What Did You Do in the War, Auntie?

When the Second World War began in September 1939, Britain's Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, felt that the BBC should be closed down because no one would have time to listen to the radio. Winston Churchill, when he came to power the following year, wanted the Government to take over the BBC, its adherence to broadcasting the truth leading him to describe it as 'the enemy within the gates'.In reality, the importance of the BBC in the Second World War is incalculable. It became the voice of the people for the people, maintaining day-to-day morale at home and abroad, providing entertainment and advice and the all-important wartime news. What did you do in the War, Auntie? traces the development of news reporting from the Blitz to the deserts of North Africa and the beaches of Normandy, it explores the BBC's battles with the Government and its Ministries, and it shows how it brought hope and help to the peoples of occupied Europe.Tom Hickman's book is also a nostalgic tribute to wartime radio programmes like Workers' Playtime, The Brains Trust and the astoundingly popular ITMA, and to such much-loved personalities as Tommy Handley, J. B. Priestley, Gert and Daisy, the Radio Doctor and Vera Lynn.What did you do in the War, Auntie is more than the story of British wartime broadcasting. It is the stirring story if a nation knitted together by radio at a time of supreme crisis.