1953 interviews and documentaries

From former BBC producer Anton Jarvis

As we approach the 70th anniversary of the 1953 flood disaster on 31st January/1st February I wanted to explain my connection to the event and to share some archive radio material and documentaries, which I made in both 1993 and 2003. I am a former BBC Radio Producer and now a teacher of English.

I have become something of a 1953 floods expert over the years. In 1993 I persuaded my commercial music radio station (Essex Radio/Breeze AM) to broadcast an hour of speech – the first documentary – which I had to make (on 1/4 inch tape with razor blade edits) in my own time after my news shifts. 10 years later at BBC Essex I reworked the programme using a lot of the extraordinary interviews I had from a decade earlier. Of course, most of the survivors interviewed in 1992 are now deceased, so this material is incredible social/oral history. There are stories from Canvey, Jaywick, Great Wakering, Tilbury, Colne Point and Harwich.

Editor – Click on the link below to take you to Anton’s files.  Then click on the links on the left of his page to hear the stories.

1953 Flood interviews and documentaries

With grateful thanks to Anton for this great resource.