Timeshift
2002 · BBC Four · 60 min · 17 seasons
S17E03 · Dial "B" for Britain: The Story of the Landline
Fri, 21 Apr, 6:00 am
Timeshift journeys back to the age of the landline - a distant era when phones weren't pocket-sized wireless devices, but bulky objects wired into our homes and workplaces. Over the course of 100 years, a communications network was rolled out to join up Britain, bringing commercial and social change in its wake. Yet despite ongoing technical innovation, the phone service often struggled to meet demand. From the speaking clock to the Trimphone, the first public call boxes to the Post Office Tower, this is the story of how Britain got connected, told by the operators and engineers themselves, and featuring rarely seen archive footage.
About
Documentary series which ranges widely over Britain's social and cultural history, its narrative-led storytelling offering a richly immersive and varied window onto the past.
Episodes
- E01
Roof Racks and Hatchbacks: The Family Car
Tue, 4 Apr· 60 minExploring the British experience of family cars, from the Morris Minor to the Ford Cortina, the VW Golf to the Volvo estate, school runs to family holidays.
- E02
Blazes and Brigades: The Story of the Fire Service
Fri, 14 Apr· 60 minTimeshift looks back on nearly two centuries of British firefighting, and explores how major incidents and the evolution of equipment from manual pumps to motorised fire engines have helped forge the modern fire service.
- E03
Dial "B" for Britain: The Story of the Landline
Fri, 21 Apr· 60 minTimeshift journeys back to the age of the landline - a distant era when phones weren't pocket-sized wireless devices, but bulky objects wired into our homes and workplaces. Over the course of 100 years, a communications network was rolled out to join up Britain, bringing commercial and social change in its wake. Yet despite ongoing technical innovation, the phone service often struggled to meet demand. From the speaking clock to the Trimphone, the first public call boxes to the Post Office Tower, this is the story of how Britain got connected, told by the operators and engineers themselves, and featuring rarely seen archive footage.
