A behind-the-scenes look at religious radio broadcasting during World War II in which such revered figures as C.S. Lewis and Dorothy Sayers came into the public eye. This fascinating book explores the tensions behind the greatest era in BBC radio broadcasting -- the Home Service. Despite evacuation, air-raids and the closure of the fledgling TV service, the BBC rose magnificently to the challenge of informing, entertaining and inspiring a nation at war. The war years were to transform religious broadcasting beyond recognition. Under the persistent and innovative James Welch, the BBC began to invent new formats and take large risks in trying to communicate Christian truth to a generation whose faith was on the rack of war. Out of this came the broadcast talks of CS Lewis and the first ever dramatic portrayal of Christ in Dorothy L Sayers' Man Born to be King. The response to C S Lewis' first broadcast was so overwhelming that a second programme had to be arranged to answer listeners' questions. Lewis' hugely popular BBC talks were published as Mere Christianity and have been a classic ever since, selling over 11 million copies worldwide. As a layman, Lewis' critics initially claimed that he was not qualified to talk on Christian matters. For Lewis this was all part of the challenge of reaching a new audience. But his initial enthusiasm for broadcasting waned as it began to interfere with his work at Oxford, and he turned down many of the BBC's invitations to appear on the radio, including a chance to be on The Brains Trust, the Any Questions of its day. This is a chapter in Lewis' life which has received very little attention from biographers and commentators, who have focussed on his achievements as a writer and academic. Yet C S Lewis' work on the radio made him a household name.
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About the Author
Justin Phillips is the Head of BBC Heritage and has worked at the BBC for many years. He is the author of Confidence (Hodder & Stoughton) and The Word on the Box (Paternoster).
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A seminal contribution towards understanding a masterpiece,
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This review is from: C. S. Lewis at the Bbc: Messages of Hope in the Darkness of War (Paperback)
As a lifelong and devoted student of Lewis -- and one who has read, re-read, written about, and lectured on Mere Christianity -- I was startled and deeply gratified to learn that the master conceived his touchstone idea, composed the masterpiece that conveys it, and perfected his popular, lean, direct apologetic style under what can only be regarded as the tutelage of the BBC. The late Justin Phillips (who died before completing his book: the manuscript was edited and brought to publication by his daughter Laura Treneer) first provides a genuinely riveting war-time context as only a lifelong BBC-man could. He then captures, with ample narrative skill and astonishingly adroit quotations from correspondence, the "Beeb's" persistence and scalpel-like judgment, as well as CSL's reservations, vexations, achievement, and finally his overwhelming success. Along the way the reader gets a concrete feel for Lewis's travel, work-habits, friendships and homelife which, though not entirely new, are utterly fresh (for example, the contributions of Jill Freud . . . ) And as a bonus we are treated to a chapter on Dorothy L. Sayers and the BBC: The corporation was sorely overmatched! From now on, Richard Baxter + CSL = Mere Christianity must become Baxter + Lewis X the BBC = Mere Christianity and a good deal of the master's pellucid style.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
C.S.Lewis at the BBC,
This review is from: C. S. Lewis at the Bbc: Messages of Hope in the Darkness of War (Paperback)
I found the book to be interesting, but it was, for the most part, centered on the history of the BBC and it's personnel. I had hoped for some new insight into the person of C.S. Lewis. It that respect it was very disappointing.
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