} |
}} |
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== Broadcast history == |
== Broadcast history == |
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The series was originally transmitted on the |
The series was originally transmitted on the ITV network in Britain between 31 October 1973 and 8 May 1974, and has been shown around the world. It was first shown in the US in [[broadcast syndication|syndication]] on various stations in 1974.<!--WTOP (9) now WUSA, in Wash D.C., Fridays 7:30 pm in half-hour increments--><ref name=tntflstr>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oN5NAAAAIBAJ&pg=6135%2C1578260 |work=Free-Lance-Star |location=Fredericksburg, Virginia |title=Tonight's television: 7:30 pm |date=13 September 1974 |page=18}}</ref> [[WWOR-TV|WOR]] in [[New York City|New York]] aired the series in the mid-1970s, although episodes were edited both for graphic content and to include sufficient commercial breaks. [[PBS]] station [[WNET-TV|WNET]] in New York broadcast the series unedited and in its entirety in 1982 as did [[WGBH-TV|WGBH]] in the late 1980s. The [[Denmark|Danish]] channel [[DR1]] first broadcast the series from August 1976 to February 1977 and it was repeated on [[DR2]] in December 2006 and January 2007. The History Channel in [[Japan]] began screening the series in its entirety in April 2007. It repeated the entire series again in August 2011. The Military History Channel in the UK broadcast the series over the weekend of 14 and 15 November 2009. The Military Channel (now [[American Heroes Channel]]) in the United States aired the series in January 2010, and has shown it regularly since. [[BBC2]] in the UK transmitted a repeat run of the series starting on 5 September 1994 at teatime. In 2011, the British channel [[Yesterday (TV channel)|Yesterday]] started a showing of the series and it has been shown continuously since. |
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The series was shown on [[SABC]] in [[South Africa]] in 1976, one of the first documentary series broadcast after the launch of the first television service in South Africa in January 1976, but the episode showing the Nazi holocaust was not shown.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1976-05-17 |title=South Africa's Television Bars Film on Nazi Camps |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/05/17/archives/south-africas-television-bars-film-on-nazi-camps.html |access-date=2024-03-06 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> |
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⚫ | |||
⚫ | The series was shown in Australia in 1975<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bayley |first1=Andrew |title=Monday 24 March 1975 — ADELAIDE |url=https://televisionau.com/classic-tv-guides/tv240375 |website=television.au |date=23 March 2021 |publisher=ANdrew Bayley |access-date=31 December 2022}}</ref> and has been shown on various TV stations at various times since then. It has also been shown on Australia's Pay TV Provider Foxtel in the early 2000s and a number of times since.{{citation needed|date=February 2022}} |
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⚫ | |||
⚫ | Each episode was 52 minutes excluding commercials; as was customary for hour-long ITV episodes at the time, it was originally screened with only one central break. On its original television broadcast in the UK the twentieth episode "Genocide (1941-1945)", which dealt with Nazi concentration camps and the Holocaust, was shown uninterrupted without a commercial break due to the sensitive nature of its content .{{citation needed|date=February 2022}} |
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=== Additional episodes === |
=== Additional episodes === |
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So extensive was the amount of footage both shot and meticulously collected by Isaacs and his team that much went unused in the original 26-episode series. As a result, eight further documentaries were commissioned by Thames Television, ranging from 30 minutes to 100 minutes in length. The topics of these additional programmes include the theories and myths surrounding Hitler's death, the Auschwitz death camp, Germany under the rule of the Nazis, and a full interview with Hitler's personal secretary Traudl Junge. Due to Laurence Olivier being unavailable these additional documentaries were narrated instead by actor [[Eric Porter]]. These were released as a bonus to the VHS version and have been included on all DVD and blu-ray sets of the series since. |
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The additional episodes and their original UK broadcast dates (where known) are: |
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⚫ | |||
# "From War to Peace – Professor Stephen Ambrose" |
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# "Warrior – Reflections of Men at War" |
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# Warrior [11 November 1975] |
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# Secretary to Hitler |
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# From War to Peace |
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⚫ | |||
Four further documentaries were created specially for home video releases, these are: |
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== Home media history == |
== Home media history == |
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The series was released in various territories on VHS video as well as on 13 [[Laservision]] long-play videodiscs by Video Garant Amsterdam. |
The series was released in various territories on VHS video as well as on 13 [[Laservision]] long-play videodiscs by Video Garant Amsterdam. |
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In 2001–2005, DVD box sets were released in the UK and US. In 2010, the series was digitally restored and re-released on DVD and Blu-ray. In the latter case the image is cropped from its [[Aspect ratio (image)#Aspect ratio releases|original 1.33:1 aspect ratio]] down to 1.78:1, to better fit modern widescreen televisions.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.homecinemachoice.com/news/article/restoring-the-world-at-war-for-blu-ray/9080 | title=Restoring the World at War for Blu-ray | date=12 August 2010 }}</ref> The restored series was re-released on DVD and Blu-ray in its original aspect ratio in the United Kingdom on 31 October 2016.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cineoutsider.com/news/stories/16/09/160907.html |title= The World at War in correct aspect ratio on Blu-ray & DVD in October|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher=Cine Outsider |access-date= |
In 2001–2005, DVD box sets were released in the UK and US. In 2010, the series was digitally restored and re-released on DVD and Blu-ray. In the latter case the image is cropped from its [[Aspect ratio (image)#Aspect ratio releases|original 1.33:1 aspect ratio]] down to 1.78:1, to better fit modern widescreen televisions.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.homecinemachoice.com/news/article/restoring-the-world-at-war-for-blu-ray/9080 | title=Restoring the World at War for Blu-ray | date=12 August 2010 }}</ref> The restored series was re-released on DVD and Blu-ray in its original aspect ratio in the United Kingdom on 31 October 2016.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cineoutsider.com/news/stories/16/09/160907.html |title= The World at War in correct aspect ratio on Blu-ray & DVD in October|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher=Cine Outsider |access-date=28 March 2019 }}</ref> |
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From 2004 to 2005, [[A&E Television Networks|A&E Home Entertainment]], under licence from [[Thames Television|Thames]], [[talkbackTHAMES]] and [[Fremantle (company)|FremantleMedia International]] released all 26 episodes of the series on [[DVD region code#Region 1|Region 1]] DVD, uncut, uncensored and remastered. {{citation needed|date=February 2022}} |
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== Books == |
== Books == |
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The original book ''The World at War'',<ref>{{Cite book|isbn = 0-7126-6782-2|title = The World at War|last1 = Arnold-Forster|first1 = Mark|year = 2001}}</ref> which accompanied the series, was written by [[Mark Arnold-Forster]] in 1973. In October 2007, [[Ebury Press]] published ''The World at War'', a new book by [[Richard Holmes (military historian)|Richard Holmes]], an oral history of the Second World War drawn from the interviews conducted for the TV series.<ref>{{cite book |
The original book ''The World at War'',<ref>{{Cite book|isbn = 0-7126-6782-2|title = The World at War|last1 = Arnold-Forster|first1 = Mark|year = 2001| publisher=Pimlico }}</ref> which accompanied the series, was written by [[Mark Arnold-Forster]] in 1973. In October 2007, [[Ebury Press]] published ''The World at War'', a new book by [[Richard Holmes (military historian)|Richard Holmes]], an oral history of the Second World War drawn from the interviews conducted for the TV series.<ref>{{cite book |
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| date = October 2007 |
| date = October 2007 |
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| title = ''The World at War'': The Landmark Oral History from the Previously Unpublished Archives |
| title = ''The World at War'': The Landmark Oral History from the Previously Unpublished Archives |
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| publisher = [[Ebury Press]] |
| publisher = [[Ebury Press]] |
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| isbn = 978-0-09-191751-7 |
| isbn = 978-0-09-191751-7 |
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}}</ref> The programme's producers shot hundreds of hours of interviews, but only a fraction of that recorded material was used for the final version of the series. A selection of the rest of this material was published in this book, which included interviews with [[Albert Speer]], [[Karl Wolff]] ([[Himmler]]'s adjutant), [[Traudl Junge]] ([[Hitler]]'s secretary), [[James Stewart]] ([[USAAF]] bomber pilot and Hollywood star), [[Anthony Eden]], [[John Colville (civil servant)|John Colville]] (Private Secretary to [[Winston Churchill]]), [[Averell Harriman]] (US Ambassador to the [[Soviet Union]]) and [[ |
}}</ref> The programme's producers shot hundreds of hours of interviews, but only a fraction of that recorded material was used for the final version of the series. A selection of the rest of this material was published in this book, which included interviews with [[Albert Speer]], [[Karl Wolff]] ([[Himmler]]'s adjutant), [[Traudl Junge]] ([[Hitler]]'s secretary), [[James Stewart]] ([[USAAF]] bomber pilot and Hollywood star), [[Anthony Eden]], [[John Colville (civil servant)|John Colville]] (Private Secretary to [[Winston Churchill]]), [[Averell Harriman]] (US Ambassador to the [[Soviet Union]]) and [[Arthur Harris|Arthur ''"Bomber"'' Harris]] (Head of [[RAF]] Bomber Command).{{citation needed|date=February 2022}} |
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== See also == |
== See also == |
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Line 249: | Line 251: | ||
* ''[[The Great War (documentary)|The Great War]]'' (1964) – BBC TV production |
* ''[[The Great War (documentary)|The Great War]]'' (1964) – BBC TV production |
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* ''[[The Secret War (TV Series)|The Secret War]]'' (1977) – a BBC TV series on the technological advances of the Second World War |
* ''[[The Secret War (TV Series)|The Secret War]]'' (1977) – a BBC TV series on the technological advances of the Second World War |
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* ''[[The Unknown War (documentary)|The Unknown War]]'' (1978) – an American documentary television series, produced with Soviet cooperation after the release of ''The World at War'', which the Soviet government felt had paid insufficient attention to [[Eastern Front (World War II)|their part in World War II]] |
* ''[[The Unknown War (documentary)|The Unknown War]]'' (1978) – an American documentary television series, produced with Soviet cooperation after the release of ''The World at War'', which the Soviet government felt had paid insufficient attention to [[Eastern Front (World War II)|their part in World War II]], the series was narrated by [[Burt Lancaster]] |
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* ''[[World War One (TV series)|World War One]]'' (1964) – |
* ''[[World War One (TV series)|World War One]]'' (1964) – a Production of CBS |
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== References == |
== References == |
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== External links == |
== External links == |
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{{Sister project links|auto=1}} |
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* [https://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973 Complete series] at Archive.org |
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* [[iarchive:the-world-at-war-1973-thames-television-world-war-two|Complete series(with extra episodes)]] at Archive.org |
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*{{cite news |last1=Jeremy |first1=Isaacs |title=Susan McConachy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2006/nov/23/obituaries.mainsection |access-date=3 September 2021 |work=The Guardian |date=23 November 2006}} |
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{{Operation Overlord}} |
{{Operation Overlord}} |
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[[Category:British military television series]] |
[[Category:British military television series]] |
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[[Category:Documentary television series about aviation]] |
[[Category:Documentary television series about aviation]] |
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[[Category:British aviation television series]] |
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[[Category:Documentary television series about World War II]] |
[[Category:Documentary television series about World War II]] |
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[[Category:English-language television shows]] |
[[Category:British English-language television shows]] |
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[[Category:ITV documentaries]] |
[[Category:ITV documentaries]] |
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[[Category:Television shows produced by Thames Television]] |
[[Category:Television shows produced by Thames Television]] |
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[[Category:Television series by Fremantle (company)]] |
[[Category:Television series by Fremantle (company)]] |
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[[Category:Japan in non-Japanese culture]] |
[[Category:Japan in non-Japanese culture]] |
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[[Category:Anthony Eden]] |
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[[Category:Cultural depictions of Karl Dönitz]] |
Latest revision as of 21:43, 25 November 2024
This article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2018) |
The World at War | |
---|---|
Created by | Jeremy Isaacs |
Directed by | David Elstein |
Narrated by | Laurence Olivier |
Opening theme | The World at War Theme |
Composer | Carl Davis |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 1 |
No. of episodes | 26 |
Production | |
Producer | Thames Television |
Running time | 22 hours 32 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | ITV |
Release | 31 October 1973 8 May 1974 | –
The World at War is a 26-episode British documentary television series that chronicles the events of the Second World War. Produced in 1973 at a cost of £900,000 (equivalent to £13,700,000 in 2023), it was the most expensive factual series ever made at the time.[1] It was produced by Jeremy Isaacs,[2] narrated by Laurence Olivier and included music composed by Carl Davis.[3] The book, The World at War, published the same year, was written by Mark Arnold-Forster to accompany the TV series.
The World at War attracted widespread acclaim and now it is regarded as a landmark in British television history.[4] The series focused on a portrayal of the experience of the conflict: of how life and death throughout the war years affected soldiers, sailors and airmen, civilians, concentration camp inmates and other victims of the war.[2][5]
Overview
[edit]Jeremy Isaacs had been inspired to look at the production of a long-form documentary series about the Second World War following the BBC's broadcast of its series The Great War in 1964. The BBC series, produced in collaboration with the Imperial War Museum, featured a mix of contemporary film footage from the period and film recreations, which soured relations between the BBC and the Museum.[6] As a consequence, Isaacs was determined to have his programme be as authentic as possible.
The World at War was commissioned by Thames Television in 1969. The government had halved its levy on television advertising revenue, with the proviso that the money which the independent television companies saved must be reinvested in programmes. Isaacs persuaded Thames to use the money to pay for the production of his Second World War documentary.[6] The series took four years to produce, at a cost of £900,000 (equivalent to £13,700,000 in 2023), a record for a British television series. It was first shown in 1973 on ITV.
The series featured interviews with major members of the Allied and Axis campaigns, including witness accounts from civilians, enlisted men, officers and politicians. The interviewees included Sir Max Aitken, Joseph Lawton Collins, Mark Clark, Jock Colville, Karl Dönitz, James "Jimmy" Doolittle, Lawrence Durrell, Lord Eden of Avon, Mitsuo Fuchida, Adolf Galland, Minoru Genda, W. Averell Harriman, Sir Arthur Harris, Alger Hiss, Brian Horrocks, Traudl Junge, Toshikazu Kase, Curtis LeMay, Vera Lynn, Hasso von Manteuffel, Bill Mauldin, John J. McCloy, Lord Mountbatten of Burma, Sir Richard O'Connor, J. B. Priestley, Saburo Sakai, Albert Speer, James Stewart, Charles Sweeney, Paul Tibbets, Walter Warlimont, Takeo Yoshikawa and historian Stephen Ambrose.
In the programme The Making of "The World at War", included in the DVD set, Isaacs explains that priority was given to interviews with surviving aides and assistants rather than recognised figures. The most difficult person to locate and persuade to be interviewed was Heinrich Himmler's adjutant Karl Wolff. During the interview, he admitted to witnessing a mass execution in Himmler's presence.[7] Isaacs later expressed satisfaction with the series's content, noting that if it had not been secret, he would have added references to British codebreaking at Bletchley Park. In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes which was compiled by the British Film Institute during 2000, voted for by industry professionals, The World at War ranked 19th, the highest-placed documentary on the list.
Episodes
[edit]The series has twenty-six episodes. Isaacs asked Noble Frankland, director of the Imperial War Museum, to list fifteen main campaigns of the war and devoted one episode to each.[2] The remaining eleven episodes are devoted to other matters, such as the rise of Nazi Germany, home life in Britain and Germany, the experience of occupation of the Netherlands, and the Holocaust. Episode one begins with a cold open describing the massacre at the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane by the Waffen SS. The same event is referenced again at the end of Episode twenty-six, accompanied by the "Dona nobis pacem" (Latin for "Grant us peace") from the Missa Sancti Nicolai, composed by Joseph Haydn. The series ends with Laurence Olivier saying "Remember". For all but three episodes ("The Desert", "Home Fires", and "Remember"), the last scene of each episode either ended as a photograph or would be a freeze-frame shot of a film, and then change to a textured photograph before the credits roll. They would show the textured photograph only when The World at War logo appeared in both "The Desert" and "Home Fires" episodes. In the "Remember" episode, it would show the fire used during the title part as the credits roll before extinguishing itself at the end.[8]
No. | Title | Original air date | |
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1 | "A New Germany (1933–1939)" | 31 October 1973 | |
The rebirth of Germany and growth in power of the Nazi Party leading up to the outbreak of war. Interviewees include Konrad Morgen, Hugh Greene, Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin, Werner Pusch , Christabel Bielenberg, Siegmund Weltlinger and Emmi Bonhoeffer. | |||
2 | "Distant War (September 1939 – May 1940)" | 7 November 1973 | |
The invasions of Poland, the Winter War, the sinking of the Graf Spee, the "phony war" and Norwegian Campaign and the elevation of Winston Churchill to Prime Minister. Interviewees include Lord Boothby, Rab Butler, Bernard Kops, Lucy Faithfull, Lord Chandos, Admiral Charles Woodhouse, Sir Martin Lindsay and Sir John "Jock" Colville. | |||
3 | "France Falls (May–June 1940)" | 14 November 1973 | |
French politics, the Maginot Line, the Saar Offensive, Blitzkrieg warfare and the Nazi invasion of France and the Low Countries. Interviewees include General Hasso von Manteuffel, General André Beaufre, Lawrence Durrell, General Siegfried Westphal, Gordon Waterfield, General Walter Warlimont and Major General Edward Spears. | |||
4 | "Alone (May 1940 – May 1941)" | 21 November 1973 | |
The Battle of Britain, defeats in Greece and Crete, Tobruk and life in Britain between the evacuation at Dunkirk and Operation Barbarossa. Interviewees include Lord Avon, J. B. Priestley, Sir Max Aitken, Lieutenant General Adolf Galland, Sir John "Jock" Colville, Robert Wright, Ray Holmes and a group of survivors of The Blitz. | |||
5 | "Barbarossa (June–December 1941)" | 28 November 1973 | |
After dominating southeastern Europe through force or intrigue, Germany begins Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. Despite several quick victories, the invasion fails after the assault on Moscow in winter. Interviewees include General Walter Warlimont, Albert Speer, Paul Schmidt, Grigori Tokaty, W. Averell Harriman and Sir John Russell. | |||
6 | "Banzai!: Japan (1931–1942)" | 5 December 1973 | |
The rise of the Japanese Empire, the Sino-Japanese War, the Soviet-Japanese border conflicts, Pearl Harbor and the early Japanese successes in the Battle of Malaya and Battle of Singapore. Interviewees include Kōichi Kido, Toshikazu Kase, Minoru Genda, Mitsuo Fuchida, Masatake Okumiya, Takeo Yoshikawa, John Smyth and Ichiji Sugita. | |||
7 | "On Our Way: U.S.A. (1939–1942)" | 12 December 1973 | |
The opposition by factions to the United States of America's entry into the war, Lend Lease, U-boat attacks on Atlantic convoys and American responses, the mobilisation of America after Pearl Harbor, the loss of the Philippines, the Doolittle Raid, Midway and Guadalcanal. Interviewees include W. Averell Harriman, George Ball, Norman Corwin, Ken Galbraith, John J. McCloy, Edison Uno, Paul Samuelson, Isamu Noguchi, Jimmy Doolittle, Richard Tregaskis, Minoru Genda, Mitsuo Fuchida, J. Lawton Collins and Vannevar Bush. | |||
8 | "The Desert: North Africa (1940–1943)" | 19 December 1973 | |
The Desert War, starting with Italy's invasion of Egypt and the attacks and counterattacks between Germany and Italy and the Commonwealth forces, the Axis defeat at El Alamein. Interviewees include General Richard O'Connor, Major General Francis de Guingand, Siegfried Westphal, Field Marshal Lord Harding and Lawrence Durrell. | |||
9 | "Stalingrad (June 1942 – February 1943)" | 2 January 1974 | |
The mid-war German situation in Southern Russia resulting in the German defeat at the Battle of Stalingrad. This episode features only Olivier's narration and has no interviewees. | |||
10 | "Wolf Pack: U-Boats in the Atlantic (1939–1944)" | 9 January 1974 | |
The submarine war emphasising the North Atlantic. Tracks the development of the convoy system and German submarine strategy. Interviewees include Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, Otto Kretschmer, Captain William Eyton-Jones, Captain Gilbert Roberts, Vice Admiral Sir Peter Gretton, Air Vice Marshal Wilfrid Oulton, Peter-Erich Cremer and Raymond Hart. | |||
11 | "Red Star: The Soviet Union (1941–1943)" | 16 January 1974 | |
The rise of the Red Army, mobilisation of Soviet production, the Siege of Leningrad, the Soviet partisans and the Battle of Kursk. Interviewees include General Ivan Lyudnikov and Ivan Chistyakov. | |||
12 | "Whirlwind: Bombing Germany (September 1939 – April 1944)" | 23 January 1974 | |
The development of British and American strategic bombing. Interviewees include Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Arthur Harris, Albert Speer, Brigadier-General James Stewart, Hamish Mahaddie, William Reid, General Leon W. Johnson, General Curtis LeMay, Wilhelm Herget, Werner Schröer, Lieutenant General Adolf Galland and General Ira C. Eaker. | |||
13 | "Tough Old Gut: Italy (November 1942 – June 1944)" | 30 January 1974 | |
The difficulties of the Italian Campaign beginning with Operation Torch in North Africa, the invasion of Sicily; Salerno, Anzio, Cassino and the capture of Rome. Interviewees include General Sir Kenneth Strong, General Mark Clark, Field Marshal Lord Harding, Bill Mauldin, Wynford Vaughan-Thomas and Siegfried Westphal. | |||
14 | "It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow: Burma (1942–1944)" | 6 February 1974 | |
The jungle war in Burma and India—what it "lacked in scale was made up in savagery". Interviewees include Mike Calvert, Sir John Smyth and Vera Lynn (the episode title is the name of one of her songs), and Lord Mountbatten of Burma. | |||
15 | "Home Fires: Britain (1940–1944)" | 13 February 1974 | |
Life and politics in Britain from post-Battle of Britain to the first V-1 attacks. Interviewees include Rab Butler, Lord Shinwell, Lord Chandos, Tom Driberg, Lord Avon, Michael Foot, Cecil Harmsworth King and J. B. Priestley. | |||
16 | "Inside the Reich: Germany (1940–1944)" | 20 February 1974 | |
Changes in German society as the fortunes of war are reversed. Censorship and popular entertainment, German industry, the recruitment of female, foreign and slave labour, Allied bombing, German dissent—including the 20 July plot, and the mobilisation of the Volkssturm towards war's end. Interviewees include Christabel Bielenberg, Friedrich Luft, Albert Speer, Emmi Bonhoeffer, Otto John, Traudl Junge, Richard Schulze-Kossens, and Otto Ernst Remer. | |||
17 | "Morning (June–August 1944)" | 27 February 1974 | |
Operation Overlord starting with the failed Dieppe Raid, followed by battles in the Bocage, the Allied breakout and Falaise. Interviewees include Goronwy Rees, Lord Mountbatten of Burma, Kay Summersby, James Stagg and Major General J. Lawton Collins. | |||
18 | "Occupation: Holland (1940–1944)" | 13 March 1974 | |
Life in the Netherlands under German occupation, when citizens chose to resist, collaborate or remain passive. Interviewees include Gerben Wagenaar, Florentine Rost van Tonningen, Loe de Jong (who also served as adviser for this episode), Jetty Paerl and Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands. | |||
19 | "Pincers (August 1944 – March 1945)" | 20 March 1974 | |
Operation Dragoon, the liberation of Paris, the Allied occupation of France and the failure of Operation Market Garden, the Warsaw Uprising, the Battle of the Bulge and the crossing of the Rhine. In the East, the Romanian coup and the Soviet advance through Ukraine to East Prussia. Interviewees include Lieutenant General Brian Horrocks, Wynford Vaughan Thomas, General Sir Kenneth Strong, General Hasso von Manteuffel, Major General Francis de Guingand, W. Averell Harriman, General Siegfried Westphal and Major General J. Lawton Collins. | |||
20 | "Genocide (1941–1945)" | 27 March 1974 | |
Begins with the founding of the SS and follows the development of Nazi racial theory. It ends with the implementation of the Final Solution. Interviewees include Karl Wolff, Wilhelm Höttl, Rudolf Vrba, Primo Levi, Richard Böck, Lord Avon and Rivka Yosilevska. | |||
21 | "Nemesis: Germany (February–May 1945)" | 3 April 1974 | |
The invasion of Germany by the Allies, the bombing of Dresden, and the events in the Führerbunker during the Battle of Berlin. Interviewees include Albert Speer, Traudl Junge, Carola Stern, Elena Rzhevskaya, Heinz Linge, Eberhard Bethge, Major Anna Nikulina and Friedrich Luft. | |||
22 | "Japan (1941–1945)" | 10 April 1974 | |
Japanese society during wartime and how life is transformed as the country suffers defeats including the Doolittle raid, Midway, the death of Isoroku Yamamoto, the Battle of Saipan, Okinawa and the relentless bombing of Japanese cities. Interviewees include Toshikazu Kase and Naoki Hoshino. | |||
23 | "Pacific (February 1942 – July 1945)" | 17 April 1974 | |
Battles on tiny islands in the Pacific, aimed towards the Japanese heartland. Following the bombing of Darwin, the Japanese are turned back at Kokoda, Tarawa, Peleliu, the Philippines, Iwo Jima and finally Okinawa. Interviewees include Butch Voris and Frank Manson. | |||
24 | "The Bomb (February–September 1945)" | 24 April 1974 | |
The atomic bomb, the ascendency of President Harry Truman, emerging splits in the Allies with Joseph Stalin, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet invasion of Manchuria, leading to the surrender of Japan. Interviewees include Toshikazu Kase, Yoshio Kodama, Marquis Koichi Kido, Major General Charles Sweeney, Brigadier General Paul Tibbets, Alger Hiss, W. Averell Harriman, Lord Avon, McGeorge Bundy, John J. McCloy, General Curtis LeMay, Hisatsune Sakomizu, Kiyoshi Tanimoto, Robert Oppenheimer (before his 1967 death), and James F. Byrnes (before his 1972 death). | |||
25 | "Reckoning (April 1945)" | 1 May 1974 | |
Post-war Europe including the Allied occupation of Germany, demobilisation, the Nuremberg Trials and the genesis of the Cold War. The episode concludes with summations about the costs and consequences of the war. Interviewees include Charles Bohlen, Stephen Ambrose, Kay Summersby, Lord Avon, W. Averell Harriman, Lord Mountbatten of Burma, Hartley Shawcross and Noble Frankland. | |||
26 | "Remember" | 8 May 1974 | |
How the war was experienced and remembered by its witnesses. Interviewees include Lawrence Durrell, J. Glenn Gray, Bill Mauldin, Wynford Vaughan-Thomas and Noble Frankland. |
Broadcast history
[edit]The series was originally transmitted on the ITV network in Britain between 31 October 1973 and 8 May 1974, and has been shown around the world. It was first shown in the US in syndication on various stations in 1974.[9] WOR in New York aired the series in the mid-1970s, although episodes were edited both for graphic content and to include sufficient commercial breaks. PBS station WNET in New York broadcast the series unedited and in its entirety in 1982 as did WGBH in the late 1980s. The Danish channel DR1 first broadcast the series from August 1976 to February 1977 and it was repeated on DR2 in December 2006 and January 2007. The History Channel in Japan began screening the series in its entirety in April 2007. It repeated the entire series again in August 2011. The Military History Channel in the UK broadcast the series over the weekend of 14 and 15 November 2009. The Military Channel (now American Heroes Channel) in the United States aired the series in January 2010, and has shown it regularly since. BBC2 in the UK transmitted a repeat run of the series starting on 5 September 1994 at teatime. In 2011, the British channel Yesterday started a showing of the series and it has been shown continuously since.
The series was shown on SABC in South Africa in 1976, one of the first documentary series broadcast after the launch of the first television service in South Africa in January 1976, but the episode showing the Nazi holocaust was not shown.[10]
The series was shown in Australia in 1975[11] and has been shown on various TV stations at various times since then. It has also been shown on Australia's Pay TV Provider Foxtel in the early 2000s and a number of times since.[citation needed]
Each episode was 52 minutes excluding commercials; as was customary for hour-long ITV episodes at the time, it was originally screened with only one central break. On its original television broadcast in the UK the twentieth episode "Genocide (1941-1945)", which dealt with Nazi concentration camps and the Holocaust, was shown uninterrupted without a commercial break due to the sensitive nature of its content .[citation needed]
Additional episodes
[edit]So extensive was the amount of footage both shot and meticulously collected by Isaacs and his team that much went unused in the original 26-episode series. As a result, eight further documentaries were commissioned by Thames Television, ranging from 30 minutes to 100 minutes in length. The topics of these additional programmes include the theories and myths surrounding Hitler's death, the Auschwitz death camp, Germany under the rule of the Nazis, and a full interview with Hitler's personal secretary Traudl Junge. Due to Laurence Olivier being unavailable these additional documentaries were narrated instead by actor Eric Porter. These were released as a bonus to the VHS version and have been included on all DVD and blu-ray sets of the series since.
The additional episodes and their original UK broadcast dates (where known) are:
- The Two Deaths of Adolf Hitler [30 April 1975]
- The Final Solution - Auschwitz: Part One [12 August 1975]
- The Final Solution - Auschwitz: Part Two [19 August 1975]
- Warrior [11 November 1975]
- Hitler's Germany: The People's Community (1933–1939) [11 August 1976]
- Hitler's Germany: Total War (1939–1945) [18 August 1976]
- Secretary to Hitler
- From War to Peace
Four further documentaries were created specially for home video releases, these are:
- The Making of the Series: The World at War [1989]
- Making of the Series - A 30th Anniversary Retrospective [2003]
- Experiences of War
- Restoring the World at War
Home media history
[edit]The series was released in various territories on VHS video as well as on 13 Laservision long-play videodiscs by Video Garant Amsterdam.
In 2001–2005, DVD box sets were released in the UK and US. In 2010, the series was digitally restored and re-released on DVD and Blu-ray. In the latter case the image is cropped from its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio down to 1.78:1, to better fit modern widescreen televisions.[12] The restored series was re-released on DVD and Blu-ray in its original aspect ratio in the United Kingdom on 31 October 2016.[13]
Books
[edit]The original book The World at War,[14] which accompanied the series, was written by Mark Arnold-Forster in 1973. In October 2007, Ebury Press published The World at War, a new book by Richard Holmes, an oral history of the Second World War drawn from the interviews conducted for the TV series.[15] The programme's producers shot hundreds of hours of interviews, but only a fraction of that recorded material was used for the final version of the series. A selection of the rest of this material was published in this book, which included interviews with Albert Speer, Karl Wolff (Himmler's adjutant), Traudl Junge (Hitler's secretary), James Stewart (USAAF bomber pilot and Hollywood star), Anthony Eden, John Colville (Private Secretary to Winston Churchill), Averell Harriman (US Ambassador to the Soviet Union) and Arthur "Bomber" Harris (Head of RAF Bomber Command).[citation needed]
See also
[edit]- All Our Yesterdays – a Granada TV series covering some of this period.
- Apocalypse: The Second World War (2009) – an RTBF documentary on the Second World War
- BBC History of World War II (1989–2005)
- Cold War (1998) CNN TV production also produced by Jeremy Isaacs
- The Great War (1964) – BBC TV production
- The Secret War (1977) – a BBC TV series on the technological advances of the Second World War
- The Unknown War (1978) – an American documentary television series, produced with Soviet cooperation after the release of The World at War, which the Soviet government felt had paid insufficient attention to their part in World War II, the series was narrated by Burt Lancaster
- World War One (1964) – a Production of CBS
References
[edit]- ^ "Memories of a world at war". Royal Television Society. 2 July 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
- ^ a b c Anna Tims (28 October 2013). "Jeremy Isaacs and David Elstein: how we made The World at War". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
- ^ "The World at War theme: Carl Davis". Classic FM. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
- ^ "BFI | Features | TV 100 List of Lists". Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
- ^ Rosenthal, Alan (1 July 1980). The Documentary Conscience: A Casebook in Film Making (first ed.). University of California Press. p. 65. ISBN 978-0520040229. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ a b Hennessy, Mark (27 September 2013). "Forty years on, 'The World at War' has lost none of its power". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
- ^ Jeremy, Isaacs (23 November 2006). "Susan McConachy". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ Thames Television - Jeremy Isaacs (31 October 1973), The World at War (1973) - Thames Television, Thames Television, retrieved 24 January 2024
- ^ "Tonight's television: 7:30 pm". Free-Lance-Star. Fredericksburg, Virginia. 13 September 1974. p. 18.
- ^ "South Africa's Television Bars Film on Nazi Camps". The New York Times. 17 May 1976. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
- ^ Bayley, Andrew (23 March 2021). "Monday 24 March 1975 — ADELAIDE". television.au. ANdrew Bayley. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ "Restoring the World at War for Blu-ray". 12 August 2010.
- ^ "The World at War in correct aspect ratio on Blu-ray & DVD in October". Cine Outsider. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ Arnold-Forster, Mark (2001). The World at War. Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-6782-2.
- ^ Holmes, Richard (October 2007). The World at War: The Landmark Oral History from the Previously Unpublished Archives. Ebury Press. ISBN 978-0-09-191751-7.
External links
[edit]- Complete series at Archive.org
- Complete series(with extra episodes) at Archive.org
- The World at War at IMDb
- Jeremy, Isaacs (23 December 2002). "Isobel Hinshelwood". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- Jeremy, Isaacs (23 November 2006). "Susan McConachy". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- Tims, Anna (28 October 2013). "Jeremy Isaacs and David Elstein: How We Made The World at War". The Guardian.
- The World at War
- 1973 British television series debuts
- 1974 British television series endings
- 1970s British documentary television series
- British military television series
- Documentary television series about aviation
- British aviation television series
- Documentary television series about World War II
- British English-language television shows
- ITV documentaries
- Television shows produced by Thames Television
- Television series by Fremantle (company)
- Japan in non-Japanese culture
- Anthony Eden
- Cultural depictions of Karl Dönitz