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Fighting
the War - a landmark documentary series for BBC TWO
In
the wake of a conflict that has divided world opinion, BBC TWO reveals
the inside story of the British campaign in the Gulf in a landmark
documentary series.
Fighting
the War chronicles the conflict in Iraq through personal accounts
of the war and unique access to British servicemen and women in
theatre, and senior politicians and defence chiefs in Whitehall.
And
for the first time ever, a BBC film crew has gained access to the
underground bunker at Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ), from
which operational commanders co-ordinate the war effort.
The
unique access to the military command centre offers remarkable insights
behind the campaign:
the
fears among Generals that the coalition strategy of using heavy
armoury against Iraqi resistance in Basra could lead to another
"Stalingrad";
and
the concerns in PJHQ that the declaration of war has occurred ahead
of schedule, leaving some areas of the military potentially vulnerable.
Following the chain of command from Secretary of State for Defence
Geoff Hoon and Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Sir Michael Boyce
- through to the soldiers, sailors, marines, pilots and ground crews
in the Middle East - Fighting the War records history as it unfolds.
The material, ring-fenced from all news agencies and never before
seen, sheds new light on the major incidents and stories from the
conflict, offering a candid insight into the reality of modern warfare.
Four
hundred hours of exclusive footage from nine film crews - embedded
with the British forces in Iraq and following daily developments
in London - has been edited into a seven-part series that chronicles
events from the declaration of war to the toppling of Saddam.
A total of 31 staff from across the BBC's Documentaries and Contemporary
Factual department with experience of conflict situations contributed
to the series.
The
films follow crew aboard Royal Navy vessels, an RAF Tornado attack
squadron as pilots undertake their airborne missions, and witness
infantry and tank battalions in action.
They
also show the logistics of combat and how support teams get supplies
to, and communicate with, soldiers on the battlefield.
The
BBC team is led by award-winning documentary maker Neil Grant (Defence
of the Realm, The Oklahoma Bomber, Inside Story and Hotel).
"We
want to tell the authoritative story of what it's like to be in
the front line," he says.
"The
documentary is an observational series about what it means to go
to war. It focuses on individuals in the war zone and how political
decisions affect what happens on the battlefield."
Executive Producer is Simon Ford (The Hunt for Britain's Paedophiles,
Rough Justice, MacIntyre Undercover).
He
adds: "I believe these films will enrich public debate about
the war by taking the viewer behind the scenes and into the heart
of the decision-making process, leaving them to judge for themselves
whether this was a war worth fighting."
Fighting the War starts on Sunday 15 June at 9.00pm on BBC TWO.
All the
BBC's digital services are now available on Freeview,
the new free-to-view digital terrestrial television service, as well
as on satellite and cable.
Freeview
offers the BBC's eight television channels, interactive services
from BBCi, as well as 11 BBC radio networks.
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