East End 1940s - 1970s DVD clip 1

London, 1940: the Luftwaffe is pounding the East End, reducing whole districts to rubble. People shelter in the Underground as their streets are destroyed. The East End is stronger than the enemy, and emerges victorious into a new world.

But within thirty years, the old East End will vanish. The roads fill with traffic, the terraced housing is replaced by tower blocks and the Docks are closed.

Using unseen archive film, this documentary captures the final years of the old East End.

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• London
• ITN
• Source
• East End
• East London
• Bow
• archive
• wartime

[handal1973]

Angels !

[TheSolitaryHeart]

@garibaldiamy Weren't there quite a few Jewish people in the East End who were the descendants of immigrants who fled Antisemitism in Eastern Europe back then? Don't talk rubbish.

[MrMx5er]

Don't understand you lot. If you were brought up in the 50s East End like me you would know that it was nothing but poverty and bomb sites. There's plenty of money here now and the bomb sites have long gone. My immigrant neighbours are the best neighbours I've ever had. No race hate here. If you've been driven away then that's predudice, nothing else. As for looking like England, the country is changing - get used to it or be forever unhappy. It will change further no matter where you live.

[garibaldiamy]

@MrMx5er I hope you are being ironic !

Like a million others I am a real East-Ender who has been ethically cleansed from his own ' patch '; driven out by the muggers and the race hate of the migrants.

[talara18]

@MrMx5er is it? it doesn't even look like England now

[MrMx5er]

Who wants the old East End. Much better now! --

[MrMx5er]

Who wants the old East End. Much better now!

[badboybaldy1]

@Barbara1940s hello dear ...yes made me sad too cry so sad what has happened today ... may i tell you pls ...i took my kids to london from australia 6 years ago and they really didnt like it there when we got home to australia they told me ages 20-22-25 ..they see me cry becuz i whated to show them where i was born and grow up in stepney E.1 they were smiling for me there god bless them ... miss the old east-end never get it back now hey ! god bless hope you are well too brian bye now

[Barbara1940s]

Made me cry.

[nostalgiclondon]

fern street, how nice it looked and how horrible it is today