World in Action: Volume 4

Synopsis

This DVD collects a number of notable episodes from the ITV current affairs series which ran from 1963-1999. The Granada-produced series was trailblazing and hard-hitting, choosing subjects that other programmes would not touch and regularly getting into trouble with the ITV regulators and, at times, the Government.

This volume comprises 23 programmes covering major stories from the ‘60s to the ‘90s; these include the 1967 Arab-Israeli conflict, the assassination of Martin Luther King, the Angry Brigade trials in London, EXIT’s ‘suicide manual’, New York’s drug-fuelled crime wave, the Bhopal factory disaster, and the NHS in crisis.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Year of release

2014

Subjects

Social Studies; Media studies; Politics & government

Keywords

air crashes; Alzheimer’s disease; Bhopal; crime; fires; homosexuality; Hussein, Saddam; King, Martin Luther; Liberal Party; Middle East; National Health Service; politics; slum communities; South Africa; current affairs broadcasting; assisted suicide; pirate radio; miners’ strike (1984-5)

Credits

Contributor

Carmichael. Stokeley; L. Ron Hubbard; Mary Whitehouse

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 2 PAL

Price

£14.40

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

628 minutes

Year

2018

Sections

Title

Slums

Synopsis

World in Action looks at the plight of families living in squalor in the slums of London’s East End.

Title

After The War

Synopsis

Broadcast during the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, this episode includes interviews with political leaders of both sides.

Title

O’Rahilly File, The

Synopsis

Ronan O’Rahilly talks to WIA about his pirate radio ship, Radio Caroline, and why he rebels against the established laws of society.

Title

Listen, Whitey

Synopsis

Transmitted four days after his assassination, this programme examines the reaction of black communities and leaders to the death of civil rights leader Martin Luther King.

Title

Life and Death of James Griffiths, The

Synopsis

A character study of Glasgow gunman James Griffiths. It includes a reconstruction of the rampage in which he shot several people, ending in a shootout between Griffiths and the police.

Title

Where Crime Is a Habit

Synopsis

A look at drug-related crime in New York, and the methods used in tackling it.

Title

22-Year Itch, The

Synopsis

A look at the cause and effects of the slump in the British film industry; interviewees include Tony Garnett, Bryan Forbes, Michael Caine, John Boulting and John Terry.

Title

Dumping Grounds, The

Synopsis

WIA visits the barren ‘homelands’ of South Africa where, without warning, entire townships of black South Africans had been forcibly transported from their homes and work.

Title

Square One

Synopsis

WIA looks at the bitter confrontation between Catholic Ireland and Protestant England for Ulster; at a time of fresh violence, it seemed Ulster was back to square one.

Title

Angry Brigade, The

Synopsis

A report on this English guerilla movement, including an interview with Anna Mendelssohn on the day she was sentenced to 10 years in jail for her involvement in a bombing plot.

Title

Conversations with a gay Liberal

Synopsis

When Sam Green stood for election to Durham City Council, he was elected despite announcing he was gay. WIA went to Durham to find out if social attitudes really were changing.

Title

Prison Children, The

Synopsis

A look at the problem of young offenders who are so far beyond control that they have to be sent to remand centres while awaiting trial.

Title

Starting on the dole

Synopsis

A look at youth unemployment, focusing on two typical Liverpudlian youngsters.

Title

Working for a pittance

Synopsis

WIA investigates the work, conditions and shockingly low pay of people with physical and mental disabilities employed in council and hospital workshops.

Title

Armchair inferno

Synopsis

A look into the dangers of polyurethane foam, commonly used in the manufacture of furniture, featuring interviews with survivors of house fires.

Title

Dignified exit, A

Synopsis

A film examining the issues raised by the planned publication of a ‘suicide manual’ by EXIT. -

Title

Silent epidemic, The

Synopsis

A report on a fatal disease long mistaken as an aspect of old age: Alzheimer’s. It is argued that medical research into the elderly is inadequate.

Title

National Health Service

Synopsis

A look at the crisis of confidence within the NHS, and looming industrial action.

Title

Softly Softly Strike Force

Synopsis

Nine months into the miners’ strike, WIA visits the pit villages of Yorkshire, comparing West Yorkshire Police’s softly-softly approach and the more offensive tactics in South Yorkshire.

Title

Last days of Juliet Lima, The

Synopsis

A film examining the last days of the British Airtours Boeing 737, which caught fire at Manchester airport in August of 1985.

Title

Bhopal Disaster

Synopsis

Three and a half years after the world’s worst industrial disaster at the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, WIA returns to examine the plight of surviving victims awaiting compensation.

Title

Inside Saddam’s stronghold

Synopsis

After the invasion of Kuwait, WIA visits Iraq to assess the level of support for Saddam Hussein.

Title

World in Action: Thirty Years

Synopsis

A compilation encompassing three decades of World in Action: topics include The Great Food Scandal, Scotland Yard’s cocaine connection, Bloody Sunday and the trial of the Birmingham Six.

Production Company

Name

Granada Television

Distributor

Name

Network

Email

shop@networkonair.com

Web

http://networkonair.com/ External site opens in new window

Phone

01992 657707

Address

19-20 Blythe Road
Berghem Mews
Hammersmith
London
W14 0HN

Notes

Founded in 1997, Network specialises in distributing niche television programmes, predominantly licensed from Granada Ventures and Fremantle. They have recently branched into feature film distribution. Sale via retail outlets or direct via Network’s website, which has some’web exclusive’ offers.