People's Century

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
People's Century
GenreDocumentary
Theme music composerZbigniew Preisner
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
  • Peter Pagnamenta
  • Zvi Dor-Ner
ProducerDavid Espar
Production companies
Original release
NetworkBBC One
Release13 September 1995 (1995-09-13) –
23 February 1997 (1997-02-23)

People's Century is a television documentary series examining the 20th century. It was a joint production of the BBC in the United Kingdom and PBS member station WGBH Boston in the United States.[1] The series was first shown on BBC in the 1995, 1996 and 1997 television seasons before being broadcast in the US and elsewhere in the world in 1998.

Premise

The 26 one-hour episodes examined the

socio-economic, political, and cultural movements
that shaped the 20th century. The series represented a departure from documentaries that present history through recounting the actions of great men; People's Century considers the century from the perspective of common people. Most of those interviewed were ordinary men and women who closely witnessed various events and who give personal accounts of the manner in which the developments and disruptions of the 20th century affected their lives.

The British version was narrated by

Sean Barrett and Veronika Hyks, the American version by actors John Forsythe and Alfre Woodard. People's Century was co-produced by the BBC and WGBH
with executive producers Peter Pagnamenta and Zvi Dor-Ner, respectively, along with producer David Espar.

The opening credits depict various images from the century, accompanied with a theme music score by

International Emmy Award
, among others.

International versions

People's Century was broadcast in several non-English-speaking countries, including Norway (with subtitles, as is normal on Norwegian television).[2] In Germany, the series was dubbed, under its English title, on VOX as a weekly feature on a 4-to-6h slot called DCTP Nachtclub with several episodes in each slot, as part of the channel's Spiegel TV documentaries programme co-operation with Der Spiegel. A Swiss-produced VHS set was released of the German-dubbed version under the title Chronik des 20. Jahrhunderts. The German dub also ran on Austrian and Swiss television.

Interviewees

The series

Season 1 (1995)

Episode Title Year Information UK Broadcast Date USA Broadcast Date
1 Age of Hope 1900 At the beginning of the twentieth century the world was stable and certain, but unequal. The
Paris Exhibition of 1900 symbolises the optimism of a peaceful age when affluence is rising and people have faith in new technologies like electricity
. The United States becomes the most powerful country in the world, destination for many immigrants from Europe. Compulsory education in many countries had led to a literate population exposed to new ideas, leisure and consumerism through newspapers. Trade unions grow in strength and force governments to protect employment conditions for workers, while suffragettes push for votes for women. Revolutions shake the political order in China and Russia. European empires continue to dominate the globe, however signs of dissent appear in India and South Africa, and Japan's victory over Russia in 1905 challenges the belief of white superiority. Nationalism rises in Europe, bringing the continent to conflict in 1914. 		13 September 1995 [3] 19 April 1998
2 Killing Fields (UK: 1914) (US: 1916) The Great War is fought with larger armies and deadlier weapons than ever before, bringing death and carnage on an unprecedented scale to Europe. The bloody Battle of the Somme and the Battle of Verdun fail to break a stalemate on the Western front, and soldiers become increasingly frustrated and demoralised with the war's mounting casualties, poor living conditions and lack of progress. World War I's propaganda began for the first time in 1916. Despite the October Revolution knocking Russia out of the war in 1917, the odds shift against a blockaded Germany with the entry of the United States into the war, and eventually an armistice is signed. The psychological scars of this war would make the public less willing in future to go to war, or trust their leaders. The introductory scene shows soldiers mobilising at the beginning of the war, grossly under-estimating the destructive power of modern warfare. Interviewees include Karl von Clemm, Edward Smout and Cecil Lewis. 20 September 1995 19 April 1998
3 Red Flag 1917 The
expulsion to Siberia of millions of Soviets. The introductory scene explains the events leading up to the 1917 revolution. Interviewees include Anna Larina and Boris Yefimov
 27 September 1995 [4] 20 April 1998
4 Lost Peace 1919 The trauma of the First World War gives Europe no appetite for any further conflicts, but within subsequent two decades the world would return to rearmament and militarism. The
Lord Soper
. 		4 October 1995 [5] 8 June 1998
5 Sporting Fever 1930 Once an amateur pursuit, sport becomes larger and more competitiveness to satisfy the public's need for excitement and identity. Communities unite behind favoured sporting clubs, as are entire countries that support their national teams against rivals. From the
1936 Berlin Olympics and the Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling bouts for propaganda purposes, with mixed results. The introductory scene shows the 1930 FIFA World Cup, won by Uruguay against its arch-rival Argentina. Interviewees include Eddie Futch, Robert Mitchell, Helen Stephens and Fritz Schilgen
. 		11 October 1995 [6] 21 April 1998
6 On the Line (1924: UK) (1926: US)
The Great Depression weakens worker bargaining power, but after a series of strikes in the 1930s and 1940s trade unions emerge victorious, and instruments like the Matignon Agreements
in France are established to buttress workers' rights. 		18 October 1995 [7] 25 May 1998
7 Great Escape 1927 The
Ladri di biciclette and Meet Mr. Lucifer). The introductory scene shows audience observing the first sound film, The Jazz Singer
. 		25 October 1995 21 April 1998
8 Breadline 1929 The economic boom of the
Wall Street crash
. 		1 November 1995 1 June 1998
9 Master Race 1933
Auschwitz
at first hand. Uniquely for an episode of this series, the closing credits did not feature the rolling street scene normally seen at both the beginning and end of episodes, rather a completely black background intended as a visual "memorial" to all those who died at the hands of the Nazis because they "didn't fit in with German racial policy". 		8 November 1995 15 June 1998
10 Total War 1939 The Second World War enmeshes civilians to the horrors of war on an unprecedented scale. Germany and Japan, in seeking living space, kill and enslave entire populations in the Soviet Union and Asia respectively. Initially considered barbarous, people begin to accept as fair game the aerial bombing of civilian populations, and escalating calls for retaliation bring destruction to cities including Plymouth, Hamburg and Tokyo. Civilians are also in the front line in the Siege of Leningrad, but despite hardships, its orchestra manages to perform Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7. The mobilisation of civilians in the United States and elsewhere gives the allies quantitative superiority in the production of armaments, and ultimately victory. The introductory scene shows prescient footage of aerial bombing in the 1936 film Things to Come 15 November 1995 [8] 22 June 1998

Season 2 (1996)

Episode Title Year Information UK Broadcast Date USA Broadcast Date
11 Brave New World 1945 Despite being allies against Hitler, disagreement and rivalry soon break out between the Soviet Union and the West, leading to the
Gail Halverson
 15 September 1996 [9] 29 June 1998
12 Boomtime 1948 Europe is exhausted and impoverished in the years after the Second World War. The United States implements the Marshall Plan to rebuild Western Europe, partially out of generosity, and partially to keep in check communism. Despite some misgivings, the Europeans are generally grateful – tractors increase food supplies, and American training and support builds up Europe's heavy industry. Productive industrial sectors help the United States enjoy an unrivalled standard of living throughout the 1950s and 1960s, with living transformed through automobiles, supermarkets and Levittowns. European managers adopt US manufacturing methods and Europe begins to manufacture, and then export, its own consumer goods. Labour shortages lead to the employment of women and migrant workers. The West enjoys high wages and low unemployment until the 1970s energy crisis. The opening scene shows the Friendship Train travelling through the United States around Christmas 1947, collecting charity to send to Europe. 22 September 1996 [10] 14 June 1999
13 Freedom Now 1947 European powers are forced to relinquish their colonies in Africa following the Second World War, but in most cases the newly independent countries would eventually succumb to poverty, civil war and despotic regimes. India's independence motivates a generation of war veterans from Africa, who for the first time have travelled the world, to seek greater autonomy for their own countries. The Europeans are at first reluctant to surrender colonies that supports their prosperity, although Asia is decolonised in the 1950s. The British give reforms to the Gold Coast (now Ghana), which under Kwame Nkrumah would lead the way to independence, and ultimately become an example to the rest of Africa. Kenya's path to independence would not be without blood, and the British fight the Mau Mau to protect the numerically small white population. France and Portugal both struggle to keep their colonies. Within three years, 25 African states would become independent from their colonial masters, but tribal hatreds, corruption, a lack of a skilled workforce and internal conflict often lead these countries to ruin. The introductory scene shows India's path towards independence. Interviewees include Komla Gbedema and E. T. Mensah. 29 September 1996 [11] 6 July 1998
14 Fallout 1945 Nuclear weapons make the world more dangerous than ever before. The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 by atom bombs is hailed for ending the Second World War, but the long-term effects of radiation are discovered years later. To ensure parity with the US, Stalin puts his scientists to work and four years later the Soviet Union explodes its first nuclear bomb, starting an arms race between the superpowers in which peace is maintained through the doctrine of
mutually assured destruction. Governments take steps to protect its citizens through civil defence. Popular movements calling for nuclear disarmament appear in force from the late 1950s, and the expensive arms race is eventually stopped in the 1980s. Nuclear power supports economic growth and technological advances, but the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, as well as the impact of nuclear testing in Utah and Bikini Atoll, keep the public at large distrustful of nuclear science. The opening scene shows the preparation and execution of the world's first nuclear test
in New Mexico, United States. 		6 October 1996 15 June 1999
15 Asia Rising 1951

Through thrift, hard work and discipline, Japan and later South Korea enjoy economic miracles that bring growth, prosperity and confidence to their once war-ravaged and impoverished people. In Japan the Korean War kickstarts manufacturing, and growth is sustained through export-orientated industries using Western technologies and production methods, and assisted by a dedicated, highly educated labour force strongly committed to improving their country. In the 1960s President Park Chung Hee largely followed Japan 's economic policies in steering South Korea's stellar economic development, but was far more ruthless to dissent and labour movements. The peoples of both countries eventually enjoy the consumer items as the fruits of their efforts, and their personal attitudes change as a result. The introductory scene shows the end of US occupation in Japan.

13 October 1996 16 June 1999
16 Skin Deep 1957 Through
pass laws, the Group Areas Act and other measures as well as other petty apartheid with legal recourse to protest denied. Incidents in Sharpeville and Soweto catalyse the grievances of Africans into direct action, forcing the Government to eventually negotiate with the ANC, free Nelson Mandela
and hold South Africa's first democratic election in 1994. 		20 October 1996 17 June 1999
17 Endangered Planet 1959 Rising consumption patterns extract a huge toll on nature. Toxic contamination in
global warming and acid rain, and the increasing size of industrial facilities make disasters like Bhopal and Chernobyl more deadly. Pressure was also being applied from newly developing countries. Interviewees include Lois Gibbs and Robert Hunter
. 		27 October 1996 [12] 15 June 1999
18 Picture Power 1963

Governments, advertisers and revolutionaries seek to exploit television's ability to instantly communicate compelling messages to mass audiences. Television allows people to vividly witness

assassination of President Kennedy. Interviewees include Abu Daoud and Don Hewitt
.

3 November 1996 21 June 1999

Season 3 (1997)

Episode Title Year Information UK Broadcast Date USA Broadcast Date
19 Living Longer (1952: UK) (1954: US) Medical advances allow people to live longer and healthier lives.
AIDS spreads in Africa and elsewhere, and unlike other diseases appears untreatable. By the 1990s health in the developing world has much improved, and reduced infant mortality rates have lowered birth rates across the world. The introductory scene shows the United States in the 1950s when polio
was prevalent. 		5 January 1997[13] 21 June 1999
20 Great Leap (UK) / Great Leap Forward (US) (UK: 1949)
(US: 1965) 		Communism helps modernise China, but the decisions and
Great sparrow campaign and the Great Leap Forward bring famine and chaos to China. Mao directs mass movements to attack what he perceived were disloyal or ideologically impure elements in China, in particular during the Cultural Revolution. Order is only effectively restored to China following Mao's death in 1976, when CCP Vice Chairman Deng Xiaoping
takes a more practical approach to ruling China. The introductory scene shows Mao proclaiming the People's Republic of China in Tiananmen Square in 1949. 		12 January 1997 16 June 1999
21 New Release (UK) / Young Blood (US) 1968 The baby boom produced a cohort of children in the affluent and secure post-war world who for the first time would question established trends, culture and authority. Young adults were denied the right to vote, and lived in a paternalistic society that discouraged them from interacting with authority. Their rising disposable incomes were channelled into new music and fashions that helped provide them with a new common identity. Greater student populations, disillusionment with conformist trends, identification with civil rights issues and concern about the Vietnam War (where some youth were at risk of being drafted to) led to widespread protests in the West. A counterculture of drugs and hippies also emerged amongst the less engaged. Protests against authority emerges across the world with varying results – the May 1968 student uprising in France is curtailed by pragmatic workers not wishing to become involved, while crackdowns at the Chicago Convention and Kent State University radicalise previously peaceful demonstrators in the United States. From the 1970s, following the end of US involvement in Vietnam, tighter employment conditions and the emergence of a more consultative culture in the West, youth find less reasons to protest. 19 January 1997[14] 14 June 1999
22 Half the People 1970 Women struggle to win political and economic rights in societies gamed to entrench male privilege. Even with limited suffrage, after the First World War many Western women remain destined to a life of domestic servitude or limited careers. The Second World War gives women in Britain and the United States a brief opportunity to work in traditionally male industries, but they are promptly replaced at war's end. In the 1960s, new household appliances, higher education, and the book
Islamic Revolution. The Fourth World Conference on Women shows how the aspirations and achievements for women vary between rich and poor countries. The introductory scene shows the 1970 Women's Strike for Equality. Interviewees include Jacqui Ceballos and Mary Stott
. 		25 January 1997[15] 17 June 1999
23 War of the Flea (UK) / Guerrilla Wars (US) (1975: UK)
(1973: US) 		While in the second half of the century there are fewer conventional wars, civil conflicts under the backdrop of superpower rivalries emerge, fought by ideologically driven guerrilla movements. While usually being small and poorly armed, their motivation, self-belief and their abilities to co-opt popular support and exploit
Ahmed Shah Masoud, General Võ Nguyên Giáp, and Colonel David Hackworth
. 		2 February 1997 28 June 1999
24 God Fights Back 1979 Religion makes a comeback into people's lives in the Islamic world and elsewhere, as people seek guidance and spiritual sustenance during periods of modernisation and social upheaval. Starting in Turkey under
Shah of Iran showcasing his country
in 1971, and his departure in 1979. 		9 February 1997 28 June 1999
25 People Power 1989 By the 1970s the people in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe were becoming aware of the economic failures of central planning. Propaganda and an intrusive security apparatus were now needed to maintain control, particularly after the appearance of Western consumer goods and culture in the Eastern Bloc, and
coup in 1991, eventually leading to the end of the Communist Party and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The introductory scene shows the fall of the Berlin Wall
. 		16 February 1997 20 April 1998
26 Fast Forward (UK) /
Back to The Future (US) 		1997 Governments around the world liberalise trade and withdraw from intervening in the economy, giving new opportunities to those who are skilled, industrious and adaptable, but disrupts the social order for others. In the United States,
globalisation has contributed to one of the most significant achievements of the twentieth century – that more people have control over their own destinies than ever before. Interviewees include Donald Hodge and Mike Eruzione
. 		23 February 1997[16] 5 July 1999

VHS and DVD editions

In 1997 and 1998, VHS box sets were produced in PAL and NTSC. By 2007, most original episodes remained unavailable on DVD, however in late 2006 DVD editions were released in the US of the two world-war episodes Killing Fields and Total War exclusively in NTSC, with a few cut-down post-war episodes (on a DVD called Young Blood, drawing from the previously released Baby Boomers Boxed Set on VHS that had contained 5 complete episodes), by WGBH Boston.

References

  1. ^ "People's Century: 1900-1999 (TV Series 1995– ) - IMDb". IMDb.
  2. ^ (eyewitness with 40 years residence in Norway)
  3. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  4. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  5. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  6. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  7. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  8. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  9. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  10. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  11. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  12. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  13. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  14. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  15. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".
  16. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index".

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=People%27s_Century&oldid=1212764070"