The Land of Lost Content
Presented by Andrew Marr. The 1950s were a period of apparent calm, order and prosperity for Britain, but much of the populace was hungry for change.
The second programme in the series explodes the popular image of the 1950s as a golden age of order and prosperity, and of lost content. A Conservative government is back in power. The economy appears to be improving. New homes are being built, the age of mass car ownership is dawning and people have money in their pockets. But 1950s Britain is not as calm as it looks, or as strong.
Andrew Marr describes a relentless build-up of pressure from frustrated, resentful people who are hungry for change. This is a Britain of growing racial tensions, of working-class teenagers who don't want to know their place any longer, of CND protesters and a new breed of scathing satirists. It's a country which is learning to laugh at its rulers and starting to distrust them. Especially after their prime minister takes them to war in the Middle East on the basis of a lie.
When a working-class girl called Christine Keeler meets the Secretary of State for War John Profumo in a swimming pool one hot summer's evening in 1961, the closed world of the British establishment collides with the cocky new Britain growing up around it. The sixties spirit of change is in the air and Britain will never be governed in the same way again. This is the fascinating story of the perfect political storm.
Last on
Music Played
Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes
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00:31Harry J. Allstars
Liquidator
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00:31Harry J. Allstars
Liquidator
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00:35Lee Morgan
The Sidewinder
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00:57The Kinks
Sunny Afternoon
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Presenter | Andrew Marr |
| Producer | Chris Granlund |
| Producer | Fatima Salaria |
| Director | Fatima Salaria |
Broadcasts
Tue 29 May 2007 21:00±«Óãtv Two except East, Wales & Yorkshire- Tue 29 May 2007 23:20±«Óãtv Two Wales
Fri 27 Jul 2007 20:00- Sat 24 May 2008 20:00±«Óãtv Two except East & Yorkshire
- Fri 29 Jan 2010 19:00±«Óãtv Two Scotland, Northern Ireland & England only
- Tue 16 Dec 2014 16:25±«Óãtv Two except East, Wales (Analogue) & Yorkshire
- Wed 23 Jan 2019 21:00
- Thu 24 Jan 2019 03:00
- Mon 18 May 2020 15:00Red Button One
- Mon 18 May 2020 20:00
- Tue 19 May 2020 02:50
- Tue 19 May 2020 18:00Red Button One
- Wed 20 May 2020 17:00Red Button One
- Thu 21 May 2020 15:00Red Button One
- Fri 22 May 2020 18:00Red Button One