Introduction

The World at War is a 26-episode British television documentary series chronicling the events of the Second World War.

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Outline

In 1940 Mussolini deploys a massive army to invade British held Egypt, to capture the Suez Canal and most of all to establish an Italian empire to rival Germany’s. So begins a multi-year campaign over a meaningless stretch of desert involving forces from a dozen nations and characterised by persistent attackers, stubborn defenders and ultimately controlled by supply line challenges.

The Desert: North Africa (1940 to 1943) chronicles the desert war, starting with Italy’s unsuccessful invasion of Egypt and the successive attacks and counter-attacks between Germany and Commonwealth forces, and the Afrika Korps’s eventual defeat at El Alamein.

Interviewees include General Richard O’Connor, Major General Francis de Guingand and Lawrence Durrell.

The World at War Series

You can find a full index and outline of The World at War Series here.

Production & Filming Details

• Release Date: 19 December 1973.
• Running Time: 52 minutes.
• Country: UK.
• Language: English.