37 Days: How the First World War Began

Never such innocence,
Never before or since,
As changed itself to past
Without a word—the men
Leaving the gardens tidy,
The thousands of marriages,
Lasting a little while longer:
Never such innocence again.
                —Philip Larkin, from “MCMXIV”

In 2014, the BBC announced a four-year schedule of over 2500 hours of commemorative programming, marking 100 years since the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 through to the centenary of the Armistice on November 11, 2018, covering all the key moments, including the anniversaries of Gallipoli, Jutland, the Somme and Passchendaele.

The commemoration comprised documentaries, such as Jeremy Paxman’s four-part series Britain’s Great War, historical debates, commentaries and dramas—which included The Crimson Field, The Passing-Bells, Great War Diary, Oh, What a Lovely War!, Home Front, Tommies and 37 Days.

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Mark Hayhurst, who wrote the…