±«Óãtv

In this brand new 20-part series for ±«Óãtv Two Daytime, Melvyn Bragg retells the fascinating stories of life in Britain from 1900 to 1970 through the archive collections of the British Film Institute and other National and Regional Film Archives.

From coal mining via seaside holidays through to the 1977 Silver Jubilee, Melvyn reflects on the past hardships and simple pleasures of British life, as well as the enormous social changes that took place from the 1900s onwards. Travelling across the UK, Melvyn meets members of the public who appeared in the historic films featured in the series, and brings them face-to-face with their relatives with the help of a 1967 custom built vintage mobile cinema.

Melvyn Bragg said: "At the turn of the last century one invention changed the way we recall our history forever – the motion camera. Thanks to Britain's pioneering film-makers, we can still glimpse a world long gone."

Along the way viewers will see how ordinary British people worked and lived in the 20th century, as seen through social documentaries, tourist information films, newsreels and government propaganda films. In the 1900s documentary film-makers began to capture for the first time real stories of everyday life. Over many decades, this passion for film-making grew in confidence and technical skill and produced an extraordinary and compelling authentic archive.

These films have now been carefully restored by Britain's film archives and are available to be seen again for the first time in generations. They showcase the people and places of Britain; their preoccupations, lifestyles and ambitions for the future. They reveal a forgotten Britain that has since changed forever.

JB