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Made in Britain

During the Queen’s long reign, Britain’s heavy industries have faced devastating decline. Andrew Marr picks the ‘New Elizabethans’ he believes have pioneered new British exports.

In the final episode, Andrew looks at one of the greatest challenges faced by modern Elizabethans: the loss of Britain’s manufacturing heartlands and the surprising impact it has had on the state of the nation. To tell this story, he selects a rich cast of characters who have – in his estimation – responded to the challenges and found ingenious ways of adapting to the changing industrial landscape.

When the Queen ascended the throne in 1952, the country she inherited could still be defined by its manufacturing bases: Sheffield steel, Cornish tin, Welsh coal and Clyde-built ships. Britain in 1952 was, after all, still one of the workshops of the world, if no longer the primary one. Manufacturing accounted for a third of everything that Britain produced, and employed around four in ten of all British workers. Britain turned out a quarter of the entire world's manufacturing exports. But over the next 40 years, all that would change.

For Andrew, the decline in Britain’s heavy industries has had a critical impact in shaping the nation we have become. He investigates the various reasons behind it, arguing that it is not down to a lack of talent. From Christopher Cockerell to Clive Sinclair, the New Elizabethans have demonstrated extraordinary imagination and innovation, even if this hasn’t always been successfully capitalised upon.

But this is not a story of failure - it’s a story of adaptation. Andrew shows how over the course of the Queen’s reign, we Elizabethans have learnt from the lessons of the past. He looks at how inventors like James Dyson have built up billion-pound empires, and, crucially, he examines how the British brand has become about more than motorcars and machines: as our heavy industries of old have declined, we have found other industries and other exports, like the songs of Dusty Springfield or the buildings of Zaha Hadid. He argues that British culture and creativity have become perhaps our most valuable assets, from advertising and architectural design to music and monarchy.

59 minutes

Last on

Thu 2 Jun 2022 02:15

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Music Played

  • The Shadows

    Jet Black

  • Fats Domino

    Going To The River

  • Frank Sinatra

    Nice Work If You Can Get It

  • Billy May

    The Man With The Golden Arm

  • Eddie Cochran

    C'Mon Everybody

  • Humphrey Lyttelton

    Suffolk Air

  • The Shadows

    Kon-Tiki

  • Lionel Hampton and His Orchestra

    Flying Â鶹ԼÅÄ

  • Barry Gray Orchestra

    Thunderbirds

  • The Tornados

    Telstar

  • Fontella Bass

    Rescue Me

  • The Beatles

    Love Me Do

  • Dusty Springfield

    I Only Want To Be With You

  • The Kinks

    Till The End Of The Day

  • Dusty Springfield

    I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself

  • Dusty Springfield

    Son Of A Preacher Man

  • Chris Farlowe

    Out Of Time

  • Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

    Electricity

  • The Rolling Stones

    Can't You Hear Me Knocking

  • Donna Summer

    I Feel Love

  • Pink Floyd

    Echoes

  • Rod Stewart

    Maggie May

  • Led Zeppelin

    When The Levee Breaks

  • Elton John

    Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

  • Fleetwood Mac

    Dreams

  • Talk Talk

    Life's What You Make It

  • The Kinks

    The Village Green Preservation Society

  • Talk Talk

    Life's What You Make It

  • DJ Axel

    Snooperstition (Stevie Wonder vs. Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre)

  • Stevie Wonder

    Superstition

  • Roxy Music

    Virginia Plain

  • Mike Oldfield

    Shadow On The Wall

  • Buggles

    The Plastic Age

  • Lipps, Inc.

    Funkytown

  • Alabama 3, Simon Edwards

    Speed of The Sound of Loneliness

  • T. Rex

    Hot Love

  • Marlena Shaw

    California Soul

  • Duran Duran

    Hungry Like The Wolf

  • Pink Floyd

    Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun

  • David Bowie

    Loving The Alien

  • The Jesus and Mary Chain

    April Skies

  • The Dandy Warhols

    Bohemian Like You

  • Eric Clapton

    I've Got A Rock 'n' Roll Heart

  • Massive Attack

    Teardrop

  • The Chemists

    A Love Like No-One Else

  • The Stone Roses

    What The World Is Waiting For

  • Kate Bush

    James And The Cold Gun

  • Elbow

    Powder Blue

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Andrew Marr
Director Alexander Leith
Series Producer Alexander Leith
Executive Producer Denys Blakeway
Editor Damian Leask
Production Manager Helen Swindells

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