Forbidden Britain

Tying in with a BBC2 television series, this book presents the true-life stories of ordinary British people, to identify the origins of some of the major social issues of today. Juvenile crime, extramarital affairs, riots, drug addiction, child sex-abuse, homelessness and government schemes for the unemployed were all very much a part of the fabric of British life long before World War II, but were subject to censorship. The book describes many of these events and issues between 1900 and 1960 through eyewitness accounts: the major riots after World War I; government schemes which sent the long-term unemployed - regarded as "scroungers" - to labour camps or even abroad; cases of juvenile delinquency, hooliganism and joyriding in the big cities; and the taboo subject of sex, exemplified through individuals' stories of extramarital affairs and child sex-abuse. The people concerned talk freely about experiences - of poverty, injustice and victimization - which have for so long remained undocumented.