The Longest Night : Voices from the London Blitz

Author: Mortimer, Gavin

Humanities

Published on 6 April 2006 by Orion Publishing Co (Weidenfeld & Nicolson).

On 10-11 May 1941, Londoners thought the Nazi bombs would never stop falling as the London Blitz reached its furious zenith. These are the true stories from the survivors of one of the longest nights in the Second World War'An excellent book . . . Mortimer has interviewed scores of survivors for this gripping tale' Scotland on SundayOn the afternoon of Saturday 10 May 1941, crowds gather at Wembley to watch Arsenal play Preston in the Cup Final. Australian journalist John Hughes starts his shift at Reuters in Fleet Street; 20-year-old Reenie Carter reports for duty at her fire station in Westminster Abbey; RAF pilot Guy Gibson relaxes in the sun before his night patrol; Vera Lynn drives in for an evening concert. Meanwhile, thousands of German airmen are preparing for a massive night raid.

Gavin Mortimer has interviewed many survivors of this night to reveal the reality of the London Blitz. In a matter of hours, 1,486 Londoners were killed, 11,000 houses were destroyed, and millions of lives were changed for ever.