0:00:08 > 0:00:11Being blonde, busty and the short skirts -
0:00:11 > 0:00:14that was enough to bring the house down.
0:00:20 > 0:00:26"I can't go out there. There are bombs, Germans and terrible mayhem!"
0:00:27 > 0:00:33You could look and see the Germans looking at you with field glasses.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40I've got theatrical experience, I've been to the theatre twice.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43"Get off! Show us your..." Oh, dear.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46Every night, something awful!
0:00:46 > 0:00:48That were what the boys used to call it.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58We must have travelled for thousands of miles.
0:00:58 > 0:01:01We didn't care. We were entertaining the troops!
0:01:09 > 0:01:15I was due to make my debut in show business on 3 September 1939,
0:01:15 > 0:01:18would you believe. The day war broke out.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20The Government has given instructions
0:01:20 > 0:01:23for the following important announcements -
0:01:23 > 0:01:27closing of places of entertainment.
0:01:27 > 0:01:32All cinemas, theatres and other places of entertainment
0:01:32 > 0:01:36are to be closed immediately until further notice.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40The first thing I thought, "Well, there goes my career."
0:01:40 > 0:01:46You know, there won't be a sort of entertainment during the war.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50Everything will be very serious and safety-minded.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53But entertainment was far from over.
0:01:53 > 0:01:55And one man would make it his mission to ensure
0:01:55 > 0:01:59that the world of show business played its part during the war.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03Basil Dean was a renowned theatre and film impresario,
0:02:03 > 0:02:05a legendary name in the world of entertainment.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08During the First World War, he took on the task of
0:02:08 > 0:02:12raising the spirits of his fellow soldiers in the battalion.
0:02:12 > 0:02:13The commandant was concerned
0:02:13 > 0:02:17that something needed to be done for the morale of these men
0:02:17 > 0:02:20and Dean was the ideal person to be given the task.
0:02:20 > 0:02:25And he went round the area. He looked for singers, dancers, magicians,
0:02:25 > 0:02:29and slowly, he poured a wealth of talent in.
0:02:31 > 0:02:35Dean certainly commented on the fact he felt morale had been lifted
0:02:35 > 0:02:37and it never left him.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40As a second world war loomed,
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Basil Dean realised he could build on this idea.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46He had a vision of a worldwide theatrical operation,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49where entertainment would play a key role in keeping up morale
0:02:49 > 0:02:51and helping to win the war.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54When the war was obviously coming,
0:02:54 > 0:02:59he was very active in proposing what became ENSA.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02I think he approached the political authorities,
0:03:02 > 0:03:04urging the Government to set up something like ENSA.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06That is certainly so.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10I think he wanted especially the theatre to do its bit in the war
0:03:10 > 0:03:14and the people, not only the troops but the factory workers,
0:03:14 > 0:03:15needed entertainment.
0:03:15 > 0:03:21So, the idea for the Entertainment's National Service Association, ENSA,
0:03:21 > 0:03:22began to take shape.
0:03:22 > 0:03:27Basil was a man of great drive and extreme energy and vigour.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30- Yes.- And a difficult man.
0:03:30 > 0:03:36You don't get a mild-mannered man who agrees to run a show like ENSA.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38He needs to be a formidable figure.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42To me, he was a Diaghilev, he was figure of power.
0:03:42 > 0:03:46He was a magical name that people said, "Basil Dean!"
0:03:46 > 0:03:51Basil Dean's impressive powers of persuasion finally convinced NAAFI,
0:03:51 > 0:03:53the service's trading organisation,
0:03:53 > 0:03:56to foot the bill for this ambitious operation.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58But it wasn't just officials he could win over.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01Due to his connections with West End people,
0:04:01 > 0:04:03he got these big stars.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06"You will do this, won't you?" "Yes, of course I'll do it."
0:04:06 > 0:04:09CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:04:11 > 0:04:15You should wait till I finish. You shouldn't start mucking about now!
0:04:15 > 0:04:17LAUGHTER
0:04:17 > 0:04:21Gracie, obviously, was extremely famous -
0:04:21 > 0:04:23one of our top performers.
0:04:23 > 0:04:31WITH AUDIENCE: # Sally, don't ever wander... #
0:04:32 > 0:04:35I think she was everything that they thought of home about.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38She looked like a mother, a young mother.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42She was, you know, the family, the one they were going back for.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45# Sally
0:04:45 > 0:04:48# Marry me, Sally... #
0:04:48 > 0:04:50And happy forever are we!
0:04:50 > 0:04:55Her whole repertoire was songs that they all knew.
0:04:55 > 0:04:56And men loved a sing-song.
0:04:56 > 0:05:02# You're more than the whole world
0:05:02 > 0:05:09# To me-e-e-e-e... #
0:05:09 > 0:05:11APPLAUSE
0:05:11 > 0:05:13# Hitler can't kid us a lot
0:05:13 > 0:05:15# His secret weapon's tommyrot... #
0:05:15 > 0:05:19Another glittering star to sign up with ENSA was George Formby.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21George Formby was a very popular entertainer.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24He did this thing also of getting everybody to come round.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26And he played the uke.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29He'd do My Little Stick Of Blackpool Rock
0:05:29 > 0:05:32and When I'm Cleaning Windows.
0:05:32 > 0:05:37Some sort of double entendres in that, which the blokes loved.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40# At eight o'clock, a girl she wakes
0:05:40 > 0:05:42# At five past eight, a bath she takes
0:05:42 > 0:05:44# At ten past eight, me ladder breaks
0:05:44 > 0:05:46# When I'm cleaning windows. #
0:05:46 > 0:05:47CHEERING
0:05:47 > 0:05:49If you had George Formby,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52if you had Gracie Fields, who was a tremendous supporter,
0:05:52 > 0:05:55others thought, "If they can do it, why can't I?"
0:05:57 > 0:06:00With a headquarters complete with staff,
0:06:00 > 0:06:04offices and workshops set up at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane,
0:06:04 > 0:06:07Basil Dean was heading up an already formidable organisation.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10But to achieve his dream, he needed an army of foot soldiers.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12Word went out to the show business world,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15that they were needed for the war effort.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18And performers - from singers to contortionists,
0:06:18 > 0:06:20comedians to jugglers - heeded the call.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25I simply saw an advertisement for dancers
0:06:25 > 0:06:28to go abroad with ENSA.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30I wanted to entertain the troops.
0:06:30 > 0:06:36And so I went to Drury Lane Theatre and did an audition.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42We were just sort of, as I seemed to remember,
0:06:42 > 0:06:45looking out onto a vast blackness.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52You did your first audition on THE stage,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56and that was frightening, really!
0:06:57 > 0:07:02It's a beautiful theatre. Really, one that
0:07:02 > 0:07:04has got the ghost of ages there.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08But they built on the stage, which was a beautiful big stage,
0:07:08 > 0:07:10they built a small stage
0:07:10 > 0:07:14because we would never have quite such a big one as that.
0:07:14 > 0:07:19In Drury Lane, you had your inoculations there,
0:07:19 > 0:07:23and we even had to make a will when we went abroad.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Our roving cameraman takes you behind the scenes
0:07:25 > 0:07:28at the headquarters of ENSA, Drury Lane Theatre.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31There, the wardrobe girls are dealing with another rush order.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33We had to go to the wardrobe.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35We had very pretty dresses.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37What can't be adapted must be made.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40That means a lot of work for the cutters and machinists.
0:07:40 > 0:07:41If they didn't fit you,
0:07:41 > 0:07:46you had wardrobe mistresses there who altered all the clothes.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48If it fits, it's hers to take away.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51If it doesn't, the backroom girls' nimble fingers will soon alter it.
0:07:51 > 0:07:56It was a complete little factory of its own, really.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59The wardrobe is doing a big job in a big way,
0:07:59 > 0:08:02playing its part to help the artist play theirs.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06And this new army of entertainers was even given its own uniform.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09It would identify the ENSA performers when they were abroad,
0:08:09 > 0:08:12in case they were mistaken for spies by the enemy.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15Dean felt that the war correspondents had a uniform,
0:08:15 > 0:08:19other people had a uniform, the American entertainers had a uniform,
0:08:19 > 0:08:24why wasn't his people, why weren't they getting a uniform?
0:08:24 > 0:08:26And he created a design.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28It was a very nice uniform.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33We didn't wear trousers.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35Girls didn't wear trousers in those days.
0:08:35 > 0:08:40It was like the summer khaki uniform.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42The same material as the troops wore.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45And it was just a skirt
0:08:45 > 0:08:49and an army jacket and a hat.
0:08:49 > 0:08:56That was a khaki soldier's uniform, officer's uniform,
0:08:56 > 0:09:03with the most dreadful flat cap thing, which I never liked,
0:09:03 > 0:09:07so I got myself a different one from a boyfriend,
0:09:07 > 0:09:11borrowed a Scotch beret and I wore that.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13I just thought it looked better,
0:09:13 > 0:09:17so, I was a rebel in those days, certainly!
0:09:17 > 0:09:20Really, I should be here in battle dress!
0:09:20 > 0:09:23When I left England to come and work for ENSA they said,
0:09:23 > 0:09:25"You'll have to wear a battle dress."
0:09:25 > 0:09:27I said, "What's the idea?
0:09:27 > 0:09:29"I mean, after all, I'm an actor, not a soldier."
0:09:29 > 0:09:32He said, "You'll have to wear a battle dress
0:09:32 > 0:09:34"because if you get captured by the Germans,
0:09:34 > 0:09:35"they'll shoot you."
0:09:35 > 0:09:38I said, "If the Germans capture me, they're entitled to shoot me."
0:09:38 > 0:09:40LAUGHTER
0:09:40 > 0:09:43Uniforms fitted, bags packed, the performers were ready to go,
0:09:43 > 0:09:47but not before they were briefed on ENSA's rules of engagement.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50We had the usual lecture that we had.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53It was our duty to go in the mess and talk to them,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56they were lonely and they were away from home,
0:09:56 > 0:09:58but there was not too much involvement.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00No maternity. Right, of course.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02In the vastness of Drury Lane,
0:10:02 > 0:10:04Leslie Henson is rehearsing his concert party
0:10:04 > 0:10:07that NAAFI is sending out to the troops in France.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10# Bop, bop, doodle-oodle-ay... #
0:10:10 > 0:10:15Performers came from far and wide to play their part in the war effort,
0:10:15 > 0:10:18but everyone had their own reasons for signing up.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21# ..we'll have a beautiful...
0:10:22 > 0:10:26# ..day! #
0:10:26 > 0:10:28I was sort of called up,
0:10:28 > 0:10:30but I didn't want to be a soldier,
0:10:30 > 0:10:36so I appealed against it on the grounds that I was a dancer
0:10:36 > 0:10:41and I needed to practice, which was a tiny bit of a fib, I should say!
0:10:41 > 0:10:47But they said, "Well, if you join ENSA, that's OK."
0:10:47 > 0:10:49So that's what I did, actually.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53I got a set fee from ENSA to entertain.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56Sometimes it was for the military,
0:10:56 > 0:11:00sometimes it was for the factories, sometimes in air raid shelters.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03But it was work and it was a payment.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07The standard pay was £10 a week.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11It was very nice money in those days.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15But life as an entertainer was far from an easy option,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18as these performers would soon discover.
0:11:18 > 0:11:19They were very brave.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24They went by ship or air and could easily be torpedoed or shot down.
0:11:25 > 0:11:31We were put on board this ship with all our stuff that we brought.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34We didn't know where we were going then, but...
0:11:35 > 0:11:41..we were in a convoy, of course, and it was a hairy one.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43On the boat, you had to drop depth charges,
0:11:43 > 0:11:47hoping to keep the submarines away,
0:11:47 > 0:11:49cos they were underneath all the time
0:11:49 > 0:11:53and they would be dogging the convoy all way, following it along.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59And the boat was rocking all over the place!
0:12:04 > 0:12:06We ended up in Algiers.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10I'd like to introduce you a lovely bit of homework. Joy Tudor!
0:12:10 > 0:12:13# If you want to be happy
0:12:13 > 0:12:15# If you want to go far
0:12:15 > 0:12:18# Then I've a treat in Broadway
0:12:18 > 0:12:21# Everyone is a star
0:12:21 > 0:12:24# No one there has a fortune
0:12:24 > 0:12:26# No, not even a car
0:12:26 > 0:12:28# For I've a treat on Broadway
0:12:28 > 0:12:32# Everybody's a star... #
0:12:32 > 0:12:35The lucky dip, I was a dancer, really.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37It was like a little variety thing
0:12:37 > 0:12:40and whatever was going, needed, you had to do it.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44# ..in Broadway.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48# Everybody's a star! #
0:12:50 > 0:12:53At that stage, I was doing speciality dancing,
0:12:53 > 0:12:56so sometimes I did a Spanish dance,
0:12:56 > 0:13:00I had a Spanish dress and frills and black earrings
0:13:00 > 0:13:05and black things, a black cross, shawl and all the rest of it.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15We were going forward one night to play this petrol depot.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18The jerry cans, those big jerry cans were full of petrol
0:13:18 > 0:13:21and they were all put in a row
0:13:21 > 0:13:25and they built a little stage with planks on this petrol thing.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34We had to do the show very quickly and smoothly.
0:13:38 > 0:13:43We were shoved off and as we got into our lorry to drive back,
0:13:43 > 0:13:45we were sitting in the back of the lorry and WHOOSH!
0:13:45 > 0:13:47EXPLOSION
0:13:47 > 0:13:50And a flashing of lights and boom, boom!
0:13:50 > 0:13:53EXPLOSION
0:13:53 > 0:13:55We were safe then
0:13:55 > 0:13:59but we had gone right forward into the firing line.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02You don't think about the job, you've got a job to do.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05It isn't until afterwards that you would think,
0:14:05 > 0:14:08"That was a bit dangerous."
0:14:08 > 0:14:10AMERICAN ACCENT: Well...
0:14:10 > 0:14:14look me over, boys, but don't try to reform me.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17Stick around here, honey, you might learn something.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21Mavis White set sail with ENSA, aged just 21.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23I was a singer and impressionist
0:14:23 > 0:14:26and we were a very small, little group
0:14:26 > 0:14:31of about eight but we were a very talented little group.
0:14:31 > 0:14:32A lot of variety.
0:14:32 > 0:14:38Going out on the ship, we didn't know where we were going to.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42We landed in North Africa.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44"Oh, we're in North Africa!"
0:14:45 > 0:14:46Algiers.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51We didn't have a limousine to meet us.
0:14:51 > 0:14:52We had...
0:14:52 > 0:14:53a lorry.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55Believe it or not, that's a theatre.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Come round to the stage door
0:14:57 > 0:14:59to meet Marylyn and Roma making up for the show.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02A strange sight in the middle of the desert.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04Here's some of the audience, men with a few hours' leave,
0:15:04 > 0:15:07who, in between rounds, are coming in for a sing-song
0:15:07 > 0:15:09with an ENSA company on location in Libya.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13And we must have travelled for thousands of miles over potholes,
0:15:13 > 0:15:19dirt tracks, dust, dirt, flies, mosquitoes.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21We didn't care.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23We were entertaining the troops.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25You'll notice they bring their rifles.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27Let there be no misunderstanding -
0:15:27 > 0:15:29this roadshow is not so many miles from the enemy lines.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33The troops would put one side of the oblong lorry down
0:15:33 > 0:15:40and a little upright piano in the corner. That was our stage.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42There's always a big hand for the girls,
0:15:42 > 0:15:44singing under extremely difficult conditions.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46It's not the easiest thing
0:15:46 > 0:15:48to put over a song with sand blowing about.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52I sang a little song called Tiddley Winkie Woo,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55and it was there in the North African desert
0:15:55 > 0:16:00that the troops nicknamed me the Tiddley Winkie Girl.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02# Tiddley winkie winkie winkie
0:16:02 > 0:16:04# Tiddley winkie woo
0:16:04 > 0:16:08# I love you
0:16:08 > 0:16:10# Tiddley winkie winkie winkie
0:16:10 > 0:16:12# Tiddley winkie woo
0:16:12 > 0:16:15# Love me, too
0:16:15 > 0:16:17# I love you in the morning
0:16:17 > 0:16:19# And I love you in the night
0:16:19 > 0:16:21# I love you in the evening
0:16:21 > 0:16:24# When the stars are shining bright
0:16:24 > 0:16:25# Ooh!
0:16:25 > 0:16:28# Tiddley winkie winkie winkie
0:16:28 > 0:16:29# Tiddley winkie woo
0:16:29 > 0:16:32# I...
0:16:32 > 0:16:36# ..love you! #
0:16:37 > 0:16:39Not bad for 90!
0:16:41 > 0:16:47Once we got on stage, it was magic. We were entertaining.
0:16:48 > 0:16:56We knew that we were making them happy at this time.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00And that's all we cared about...
0:17:00 > 0:17:02to hear their laughter.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05I loved to make them laugh.
0:17:05 > 0:17:11A troop audience was at that time the best in the world.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14You could not get better.
0:17:14 > 0:17:15The little show has gone down well.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19The boys have had a bit of fun before moving up to the line again.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23Everybody liked a different sort of entertainment.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27You had to give them a mixture of anything that they liked,
0:17:27 > 0:17:28and we did that.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44The troops loved pretty ladies, of course.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47Singers, magicians, jugglers,
0:17:47 > 0:17:50four people and a piano on the back of a lorry.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.
0:17:52 > 0:17:57Contortionists. Of course, the blokes loved that. They had very little on.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01It could be a bit saucy.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08You didn't really have to do anything.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11Being blond, busty and with a short skirt on,
0:18:11 > 0:18:15and that was enough to bring the house down!
0:18:16 > 0:18:21APPLAUSE
0:18:23 > 0:18:25The shows were proving their worth,
0:18:25 > 0:18:28as troops wrote in, praising the entertainment.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32"You have literally radiated laughter and happiness
0:18:32 > 0:18:35"to thousands of troops, whose lot is normally a hard and a dull one."
0:18:35 > 0:18:39"Great excitement here last week. An ENSA show turned up."
0:18:39 > 0:18:41"We all went to an ENSA concert in the gym
0:18:41 > 0:18:43"and had a thoroughly enjoyable time."
0:18:43 > 0:18:46Allen Clifford was working as a radio navigator
0:18:46 > 0:18:48at RAF Methwold in Norfolk.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50As well as entertaining overseas,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53ENSA was touring shows around the UK,
0:18:53 > 0:18:56and groups would stop off at his base and perform.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58At least once a week, somebody came.
0:18:58 > 0:19:00It was nice to have fresh people to talk to.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02You'd talk to every girl on the station,
0:19:02 > 0:19:06but you'd have some new ones coming in who were dressed in bonny things
0:19:06 > 0:19:09and had their hair done and lipstick and all that.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11It was quite exciting, but also because, after it was over,
0:19:11 > 0:19:15you all retired to the mess and had a drink and talked to the girls.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18They didn't bugger off, they did actually stop there!
0:19:19 > 0:19:22You knew your time was fairly circumscribed,
0:19:22 > 0:19:27so it was nice to get something different introduced always.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29You felt just a bit civilised for a while.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35And the troops themselves were creating their own entertainment.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37Henry Lewis, a wireless operator,
0:19:37 > 0:19:41performed magic shows at military bases around the UK.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48I volunteered for the forces just after the day war was declared,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51and as a youngster,
0:19:51 > 0:19:52I knew Morse code,
0:19:52 > 0:19:56I immediately got taken to the Royal Corps of Signals.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06In the evenings, we used to have entertainments,
0:20:06 > 0:20:10and various members of the unit were asked
0:20:10 > 0:20:12whether they could do anything and so on,
0:20:12 > 0:20:15and as I was always interested in magic since the age of eight,
0:20:15 > 0:20:17I thought, "I could do something."
0:20:17 > 0:20:20And in those days, I could do things with billiard balls
0:20:20 > 0:20:24and thimbles and cards and so on. And I volunteered for these shows.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28Then, I got transferred to Stars In Battledress,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31which was the touring Army show.
0:20:31 > 0:20:36But we were a military organisation, and they usually sent us places
0:20:36 > 0:20:39where they didn't particularly want the civilian population to go to.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46Everything had to be very portable,
0:20:46 > 0:20:51and playing cards, making fans and diminishing
0:20:51 > 0:20:53and producing them, that sort of thing.
0:20:56 > 0:20:58The Army were very good to me.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01The Army workshops, if I needed a piece of equipment,
0:21:01 > 0:21:03would make it for me.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05And that made a lot of difference.
0:21:05 > 0:21:06So I was able to do things
0:21:06 > 0:21:09which the average performer would have no chance.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12We were bound up by the laws of secrecy.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15We couldn't tell anybody where we were going.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18If I was being sent from, say, Aldershot to Catterick,
0:21:18 > 0:21:21I couldn't even tell my mother if I wanted to.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24I mean, this was the Army, this was wartime.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27If an enemy knew there was going to be a theatre full of soldiers -
0:21:27 > 0:21:29what a target!
0:21:30 > 0:21:34When you think of all these people who came to these shows,
0:21:34 > 0:21:37they all had their own problems.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41The fact they could forget all this and come to a show that evening
0:21:41 > 0:21:44and laugh and enjoy what people were doing,
0:21:44 > 0:21:49and we had some wonderful performers, that made it all worthwhile.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02Somewhere in Rhodesia,
0:22:02 > 0:22:05this English cadet is training under the Royal Air Force flag,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07part of the Empire Training Scheme.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10Proud recruits to one of the most gallant brotherhoods,
0:22:10 > 0:22:12they are learning to do their job well.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16Troops near and far welcomed the chance to see entertainers,
0:22:16 > 0:22:18and in remote corners of the world,
0:22:18 > 0:22:22it created a much-needed connection with home.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25I joined the Air Force in 1943. And I was sent to Southern Rhodesia,
0:22:25 > 0:22:28now Zimbabwe, to learn to fly,
0:22:28 > 0:22:30and I was there for about a year.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34It was full of excitement. On the other hand, we were all very lonely.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37We were far away from home. There was very little entertainment.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42But one of the most quintessentially English stars of the time
0:22:42 > 0:22:44was due to perform at Tony Benn's RAF base.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47When I heard that Noel Coward was coming,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50a few of my mates and I decided to go to the canteen
0:22:50 > 0:22:52inside the camp where we were.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55# Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun
0:22:55 > 0:22:59# The smallest Malay rabbit deplored this foolish habit... #
0:22:59 > 0:23:03It was quite a big thing to have a major London actor coming over.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06# In Hong Kong, they strike a gong and fire off the noonday gun
0:23:06 > 0:23:09# To reprimand each inmate who's in late... #
0:23:09 > 0:23:12He was very neatly dressed. I noted in my diary,
0:23:12 > 0:23:15"His programme, which lasted a little over an hour,
0:23:15 > 0:23:17"was absolutely first rate."
0:23:17 > 0:23:20He entered into it exactly as you'd expect Noel Coward would,
0:23:20 > 0:23:21into the spirit of it all.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24# In the mangrove swaps where the python romps
0:23:24 > 0:23:27# There is peace from 12 till two
0:23:27 > 0:23:29# Even caribous lie around and snooze
0:23:29 > 0:23:30# For there's nothing else to do... #
0:23:30 > 0:23:32He put on an absolutely first-rate show,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34deliberately, consciously treated it
0:23:34 > 0:23:36exactly as if we were a West End audience.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40And that made people feel at home and comfortable.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44# In Bengal, to move at all is seldom, if ever, done
0:23:44 > 0:23:47# But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday, out in the midday
0:23:47 > 0:23:49# Out in the midday, out in the midday
0:23:49 > 0:23:50# Out in the midday, out in the midday
0:23:50 > 0:23:52# Out in the midday sun. #
0:23:52 > 0:23:57He was very suave and amusing, and it was a touch of home,
0:23:57 > 0:23:59brought to where we were, and therefore was
0:23:59 > 0:24:01very, very much appreciated.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04But often, the shows weren't up to scratch,
0:24:04 > 0:24:05and the troops didn't hold back
0:24:05 > 0:24:08in their criticism when writing letters home.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10"I wonder if you could see if there are any jobs for me
0:24:10 > 0:24:11"around Drury Lane.
0:24:11 > 0:24:15"I'm sure I could produce and tour a damned sight better show
0:24:15 > 0:24:17"than the abominable tat we get out here.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20"I have never in my life seen such an unprofessional
0:24:20 > 0:24:23"and incompetent organisation overseas as ENSA.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26"You will get my moan in full when I see you."
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Word got round, "Oh, Christ, it's an ENSA show, let's not go tonight."
0:24:35 > 0:24:39It did have a bad reputation, which, really, it didn't deserve,
0:24:39 > 0:24:44except some of the acts weren't 100%.
0:24:46 > 0:24:51I saw one show in the whole of my career in the RAF.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53I saw one ENSA show.
0:24:53 > 0:24:55I came out of it halfway through.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57It was pathetic.
0:24:57 > 0:25:03We weren't considered the creme de la creme, shall we say.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06ENSA didn't have a very good name.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11You'd get a rather poor-quality magician out there,
0:25:11 > 0:25:13showing you a magic trick
0:25:13 > 0:25:17and you've just taken a mine out of the ground and defused it.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19You know, which is the better one?
0:25:19 > 0:25:23For Basil Dean, this criticism was hard to take.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25In his determination to provide entertainment
0:25:25 > 0:25:26wherever it was needed,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29the quality of ENSA's output had suffered.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32He had high ideals. Of course, most of them had to go out the window.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36With ENSA, he had to produce a vast amount of stuff
0:25:36 > 0:25:38and some of it wasn't very good.
0:25:38 > 0:25:43Oh yes, some of it wasn't very good. Well, he admitted all that.
0:25:43 > 0:25:48I don't think he quoted the phrase "Every Night Something Awful",
0:25:48 > 0:25:54- but that was said of ENSA. - Yes, who was it that made that joke?
0:25:54 > 0:25:57"Some low comedian," as Basil would have said.
0:25:57 > 0:25:59And it was these "low comedians"
0:25:59 > 0:26:02who brought a storm of protests down on ENSA.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04Certain comics, desperate for laughs,
0:26:04 > 0:26:06were resorting to risque humour once on the road
0:26:06 > 0:26:09and away from the rules and regulations of Drury Lane.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15Despite having their scripts signed off at HQ,
0:26:15 > 0:26:18some still weren't toeing the party line.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22This controversy about lewd jokes reared its ugly head
0:26:22 > 0:26:26and Dean was insistent that was not what he wanted.
0:26:26 > 0:26:32He has a story about listening to a second-rate comic
0:26:32 > 0:26:36amusing the troops and the comic wasn't doing very well at all,
0:26:36 > 0:26:40and then he produced some rather blue material
0:26:40 > 0:26:42and this amused the troops even less,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45and Basil, as director, sacked him on the spot.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49Managing a giant operation like ENSA was no easy task.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52And Basil Dean was starting to make some enemies.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55He was fighting a variety of battles.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58First of all, the press were in some ways hostile.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03He noted that certain agents were unhappy
0:27:03 > 0:27:07with the amounts of money that was to be paid to their stars.
0:27:07 > 0:27:12There were senior officers who felt they could probably do a better job,
0:27:12 > 0:27:14because they had chums in the entertainment world.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17And, of course, the heavyweights of the entertainment world
0:27:17 > 0:27:20were convinced they could do a better job than Dean.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23What they didn't have was Dean's drive and initiative.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26Well, it was very ambitious.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29He was very ambitious, that's certainly the case.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32He was dealing with officials and big boards,
0:27:32 > 0:27:34and no doubt rubbed many up the wrong way.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37But Basil Dean wouldn't give up on his dream
0:27:37 > 0:27:39of providing entertainment at the highest level.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44He tried to raise the standard of ENSA's musical entertainment.
0:27:44 > 0:27:49There were orchestras, vocalists, all sorts of things, all under ENSA.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56And it wasn't just the troops who needed respite from the war.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58The civilian population was doing its bit, too.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00Factories were working round the clock
0:28:00 > 0:28:02to meet demand for the war effort.
0:28:02 > 0:28:06Pauline Sadgrove began her ENSA career playing the cello
0:28:06 > 0:28:08and touring factories around the UK.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12When war broke out, I always felt I'd like to use
0:28:12 > 0:28:14my talent for entertaining.
0:28:14 > 0:28:15There were three of us, a trio.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18Violin, piano and cello. We joined together.
0:28:18 > 0:28:24The factories, of course, we gave lunch breaks,
0:28:24 > 0:28:28and the lunch breaks had got to be at 12, sort of six o'clock,
0:28:28 > 0:28:33any time, four o'clock in the morning or two o'clock in the morning.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36So our life was upside down.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41All these huge factories,
0:28:41 > 0:28:47they'd only had, you know, very popular music
0:28:47 > 0:28:54and squeezebox, and a comedian. They gave us a rousing reception.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58It was unbelievable. But I think we were an experiment.
0:28:58 > 0:29:00That's why they were so surprised
0:29:00 > 0:29:03when every factory asked to have us back again.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06It gave one a great buzz.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Despite the criticisms, ENSA was on a roll.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16And for Basil Dean, the sky was the limit.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19I think ENSA was very clever to send the ballet,
0:29:19 > 0:29:23because it's so far from everyday life in a sense, isn't it?
0:29:23 > 0:29:26And there's wonderful music and a lot of girls.
0:29:34 > 0:29:37The troops said to me, "Well, if the ballet's coming out here,
0:29:37 > 0:29:41"it must be all right. Can't be dreadful, can it?"
0:29:41 > 0:29:43Gillian Lynne was a young dancer
0:29:43 > 0:29:47touring the country with the prestigious Sadler's Wells Ballet.
0:29:47 > 0:29:52We were in Leeds and we heard this rumour we're going abroad in ENSA.
0:29:52 > 0:29:54We went to London, we were all fitted out,
0:29:54 > 0:29:59and to be in a uniform with a cap! And we were in officers' uniform!
0:29:59 > 0:30:02And we were rather smart
0:30:02 > 0:30:05and it was so different from the rest of our lives.
0:30:08 > 0:30:12We did feel that we were at last going to have
0:30:12 > 0:30:17a really helpful contribution to the war.
0:30:17 > 0:30:21I hate to say it, but it was sort of exciting.
0:30:24 > 0:30:29Two sections of society that would never probably have met up,
0:30:29 > 0:30:32you know, because ballet's a sort of isolated world
0:30:32 > 0:30:36and then the troops came from all different walks of life.
0:30:36 > 0:30:40To their amazement, the majority adored it, and of course,
0:30:40 > 0:30:45it's very physical, and there are girls with long legs and tights.
0:30:45 > 0:30:48I mean, they were starved of female companionship
0:30:48 > 0:30:50so that went down rather well.
0:30:56 > 0:31:01I think it would have been a really lovely eye-opener for them
0:31:01 > 0:31:05and they kind of might have forgot a lot of the horror
0:31:05 > 0:31:07they were having to go back to.
0:31:17 > 0:31:20When we were flying at night, I had to have a curtain round me
0:31:20 > 0:31:24so as I could have a light on to do my job.
0:31:24 > 0:31:27But everybody else was sitting in the dark, and the first time
0:31:27 > 0:31:30I went over a heavily defended target, I was sat behind a pilot.
0:31:30 > 0:31:34He said, "Come and have a look at this, Allen." I opened the curtain,
0:31:34 > 0:31:35all hell was breaking loose!
0:31:35 > 0:31:37So I closed it and got on with my work!
0:31:40 > 0:31:44It is a very tense sort of business. For a quarter of an hour,
0:31:44 > 0:31:47when you're over the target, it was indescribable.
0:31:47 > 0:31:50But for a half hour either side of that, it was pretty rough.
0:31:50 > 0:31:53Aircraft going down around you, it's very disconcerting.
0:31:57 > 0:32:01On his 22nd flying raid, Allen Clifford was shot down
0:32:01 > 0:32:05and captured by the enemy. Held captive for seven months,
0:32:05 > 0:32:08he was moved between prisoner of war camps across Germany.
0:32:08 > 0:32:11In one, Stalag Luft 7, the inmates would stage shows
0:32:11 > 0:32:14in an attempt to lift their spirits.
0:32:14 > 0:32:17Well, when I got there, they already had a concert party
0:32:17 > 0:32:19and one of the things that the Swiss Red Cross did
0:32:19 > 0:32:23was to encourage that sort of thing for morale reasons.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26And because they'd negotiated getting musical instruments
0:32:26 > 0:32:29and suchlike, when you've got a couple of thousand people,
0:32:29 > 0:32:33you've got enough musicians amongst them to make it work.
0:32:33 > 0:32:36And apparently it was fairly common in most camps.
0:32:36 > 0:32:39Virtually every week there'd be a musical concert,
0:32:39 > 0:32:42an hour or something like that. It was fairly amateurish,
0:32:42 > 0:32:46but it was very much appreciated and even the Germans liked it.
0:32:46 > 0:32:49They would come to it. The costumes were all made.
0:32:49 > 0:32:52I don't think any of them were imported.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56At that time, there was all sorts of textiles available from blankets
0:32:56 > 0:33:00and things like that and towels. It was remarkable what you could do
0:33:00 > 0:33:02with dining towels and suchlike.
0:33:02 > 0:33:06Prisoners in these camps would often create their own entertainment
0:33:06 > 0:33:08by staging extravagant shows.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10Making the best of limited resources,
0:33:10 > 0:33:13servicemen would be transformed into starlets.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16There's always people who like dressing up as girls.
0:33:16 > 0:33:18I don't know where they got their make-up from,
0:33:18 > 0:33:21I presume the Germans helped there, I suppose.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24The girls looked pretty good actually.
0:33:24 > 0:33:26- They were always blondes. - HE LAUGHS
0:33:26 > 0:33:28We never had any brunettes or red heads on the show.
0:33:28 > 0:33:31Always, always blondes.
0:33:31 > 0:33:35Subversive comments were made from time to time.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38Every now and then the Germans would expostulate,
0:33:38 > 0:33:40"No more of this, no more of this."
0:33:40 > 0:33:45Most of your life was enlivened by being awkward.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48We were up-to-date on what was going on
0:33:48 > 0:33:50and where our troops were
0:33:50 > 0:33:52so you managed to work in a reference to the places
0:33:52 > 0:33:55that we'd occupied that morning.
0:33:55 > 0:33:57So they knew it was up-to-date.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01You'd say something innocuous like, "What's happening in so and so?
0:34:01 > 0:34:03"Quite exciting, isn't it?" Or, "Quite interesting?"
0:34:03 > 0:34:06Or, "I don't believe that!"
0:34:06 > 0:34:10They frankly weren't as up-to-date as we were on it, actually.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13Life as a prisoner of war was brutal and unrelenting.
0:34:13 > 0:34:17But during his capture, a moment's kindness from Allen's guard
0:34:17 > 0:34:21had made a connection across the greatest of divides.
0:34:21 > 0:34:24In the corridor was a grand piano, quite a battered looking one
0:34:24 > 0:34:25with no front on.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28He was obviously a classical pianist,
0:34:28 > 0:34:31he obviously thought, "What would we know that he knew?"
0:34:31 > 0:34:34So he started tinkering this out
0:34:34 > 0:34:37and I smiled and he said, "Marie Marlene".
0:34:37 > 0:34:39I said, "No, Lili Marlene".
0:34:39 > 0:34:41"Lili Marlene".
0:34:41 > 0:34:44# I'm Lili Marlene
0:34:44 > 0:34:48# I'm Lili Marlene... #
0:34:48 > 0:34:52It was the one song that we picked up from the Germans.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55The Eighth Army brought it home.
0:34:55 > 0:34:57It's a very evocative piece.
0:34:57 > 0:34:59It was nice, it was a moment's tenderness.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03It brings tears to my eyes.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05I'm going to have it played at my funeral.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08# I'm Lili Marlene... #
0:35:19 > 0:35:22- REPORTER:- We won the dogfights and finally the battle,
0:35:22 > 0:35:25but many of our pilots were horribly injured
0:35:25 > 0:35:29in the wreckage of their Spitfires and Hurricanes.
0:35:29 > 0:35:33Meanwhile, other members of the RAF who had been badly burned in action
0:35:33 > 0:35:37were convalescing at the Marchwood Park facility near Southampton,
0:35:37 > 0:35:39under the care of pioneering plastic surgeon,
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Sir Archibald McIndoe.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44Brenda Logie had been performing in the south of England
0:35:44 > 0:35:47with a concert party and a chance encounter
0:35:47 > 0:35:51led to her playing an important part on their road to recovery.
0:35:51 > 0:35:56We had been told that they were at Marchwood Park
0:35:56 > 0:35:59in the case we should see them.
0:35:59 > 0:36:01This particular morning, I'm walking along
0:36:01 > 0:36:03and I saw this chap
0:36:03 > 0:36:07in RAF uniform coming towards me.
0:36:07 > 0:36:12I didn't want him to think he looked any different to anybody else,
0:36:12 > 0:36:15so we sort of passed one another and that was that.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18When I got back to the office, the boss said,
0:36:18 > 0:36:21"You've got to go up to the personnel", he said.
0:36:21 > 0:36:26He said, "You passed squadron leader..." whatever his name was,
0:36:26 > 0:36:28"..in the yard this morning and you smiled at him.
0:36:28 > 0:36:33"Would you like to go to Marchwood? You obviously can cope with it."
0:36:33 > 0:36:37He said, "If you would go, you could go and take your pianist with you,
0:36:37 > 0:36:43"and do a few songs and talk to them and dance with them,
0:36:43 > 0:36:47"if they're having any dancing or anything like that."
0:36:47 > 0:36:49And I said, "Yes, sure. I'll go."
0:36:51 > 0:36:57Well, they liked sort of sentimental songs
0:36:57 > 0:37:03and they liked patriotic songs, that was one of the main things.
0:37:06 > 0:37:11They talked about their families and their parents
0:37:11 > 0:37:13and all that sort of thing.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16And, as I say, once they got to trust you,
0:37:16 > 0:37:20they would tell you what operations they were going to have.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24I admired them tremendously, I thought they were so brave.
0:37:24 > 0:37:29I thought it was absolutely dreadful, you know, what had happened.
0:37:29 > 0:37:33And I hope they all realised that I thought that they were
0:37:33 > 0:37:35all pretty special people.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39If music was good to them and they wanted it done,
0:37:39 > 0:37:40I was quite prepared to do it.
0:37:51 > 0:37:54Further along the south coast, Betty Hockey was also keen to do
0:37:54 > 0:37:57her bit for the war effort and had an idea.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01I was passing all these camps under canvas
0:38:01 > 0:38:05and general activity and I thought, "I must do something.
0:38:05 > 0:38:09"What can I do?" Then I suddenly thought, "I'll run a concert party."
0:38:09 > 0:38:14I'd never done it before in my life, but nevertheless I did.
0:38:14 > 0:38:19So I chose 16 that wanted to be in the Forces,
0:38:19 > 0:38:22but couldn't get released from their jobs,
0:38:22 > 0:38:24so that was the nearest they could get.
0:38:24 > 0:38:27There was a ventriloquist,
0:38:27 > 0:38:28a magician,
0:38:28 > 0:38:33and there was a man and wife, accordion and xylophone.
0:38:33 > 0:38:35We really had the lot.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38We had all sorts of dancers.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41There was the hula hula, we used to do.
0:38:41 > 0:38:46And we had made skirts out of raffia and straw and things like that.
0:38:46 > 0:38:51At one RAF camp, they gave us a lovely parachute.
0:38:51 > 0:38:54The men had shirts out of it, we made the shirts.
0:38:54 > 0:38:56It was amazing what we did use it for!
0:38:58 > 0:39:00Then I suddenly thought of the can-can.
0:39:00 > 0:39:02It was risque.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05It wasn't considered nice.
0:39:05 > 0:39:08Actually, it wasn't allowed in England at that stage,
0:39:08 > 0:39:11it was banned.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14Nevertheless, the boys loved it and they kept asking us back.
0:39:17 > 0:39:21# If I were the only girl... #
0:39:21 > 0:39:25One place in particular was to make a lasting impression on Betty.
0:39:25 > 0:39:28I shall never forget Hurst Castle.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31# Nothing else would matter
0:39:31 > 0:39:32# In this world... #
0:39:32 > 0:39:35The theatre, of course, was so tiny.
0:39:35 > 0:39:3816 of us couldn't get on that stage
0:39:38 > 0:39:42so we had to make do and mend.
0:39:42 > 0:39:46We did most of the show on the floor in front of the stage.
0:39:48 > 0:39:50They were almost on top of us.
0:39:50 > 0:39:53I can hear them all singing
0:39:53 > 0:39:55and doing their acts.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58I really can. It's almost like a ghost.
0:39:58 > 0:40:00# If I were
0:40:00 > 0:40:03# The only girl
0:40:03 > 0:40:05# In the world
0:40:05 > 0:40:08# And you were
0:40:08 > 0:40:12# The only boy. #
0:40:16 > 0:40:22And even on 5th June 1944, the night before D-Day,
0:40:22 > 0:40:24Betty and her troupe were in the camp
0:40:24 > 0:40:26unaware of what was about to unfold.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29Strangely enough, they allowed us to do a show.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32I don't know how it happened, but it was at Holmsley.
0:40:32 > 0:40:37We guessed something pretty major was going to happen
0:40:37 > 0:40:39but nobody really knew.
0:40:40 > 0:40:43We had to be very careful what we said and...
0:40:44 > 0:40:47But actually, we knew where everybody was.
0:40:47 > 0:40:50I could have done a lot of damage.
0:40:50 > 0:40:52We really couldn't do the show properly
0:40:52 > 0:40:56because they were coming and going the whole evening.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59The planes were taking off on one side
0:40:59 > 0:41:03and the trucks and the tanks the other side.
0:41:04 > 0:41:07It wasn't the normal, happy atmosphere
0:41:07 > 0:41:08that there had been before.
0:41:08 > 0:41:14They were very agitated, because you knew that the next lot
0:41:14 > 0:41:17you were entertaining were the next lot to go.
0:41:17 > 0:41:21And half of the others didn't come back, of course.
0:41:21 > 0:41:27They sang, they sang. They sang their hearts out.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30They knew jolly well what they had ahead of them.
0:41:30 > 0:41:36TROOPS SINGING
0:41:57 > 0:42:01- REPORTER:- D-Day has come. Early this morning, the Allies began an assault
0:42:01 > 0:42:05on the north-western face of Hitler's European fortress.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08The first official news came just after half past nine,
0:42:08 > 0:42:12when supreme headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Force
0:42:12 > 0:42:15issued communique number one. This said,
0:42:15 > 0:42:19"Under the command of General Eisenhower, Allied naval forces,
0:42:19 > 0:42:21"supported by strong air forces,
0:42:21 > 0:42:24"began landing Allied armies this morning
0:42:24 > 0:42:25"on the northern coast of France."
0:42:34 > 0:42:37D-Day proved to be a major turning-point in the war
0:42:37 > 0:42:39and Basil Dean wanted the entertainment world
0:42:39 > 0:42:43to show its mettle and be there for the troops as they went into action.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45Dean was desperate,
0:42:45 > 0:42:50he would have liked to have been the first entertainment unit ashore.
0:42:50 > 0:42:51In his heart of hearts,
0:42:51 > 0:42:53he knew that he was going to run second on this one,
0:42:53 > 0:42:57because of that business of, should the Germans counter-attack,
0:42:57 > 0:42:59then what would happen to the ENSA party.
0:42:59 > 0:43:03This time, rather than the civilian entertainers of ENSA,
0:43:03 > 0:43:05it was Stars In Battledress -
0:43:05 > 0:43:08the military organisation who got there first.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10You had a collection of very talented people,
0:43:10 > 0:43:13but they could go anywhere and if necessary,
0:43:13 > 0:43:17they could defend their location or they could attack if necessary.
0:43:17 > 0:43:19But ENSA was hot on their heels.
0:43:19 > 0:43:21Just weeks after D-Day,
0:43:21 > 0:43:25the organisation sent over one of its best-known stars.
0:43:28 > 0:43:31# I'm leaning on a lamp-post at the corner of the street
0:43:31 > 0:43:34# In case a certain little lady comes by
0:43:34 > 0:43:36# Oh, me, oh, my
0:43:36 > 0:43:41# I hope the little lady comes by... #
0:43:41 > 0:43:44Other ENSA stars soon followed to do their bit for the troops.
0:43:44 > 0:43:46Acts as diverse as Ivor Novello,
0:43:46 > 0:43:49Flanagan And Allen and Margaret Rutherford
0:43:49 > 0:43:52crossed the Channel in the weeks after D-Day.
0:43:52 > 0:43:58And ENSA's army of unknown entertainers weren't far behind.
0:43:58 > 0:44:02It was about September before I started going, therefore,
0:44:02 > 0:44:07you are three months behind the fighting.
0:44:14 > 0:44:20Wherever we went, the devastation was absolutely horrendous.
0:44:20 > 0:44:22Every time you entertained the boys,
0:44:22 > 0:44:27they were very happy to be alive, I suppose, but a little depressed.
0:44:31 > 0:44:35You're so appreciated.
0:44:35 > 0:44:37You didn't have to be clever, you just stood on the stage
0:44:37 > 0:44:43and that to them, I mean, you can imagine the horrors of war
0:44:43 > 0:44:49and everybody, they experienced it, where we only ever saw the aftermath,
0:44:49 > 0:44:52which was horrific at places,
0:44:52 > 0:44:56but nothing to what the boys were going through.
0:44:57 > 0:45:00But ENSA parties travelling and performing
0:45:00 > 0:45:02in the midst of war zones themselves
0:45:02 > 0:45:04weren't immune to the dangers.
0:45:04 > 0:45:07The reality of war was about to hit close to home.
0:45:07 > 0:45:12She was blonde and vivacious, a very good dancer,
0:45:12 > 0:45:16and she and I got on as sisters.
0:45:16 > 0:45:19Vivien Hole had been Audrey's dance partner
0:45:19 > 0:45:20before they both joined ENSA.
0:45:20 > 0:45:28They were driving from one venue to the other, in the coach.
0:45:28 > 0:45:34Unfortunately, they took a wrong turning and went into a minefield
0:45:34 > 0:45:40and the wheel over which she was sitting was hit and she died.
0:45:42 > 0:45:43I was devastated.
0:45:43 > 0:45:49I mean, she was so lovely and 19 years old
0:45:49 > 0:45:52and it's just incredible, really.
0:45:52 > 0:45:57It comes home to you, when somebody so close to you gets killed.
0:46:02 > 0:46:06Troops continued to land at Normandy to support the push into Europe.
0:46:06 > 0:46:11Amongst them was a young Eric Sykes, serving with the RAF.
0:46:11 > 0:46:14I was a wireless operator, yes, in what was formed,
0:46:14 > 0:46:19especially for the invasion of Europe, was a mobile signals unit.
0:46:19 > 0:46:24Eric decided to try his luck with show business at the end of the war.
0:46:24 > 0:46:28They started a concert party, with a notice on the notice board,
0:46:28 > 0:46:31"All those with theatrical experience...
0:46:31 > 0:46:34"..report to..." what do you call it.
0:46:34 > 0:46:36And I thought, "Yeah, I've got theatrical experience,
0:46:36 > 0:46:38"I've been to the theatre twice."
0:46:38 > 0:46:42They were mainly troop audiences and, you know,
0:46:42 > 0:46:45we went very well, so that's it.
0:46:45 > 0:46:50These shows, we all stood on the stage when the curtain went up
0:46:50 > 0:46:54and all on chairs, leaning on the back of the chair
0:46:54 > 0:46:56and singing our opening number.
0:46:56 > 0:46:59But every one of us was in our uniforms
0:46:59 > 0:47:02with the badges of rank and everything.
0:47:02 > 0:47:06All throughout the show, we never changed out of that uniform,
0:47:06 > 0:47:08so we could go straight off the street,
0:47:08 > 0:47:11on the stage, do the show, straight out and...
0:47:13 > 0:47:15Enough said.
0:47:15 > 0:47:21We were a team and that was really enjoyable.
0:47:21 > 0:47:22Whilst serving abroad,
0:47:22 > 0:47:26Eric found he could tune into his own favourite entertainer.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28Being a wireless operator, you see, sometimes,
0:47:28 > 0:47:32in between sending out messages and receiving them,
0:47:32 > 0:47:34we had quite large breaks,
0:47:34 > 0:47:38so we could either get the cricket scores from London
0:47:38 > 0:47:41when we were abroad in France or Holland or somewhere,
0:47:41 > 0:47:44or we could get Vera Lynn
0:47:44 > 0:47:47and I'd prefer Vera Lynn to the cricket scores.
0:47:47 > 0:47:51- REPORTER:- From home to the Forces, from Vera Lynn and Fred Hartley.
0:47:51 > 0:47:55VERA LYNN: This letter of mine is getting to be a sort of rendezvous,
0:47:55 > 0:47:59where husbands and wives, torn apart by war,
0:47:59 > 0:48:01can be brought together by music.
0:48:01 > 0:48:04On the wings of these melodies,
0:48:04 > 0:48:09the sentiments go from me to both of you, from you to her.
0:48:09 > 0:48:12Here's our song together tonight.
0:48:19 > 0:48:23# Night and day
0:48:23 > 0:48:26# You are the one... #
0:48:26 > 0:48:30The young star was broadcasting a weekly show, Sincerely Yours,
0:48:30 > 0:48:33which conveyed messages between troops and families
0:48:33 > 0:48:34separated by the war.
0:48:34 > 0:48:38# Whether near to me or far... #
0:48:38 > 0:48:42I was getting all these letters from the boys and I thought, "Well,
0:48:42 > 0:48:46"I wonder what the possibility is, if I could get out there,
0:48:46 > 0:48:49"actually, and sing to them in person
0:48:49 > 0:48:53"instead of over the radio and talk to them."
0:48:53 > 0:48:57I approached ENSA, so they said, "Well, where would you like to go?"
0:48:57 > 0:48:58I said, "Well, if I'm going anywhere,
0:48:58 > 0:49:01"I want to go where they don't get any entertainment."
0:49:01 > 0:49:07So they said, "Well, Burma is one that gets very little, if anything."
0:49:07 > 0:49:10So I said, "Right, that's where I want to go."
0:49:21 > 0:49:24The boys never talked about their experiences when they were out there.
0:49:24 > 0:49:29I suppose they wanted just to forget it, really.
0:49:29 > 0:49:33It was rather a nasty war out there.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39Everywhere I went, they said,
0:49:39 > 0:49:41"When you go back home, will you tell them about us?
0:49:41 > 0:49:48"And remind them that we are here still." The war isn't over for them.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54They really did feel they were forgotten.
0:49:57 > 0:50:00I was performing in all sorts of places.
0:50:00 > 0:50:01It might be in a tent
0:50:01 > 0:50:08or it might be a whole crowd of 6,000 in a big open area.
0:50:08 > 0:50:12They came from miles and miles around
0:50:12 > 0:50:18and it was so lovely to be able to be there and not just sing to them,
0:50:18 > 0:50:20but to go round and talk to them
0:50:20 > 0:50:22and chat, bring them a little bit of home.
0:50:22 > 0:50:25Tell them how we were facing the bombs and everything
0:50:25 > 0:50:28and try and cheer them up. Tell them not to worry. You know,
0:50:28 > 0:50:31we were OK, we were getting food.
0:50:31 > 0:50:35It wasn't just the singing, it was contact with home.
0:50:35 > 0:50:41# We'll meet again
0:50:41 > 0:50:46# Don't know where, don't know when
0:50:46 > 0:50:51# But I know we'll meet again
0:50:51 > 0:50:54# Some sunny day... #
0:50:54 > 0:50:58It was a very popular song and popular I think
0:50:58 > 0:51:05because it was optimistic and it spoke of hope
0:51:05 > 0:51:10and better things to come that, you know, that we all would meet again.
0:51:10 > 0:51:16# Drive the dark clouds far away... #
0:51:16 > 0:51:22Any song she sang, she could sing the advert on a coco tin
0:51:22 > 0:51:25and make it sound musical.
0:51:25 > 0:51:28She's just that kind of a genius.
0:51:28 > 0:51:31What she did give her audiences,
0:51:31 > 0:51:35she had that amazing ability to have that quality in her voice
0:51:35 > 0:51:38that went home to all the individuals
0:51:38 > 0:51:44and everybody that looked it, felt that she was singing just for him.
0:51:44 > 0:51:48I feel blessed that I was in a position
0:51:48 > 0:51:50that I was able to do something.
0:51:50 > 0:51:58# But I know we'll meet again some sunny day... #
0:52:00 > 0:52:03CLOCK CHIMES
0:52:03 > 0:52:07Hostilities will end, officially,
0:52:07 > 0:52:14at one minute after midnight tonight, Tuesday the 8th May.
0:52:14 > 0:52:21The German war is therefore at an end. Advance, Britannia!
0:52:21 > 0:52:26Long live the cause of freedom. God Save the King!
0:52:26 > 0:52:30CHEERING
0:52:30 > 0:52:32On the 8th May 1945,
0:52:32 > 0:52:35cheering crowds gathered to celebrate victory in Europe.
0:52:35 > 0:52:40Just over three months later, Japan surrendered to the Allies.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42World War II was finally over.
0:52:42 > 0:52:44CROWDS CHEERING
0:52:47 > 0:52:50FANFARE
0:52:50 > 0:52:53REPORTER: The curtain rises on London's victory parade
0:52:53 > 0:52:55as their Majesties leave Buckingham Palace
0:52:55 > 0:52:58for the saluting base of the Mall.
0:52:58 > 0:53:02The following year saw official celebrations in the victory parade
0:53:02 > 0:53:04where all aspects of wartime service were honoured,
0:53:04 > 0:53:07from military regiments to broadcasting organisations.
0:53:07 > 0:53:12The biggest moment of all was when our own boys appeared,
0:53:12 > 0:53:15the men who have fought our battles the world over.
0:53:15 > 0:53:18Also taking in the procession, a Movietone sound-recording car,
0:53:18 > 0:53:20just one of a fleet which saw service on many battle fronts.
0:53:20 > 0:53:22The men and women of the home front were there -
0:53:22 > 0:53:27people who kept on working whatever the danger,
0:53:27 > 0:53:30turning out the weapons, running our transport, delivering our food.
0:53:30 > 0:53:33Yes, they were all there, the ordinary people.
0:53:33 > 0:53:37It was their day, a day of rejoicing and of thanks.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40But it wasn't to be Basil Dean's day,
0:53:40 > 0:53:44there was no place for ENSA in the victory parade.
0:53:44 > 0:53:47Every actor and actress would have loved the chance
0:53:47 > 0:53:50to have marched on that parade.
0:53:50 > 0:53:52They'd been to the most dangerous places in the world.
0:53:52 > 0:53:54But were denied this.
0:53:54 > 0:53:56All the army were, they have their service medals
0:53:56 > 0:53:58and things at the end of the war.
0:53:58 > 0:54:02And somewhere, somebody gave us some little bits of ribbon,
0:54:02 > 0:54:04all frayed-out with nothing else.
0:54:04 > 0:54:09It was just wiped out, more or less. It was a pity.
0:54:13 > 0:54:14Between 1939 and 1946,
0:54:14 > 0:54:18ENSA had put on over 2.5 million performances,
0:54:18 > 0:54:21from Iceland to India, Burma to Berlin.
0:54:24 > 0:54:27Along with other entertainment troupes,
0:54:27 > 0:54:30the world of show business had done itself proud.
0:54:30 > 0:54:33But things were going from bad to worse for Basil Dean.
0:54:33 > 0:54:37I do remember a certain rumpus
0:54:37 > 0:54:41when an MP made an attack on my father in the House Of Commons.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44While I am mentioning expenditure,
0:54:44 > 0:54:47might I refer to that very much travelled gentlemen,
0:54:47 > 0:54:50the worldwide traveller at public expense, Basil Dean.
0:54:50 > 0:54:54With his £3,000 a year salary, his unlimited expenses,
0:54:54 > 0:54:56free car and chauffeur, two secretaries
0:54:56 > 0:55:01and medical expenses provided and uniforms and ribbons as well.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04All paid for by soldiers, sailors and airmen?
0:55:04 > 0:55:06He has been, throughout the war,
0:55:06 > 0:55:09or at least since NAAFI took over the responsibility,
0:55:09 > 0:55:12more generously rewarded than Montgomery.
0:55:12 > 0:55:17That deprived him of any kind of serious honour for his ENSA work,
0:55:17 > 0:55:19that I do know as a fact.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22He got a CBE as quite a lot of other people in ENSA did.
0:55:22 > 0:55:25I think he would have got a knighthood.
0:55:25 > 0:55:28You see, he put people's backs up, that was the trouble.
0:55:28 > 0:55:31But even so, he ought to have been honoured much more often
0:55:31 > 0:55:34for ENSA, there's no doubt about that.
0:55:34 > 0:55:39ENSA had by this time too many enemies.
0:55:39 > 0:55:42Perhaps it's better to say Basil Dean had too many enemies.
0:55:42 > 0:55:44People wanted him out of the way.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48There were stories of generals who would no longer talk to him in Germany.
0:55:48 > 0:55:52So I think he realised the writing was on the wall.
0:55:52 > 0:55:53But at the end of the day,
0:55:53 > 0:55:58the generals may have had their view, but some of the lads
0:55:58 > 0:56:02in far flung places would have said to them, "No, he did a good job.
0:56:02 > 0:56:06"I had some entertainment thanks to this man's idea."
0:56:06 > 0:56:10Those people who joined ENSA, those soldiers
0:56:10 > 0:56:13who put down their rifles and put on a frock and had a dance
0:56:13 > 0:56:20and made the boys laugh was just as important as medicine and food.
0:56:20 > 0:56:22After ten years of blackout and semi-darkness,
0:56:22 > 0:56:24the lights go on again.
0:56:24 > 0:56:28# There's no business like show business... #
0:56:28 > 0:56:31The war ended, but the invasion of show business started.
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Because all of a sudden
0:56:34 > 0:56:37you were getting all these talented people coming out
0:56:37 > 0:56:40at the same time into the West End of London.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46Anybody who thought they could do a turn, anything, coming out.
0:56:46 > 0:56:51It was sort of reinvigorating or invigorating the theatres again.
0:56:51 > 0:56:56People wanted to be entertained and new names coming all over the place.
0:56:56 > 0:56:59Tommy Cooper and Frankie Howerd, Spike.
0:56:59 > 0:57:02Peter Sellers, Tony Hancock.
0:57:02 > 0:57:05Eric Sykes of course was another one. Dear old Eric.
0:57:05 > 0:57:08I desperately wanted to go into show business
0:57:08 > 0:57:11after I'd had such a wonderful time at the end of the war.
0:57:11 > 0:57:18What was good about it all was the fact that it was all new ground.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21And for this band of intrepid entertainers,
0:57:21 > 0:57:25the memories of those performances would last a lifetime.
0:57:25 > 0:57:30You look back and you think, "Good gracious, we did that. We saw that."
0:57:30 > 0:57:33I can't believe it now when I think of it.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35It must have been another person.
0:57:35 > 0:57:39It can't have been me doing all that, you know?
0:57:39 > 0:57:42I wouldn't have thought I had the guts to do it.
0:57:42 > 0:57:46I was glad I did it. Very glad I did it.
0:57:46 > 0:57:52It's funny to say in a wartime, I wouldn't have missed.
0:57:52 > 0:57:55They were some of the happiest days of my life.
0:57:55 > 0:58:03# And go on with the show
0:58:03 > 0:58:07# There's no people like show people
0:58:07 > 0:58:10# They smile when they are low
0:58:10 > 0:58:14# Even with a turkey that you know will fold
0:58:14 > 0:58:18# You may be stranded out in the cold
0:58:18 > 0:58:21# Still you wouldn't change it for a sack of gold
0:58:21 > 0:58:23# Let's go on with the show. #