Written by BBC R4 Documentary
Read by David Marlowe
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 128 Kbps


The night the Germans didn't come - an account of
the events of the weekend of September 7 & 8, 1940

In the UK during WWII it was forbidden to ring church
bells without official sanction. Their use was reserved
for announcing that German troops had landed. They
were to be rung when the codeword 'Cromwell' was
received at local defence stations.

During the weekend of September 7 and 8, 1940 the
bells rang out. Confusion reigned. Some people took up
defence stations. Others didn't. For that weekend most
believed that the Germans had landed.

This programme describes these events and includes
first hand accounts by some of those involved.

To stick my tuppence worth in - it seems to me to have
been a drill that turned into an exercise that - perhaps
deliberately - got out of hand. But whatever happened,
they were much better prepared after it.