A small screen alternative to stone and bronze

This article examines the first major British television series about the First World War, The Great War (BBC, 1964), in terms of

its cultural, historical and aesthetic significance. As a central component of the BBC's 50th anniversary commemorative programme to mark the

outbreak of war, the series was a major media event -a small-screen memorial cast in sounds and images instead of stone and bronze. This

article looks at how the British television audience responded to thisform of on-screen commemoration. Material for this article was derived

from the series' extensive production records housed in the BBC Written Archives Centre at Caversham, Berkshire. This was supplemented by,

among other sources, material from interviews and correspondence with several surviving members of the production team. This allows a broader

understanding of the motivations of those involved in the production of a groundbreaking historical series, while acknowledging the wide-ranging

nature of its audience.