From Our Own Correspondent

The BBC's "From Our Own Correspondent" has always been an excellent way to gain a deeper understanding about the culture, politics and society of countries around the world. For example,recent articles have included subjects such as the Russian space programme, the obsession with guns in the USA (written by Justin Webb), and the effects of the foreign media on the North African revolutions, or the use of strange nicknames in the Philippines (recommended!). You can find an archive of all the articles here, and listen to the latest episode or download it as a podcast.

Damien Day joins BBC London News

Blog Competition and BBC Style Guide

Many thanks to those students who entered the blog competition this year. The entries were few in number but high in quality! We will publish them shortly, and were pleased that Years 10, 12 and 13 were all represented. We would like to run the competition again, but acknowledge that maybe the Christmas period wasn't the most convenient time. If you have any suggestions on when we should do this, please let us know - maybe the summer?

PS: You may find this writing style guide from the BBC quite helpful for History, Politics or Critical Thinking essays. It has plenty of tips (mainly for journalists) on how to use words clearly and accurately. Here are some examples:
"Historic is a popular word with journalists. It is nice to think that the events we are describing will resonate down the decades, but who are we to judge? Use with great care, and never confuse with historical, which means belonging to history."

"Unique has a unique meaning, and it is that there is only one of something (uni as in unicycle, unicorn or unisex). Nothing can be almost unique.You should be saying distinctive or unusual."

"Draconian is much overused, usually by people with no idea who Draco was. (If asked, say he was an Athenian judge who ruled that the penalty for almost everything should be death.) Try severe or harsh instead."

The First World War from Above

BBC1 showed this evening a fascinating documentary using archive aerial photography from the First World War to show the extent of the destruction created by the conflict. Film footage from an airship showed in close detail how much damage had been wrought both on the battlefields and towns such as Ypres, which was totally devastated and yet still had people on the ground trying to make some sort of a living. The film also touched upon the efforts needed by Royal Flying Corps pilots to take the photographs (their death rates were higher than soldiers in the trenches) and the work of the tunnellers, who set off massive underground explosions (leaving craters still visible today) to try and gain a military advantage. The size of the 29 simultaneous explosions at Messines, near Ypres, was so great it "rattled the teacups in Downing Street". Highly recommended viewing for this Remembrance Week.

PS: More examples of the photography can be seen here and here. The photo at the top of this post shows a German barracks (identified by the British by the flowerbeds the soldiers had dug to amuse themselves) before and after it was shelled.

Russian Plate

The British Museum's "History of the World in 100 Objects" has almost reached its conclusion. Object number 96 was a Russian porcelain plate. It was chosen because it was made in 1901 by the Imperial Porcelain Factory during the last years of the Tsar. However, it wasn't decorated until 1921 when it was, ironically for such an expensive luxury object, painted with symbols celebrating the Communist Revolution of 1917. Furthermore, the plate retained its original imperial seal on the back because the Communist government, strapped for cash during the Civil War, sold most of these plates abroad in order to gain hard currency. The plate therefore symbolises the rapidly shifting currents in Russian society at that time - it is ironic that the factory where it was made was renamed once again after the fall of Communism - and is once again the Imperial Porcelain Factory. You can download the podcast and read the transcript of the programme about the plate, and the 99 other objects that have been chosen, at the BBC website.

The Dambusters

BBC2 showed a programme about the Dambusters on Sunday night. This was the name given to the RAF bombing raid during World War 2 that aimed to destroy German dams (and therefore create massive flooding damage) using special bouncing bombs. The story is well known, particularly because of the 1955 film which celebrated 617 Squadron's achievements. The BBC programme was more reflective. It pointed out some of the factual errors in the film, most of which were designed to make the heroes more sympathetic. In the film Guy Gibson, the squadron leader, is quite easygoing whereas in reality he could be quite aloof and focused on the job. In the film Barnes Wallis, the inventor of the bouncing bomb, comes up with the idea of bombing the dams but faces opposition from the War Office. In reality, the idea had been discussed before war had even begun. The film also gave plenty of time to exploring the effects of the successful destruction of the dams, interviewing Germans who lost their families and houses in the flooding (over 1600 people were killed, many of them allied prisoners of war in labour camps). This tone suggests perhaps that our attitude to events in World War 2 is changing as it moves ever further back into the past and fewer people are alive to remember it (there is now only one remaining veteran Dam Buster). Britain's experience of the war has an important place in our national identity and culture, but a gap of 70 years perhaps allows greater opportunities of a more balanced assessment of its significance.

PS: There is plenty of information about the Dambusters around. Here are two examples. The National Archives has an online exhibition of significant documents here.
PPS: Here is a (genuinely exciting!) 10 minute YouTube clip from the Dambusters Film where they attack the first dam. It is said that George Lucas was inspired by this for the final scenes of Star Wars...

Why Miliband had to go.

There is some good analysis here of why David Milliband decided he should leave frontbench politics - mainly because he felt he would be put under unbearable scrutiny from the media about any perceived differences between him and his brother. You can see his interview with Nick Robinson on the day of his departure in the video above. For an alternative point of view, here is an animated version of the Miliband's rivalry, courtesy of Newsnight and Taiwan's "Apple Daily".

First Light

BBC2 showed "First Light" last night, an excellent recreation of what is was like to have been a Spitfire pilot in the Battle of Britain, based on the memoirs of Geoffrey Wellum, who, aged 18 at the time, was one of the youngest pilots in the RAF. If you missed it, catch it on iPlayer. You can also read here how the producers worked hard to make the programme look and sound authentic. It was certainly fascinating to have the film introduced and narrated by Wellum, now aged 89, and was full of personal details that broke through the usual stereotypes.

PS: The BBC's detailed Battle of Britain site is also worth a look, with archive footage and clips from past programmes. Other programmes to be shown in the season can be found here.

Mad Men and the 60s

Here is a BBC article about how "Mad Men" - the drama about the staff of an advertising company during the 60s - covers the decade. Each season covers a different year, so season 4 is about 1964. Key events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and Kennedy assassination are referred to, and affect the storyline but unlike in Forrest Gump, where our hero is right at the forefront of these events, their position is more oblique. The programme is more interested in the steady changes in culture and society and how these affect the roles of the characters, particularly the women.

Have you been watching the programme? Does it do its History well? Let us know your thoughts as the series progresses.

BBC Radio visits Nonsuch Park

The BBC's PM radio programme visited Nonsuch Park yesterday, with an analysis of the impact of Nick Clegg's debate performance on the local campaign. It includes interviews with David Cameron (the hairdresser in Cheam!) and various Sutton residents. Click here to listen to the programme and go forward 21 minutes.

Christianity, the Navy and the Internet

There is a wealth of history programmes on television at the moment, particularly on the BBC. On Saturday BBC2 showed Tudor Historian Diarmaid MacCulloch's "History of Christianity", Dan Snow's "Empire of the Seas", the history of the Royal Navy, and "The Virtual Revolution", recounting the development of the internet. I'm not sure if everyone would classify the last programme as history exactly, but clearly the technological revolution of the last few decades is hugely significant. On top of that David Dimbleby is tracing "Seven Ages of Britain" through significant artefacts on BBC1, and Radio 4 continues its "History of the World in 100 objects". Is this overkill? There is clearly a great interest in history within the country, and perhaps it is easier to convey history through this media than say, maths, but will people tire of the subject if it continues to be produced at this rate?
If you've watched any of these programmes, or visited their websites (The 100 objects and Virtual Revolution ones are impressive), let us know what you think.

PS: Just spotted another one - the History of Chemistry on BBC4. Even science has to succumb to the history treatment!
PPS: The picture shows some of the examples of the 100 objects in the programme. If you click on it you can see a larger (and easier to read) version.

Democracy Live!

A new BBC website which links all the political institutions here and allows you to see them all in action live, see here.
Think about getting involved in the BBC School Report project which allows you to present the news!

BNP on Question Time

Is the BBC right to allow Nick Griffin to speak for the BNP on Question Time tonight? Please let us know what you think, and if you watch the programme, post your reaction here.

PS: Here is a strongly worded comment on the subject from The Guardian
PPS: Here is some early reaction to the programme. The BNP is claiming that Griffin was hounded by the panel and the audience.
PPPS: Question Time got more viewers than Strictly Come Dancing this week! Here is the verdict of several writers in The Times. Here is the verdict of Bonnie Greer (a panellist on the programme) in the Daily Mail.
PPPPS: Here's Nick Robinson's observation of the situation, and 300+ comments on his blog post.

Boris on EastEnders

The Mayor of London will appear on EastEnders tonight. Apparently Boris has a brief walk-on scene in the Queen Vic. Ken Livingstone is a little upset about it as the BBC turned down his requests to be on the programme. Let us know if you see it and what you think of his acting!

PS: Here's some footage of his appearance.