04: Having a Ball | Andrew Marr’s The Making of Modern Britain

Duration: 59'12''

Synopsis

In the 1920s, Imperial Britannia slid from view and Britain saw a housing boom and the birth of radio broadcasting.

Further Information

More clips from Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

01: A New Dawn | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

01: A New Dawn | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 57'33''

Andrew Marr revisits Britain at the dawn of the 20th century. He finds the country mourning the death of Queen Vi...

02: Road to War | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

02: Road to War | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 58'56''

The country basks in a hot Edwardian summer, but the assassination of an archduke in Sarajevo presages world war.

03: The Great War | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

03: The Great War | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 59'13''

Britain gets its first taste of total war, which transformed the lives of people on the frontline and at home.

05: Little Britain | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

05: Little Britain | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 59'21''

The Wall Street Crash and the rise of fascist politics in Europe caused chaos in 1930s Britain.

06: Britannia at Bay | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

06: Britannia at Bay | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 59'41''

The series concludes with an account of Britain during the Second World War, starting with the events at Du...

More resources about Empire and colonies

Episode 1 | Empire with David Olusoga

Episode 1 | Empire with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2025 | 59'35''

David Olusoga tells the story of the British Empire, from its origins under Elizabeth I to the establishment of colonies in America, th...

Episode 2 | Empire with David Olusoga

Episode 2 | Empire with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2025 | 59'27''

David Olusoga reveals how the loss of the American colonies led to the colonisation of Australia and how the Indian indenture system wa...

01: Profit and Loss | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

01: Profit and Loss | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

BBC Two | 2015 | 59'21''

In 1834 Britain abolished slavery, a defining and celebrated moment in our national history. What has been largely for...

01: Why Britain? | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

01: Why Britain? | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

Channel 4 | 2003 | 48'27''

In this programme we learn about the origins of the British empire in the 17th century and how its foundations w...

Episode 3 | Empire with David Olusoga

Episode 3 | Empire with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2025 | 59'30''

David Olusoga reveals how the Empire reached its maximum size after the First World War but within a generation had begun to collapse, ...

The Windrush Generation | Black and British: A Forgotten History

The Windrush Generation | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 6'43''

David Olusoga discusses the Windrush Generation.

06: Age of Empire | Seven Ages of Britain

06: Age of Empire | Seven Ages of Britain

BBC HD | 2010 | 59'10''

David Dimbleby travels through Britain, America and India, tracing the British Empire from 1750 to 1900.

Bunce Island | Black and British: A Forgotten History

Bunce Island | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 4'59''

David Olusoga visits Bunce Island, where the first slave fortress was built in the 17th century.

Shifting historical opinions on the British Empire | A Timewatch Guide

Shifting historical opinions on the British Empire | A Timewatch Guide

BBC Four | 2017 | 5'58''

David Olusoga explains how historical perspectives of the British Empire have shifted through time.

Slave plantation system | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

Slave plantation system | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

BBC Two | 2015 | 4'09''

David Olusoga discusses the slave plantation system in the Caribbean.

03: The Jewel in the Crown | British History's Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley

03: The Jewel in the Crown | British History's Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley

BBC Four | 2017 | 59'11''

Lucy explores how British history is a concoction of fibs. She debunks the fibs that surround t...

Granville Sharp | Black and British: A Forgotten History

Granville Sharp | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 3'10''

David Olusoga discusses Granville Sharpe and Jonathan Strong's roles in the abolition of slavery.

The beginnings of the British slave trade | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

The beginnings of the British slave trade | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

BBC Two | 2015 | 3'23''

David Olusoga investigates the beginnings of the British slave trade in Barbados.

05: Maxim Force | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

05: Maxim Force | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

Channel 4 | 2003 | 49'28''

The 'scramble for Africa' by competing European nations during the last years of Queen Victoria's reign is the co...

Mississippi cotton | Black and British: A Forgotten History

Mississippi cotton | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 4'21''

David Olusoga discusses the cotton industry in Mississippi and how it fuelled Britain's industrial revolution.

Transportation of Convicts to Australia | Empire with David Olusoga

Transportation of Convicts to Australia | Empire with David Olusoga

BBC Two | 2025 | 9'41''

David explains how Britian sent their problem convicts abroad to the colonies for cheap labour, and many ...

04: Heaven's Breed | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

04: Heaven's Breed | Empire: How Britain Made The Modern World

Channel 4 | 2003 | 49'08''

In this programme we discover how a few thousand British people ruled over India, a country of more than 250 m...

01: Adventure and Exploration | Britain and the Sea

01: Adventure and Exploration | Britain and the Sea

BBC One | 2013 | 59'17''

David Dimbleby sails the south west coast of England, exploring maritime art, architecture and history - including the st...

First English traders in West Africa | Black and British: A Forgotten History

First English traders in West Africa | Black and British: A Forgotten History

BBC Two | 2016 | 5'41''

David Olusoga investigates the first English traders in West Africa.

First slave society in Barbados | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

First slave society in Barbados | Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners

BBC Two | 2015 | 4'09''

David Olusoga discusses the first slave society in Barbados.

More from Andrew Marr

01: Living in the City | Andrew Marr's Mega Cities

01: Living in the City | Andrew Marr's Mega Cities

BBC One | 2011 | 57'44''

Documentary in which Andrew Marr looks at how people live in five of the world's biggest megacities: London, Dhaka, Tokyo,...

01: 24 Hour Britain | Britain from Above

01: 24 Hour Britain | Britain from Above

BBC One | 2008 | 59'02''

Andrew Marr goes on a journey through a day in the life of Britain as seen from the skies.

02: A Brave New World | New Elizabethans with Andrew Marr

02: A Brave New World | New Elizabethans with Andrew Marr

BBC Two | 2020 | 59'30''

Andrew Marr explores how Britain since 1952 has coped with the loss of empire, America's cultural and political heg...

Adolf Hitler's rise to power | Andrew Marr's History of the World

Adolf Hitler's rise to power | Andrew Marr's History of the World

BBC One | 2012 | 8'50''

Andrew Marr discusses Hitler's rise to power from the end of the first world war.

01: Body and Soul | Andrew Marr on Darwin's Dangerous Idea

01: Body and Soul | Andrew Marr on Darwin's Dangerous Idea

BBC Two | 2009 | 58'11''

Andrew Marr explores how Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection has taken on a life of its own far beyo...

05: Little Britain | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

05: Little Britain | Andrew Marr's The Making of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2009 | 59'21''

The Wall Street Crash and the rise of fascist politics in Europe caused chaos in 1930s Britain.

02: The Land of Lost Content | Andrew Marr's History of Modern Britain

02: The Land of Lost Content | Andrew Marr's History of Modern Britain

BBC Two | 2007 | 58'44''

The 1950s were a period of apparent calm, order and prosperity for Britain, but much of the populace w...