At 11.02am on 9 August 1945, the world’s most powerful atomic bomb exploded over the Japanese port of Nagasaki. The city was flattened and more than 70,000 Japanese were killed.

Unbeknownst to the crew of the US Army Air Forces planes carrying the bomb, hundreds of Allied prisoners were at work on the ground below. Already, these prisoners had experienced nearly four years of malnutrition, disease and harsh labour. Now, they were to witness one of the most significant events in modern history.

In this insightful talk, John Willis will be highlighting one of the greatest survival stories of the Second World War. Using unpublished and rarely seen notes, interviews and memoirs, he will reveal the experiences of these survivors and demonstrate how their stories paint a picture of defeat, endurance and ultimately resilience against all odds.

John Willis is one of Britain’s best known television executives. A former Director of Programmes at Channel 4 and Director of Factual and Learning at the BBC, he was elected chair of BAFTA in 2012. He is currently chair of Mentor Media, the producers of Question Time for the BBC, and is also Chair of the Board of Governors at the Royal Central School for Speech and Drama. Willis is the author of Churchill’s FewandSecret Letters.

Nagasaki: The Forgotten Prisoners