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Supporting Content

• Preview: British Bangladeshis — Series 2, British Bangladeshis

  Duration: 2:36

• Preview: The British Chinese — Series 2, The British Chinese

  Duration: 1:40

• Preview: The Vietnamese Boat People — Series 2, Whatever Happened to the Boat People?

  Duration: 0:33

• Preview: The Birmingham Irish — Series 2, Birmingham Irish I Am

  Duration: 0:32
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• About 'A Very British History'

  A Very British History is a collection of stories of 20th Century Britain through the eyes of minority communities across Britain.

  Discover the stories of the Chinese, the Irish in the Midlands, the Vietnamese Boat People, and the British Bangladeshi community.  

  Fronted by presenters from those communities, the series explores the highs and lows that many faced when making their home in modern Britain. 

  We hear their untold stories and follow emotional journeys back in time. Each film is a quest to discover more about the history of communities in multi-cultural Britain.

  Musician Angela Moran tells the story of the Birmingham Irish from the post-war years to the present day. Angela’s grandparents were amongst thousands of Irish to move to Britain’s second city in the 1950s. 

  British-Born Chinese vlogger Shu Lin explores the history of the Chinese community in the UK from the 1950s through to the present day.

  Aminul Hoque came to Britain in 1980 as a three-year-old from the young nation of Bangladesh. He explores why thousands of families settled here in the 1970s and 80s, and how they faced hardships and racism while building a new life in Britain.  

  Therapist Rachel Nguyen tells the story of the Vietnamese Boat People who came to Britain in the 1970s and 80s. British-born Rachel, whose parents fled post-war Vietnam, discovers how a new community came to exist in Britain when Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher eventually agreed to take in 10,000 Vietnamese refugees. 

  

• Preview: The Vietnamese Boat People

  Rachel Nguyen tells the story of the Vietnamese Boat People who came to Britain in the 1970's and 80's. 

  British-born Rachel, whose parents fled post-war Vietnam, discovers how a new community came to exist in Britain when Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher eventually agreed to take in 10,000 Vietnamese refugees. 

  Scattered around the country, thanks to a controversial ‘dispersal policy’, the new community became almost invisible.

  Even to this day, many in the UK might not realise Britain has a Vietnamese community.
  

  Through meeting people who lived through these events and by accessing rare archive footage and government papers, Rachel learns more about the community she was brought up in.

  Whilst the Vietnamese Boat People faced huge difficulties, there was also kindness from local people.  

  She goes on to explore how life in Britain has changed for Vietnamese people of her generation.