Blitz spirit is here today, says TV historian
HISTORIAN Lucy Worsley has been struck by how the Blitz spirit is getting Britain through the pandemic.
While making a documentary for the 80th anniversary of the German bombing raids during the Second World War she said she was taken by the similarities between 1941 and now.
“The Blitz spirit, as I see it,” said Lucy, “is the willingness to sacrifice for the common good.
“All these people giving up their personal safety, their time and their energies.
“That’s the Blitz spirit I see in action all around us.
“In both cases it’s the actions of people on the front line and those who do charity work.”
Her feature-length BBC film uses archive footage and powerful first-hand accounts to recreate the eight-month bombardment of the UK.
“It’s been a strange and interesting experience,” she said, “because this project was set up way before coronavirus.
“When Covid-19 came along people started talking about the Blitz spirit and volunteerism and dealing with things like fear.
“My dad can remember the Blitz. He doesn’t have a lot to say about it but he does remember the fear. He does remember the skies at night and being taken to the shelter.
“We are not only dealing with this disease but the fear of it. It opened up a window into what they experienced in 1940-41.”
German planes dropped 32,000 tonnes of bombs on British cities, with 44,652 people perishing beneath the rubble.
The speed with which the wartime government had to produce 38 million gas masks also mirrors the need for PPE at the start of the pandemic.
The 47-year-old historian said: “That’s another parallel with what’s happening now. Of course it was a complete dead end.
“They thought there would be gas attacks but there weren’t.
“They had to change tack very quickly, which all seems quite familiar now with coronavirus.”
As chief curator at Historic Royal Palaces, Lucy revealed the charity has a £100million hole in its funds. She said: “We’re closed at the moment. They’re my sleeping beauties. We rely on visitors so we’re longing for the restrictions to be relaxed.”
● Blitz Spirit with Lucy Worsley is on BBC One later this month.
‘It is the willingness to sacrifice for the
common good... people giving up their
personal safety’
ONE of Britain’s top hitmakers has told how he produced a final single for The Supremes icon Marywilson just months before her death – over cups of tea in his home garage.
Studio wizard Gary Miller, who has worked with a string of stars such as George Michael, David Bowie, Simply Red and Donna Summer, revealed: “Mary was one of the most humble artists I ever met. As co-founder of
The Supremes you might have expected her to storm out of my unfinished studio or be furious with the younger singers there who didn’t recognise her.
“But Mary was the exact opposite. She was incredibly humble, chatting and sipping tea in between sessions.”
Mr Miller – who began his career with Stock, Aitken, Waterman – said he was “shocked” to learn of Mary’s death last
Monday at her home in Lasvegas at the age of 76. He was in the middle of building a new studio at his LA home when he got the call to work with her on the charity singleyouare Notalone.
It will be released in the US forworld Mental Health Day in October.
Mary’s session took place just days before LA’S first lockdowns last year.
Yorkshire-born Mr Miller said:
“We had a makeshift vocal booth with bits of wood and blankets.
“That’s how disorganised we were but Mary was the most un-diva-like of us all. As soon as she started singing the younger stars realised pretty quickly they were in the presence of greatness.”