The Churchill Years

Synopsis

An immersive drama series exploring six turning-points in the career of the legendary statesmanWinston Churchill has gone down in history as the man who led Britain to victory in the Second World War. But his legacy was not always guaranteed, and his path to greatness was a rocky one. This fascinating series charts six watershed moments that shaped his destiny – from his youth, growing up in the shadow of his famous father, to his finest hour, when he returned from the wilderness to galvanise the nation at a time of crisis.We begin in the 1880s, when the rapid rise and sudden end of the brilliant, audacious Lord Randolph Churchill make an enduring impact on his young son. Thirty years later, Winston has forged a successful political career and become Home Secretary – but the Agadir crisis sees him stepping into a new role and preparing for war. As First Lord of the Admiralty, he presides over the disastrous 1915 Dardanelles campaign and is forced to resign; but by 1926 he is back in the Cabinet, fighting the General Strike with troops and his own newspaper, the British Gazette. In the 1930s, Churchill almost meets Hitler for dinner at a Munich hotel. History, however, has other plans, and it is not until 1940 that the fates of the two men become intertwined, when Chamberlain steps down as Prime Minister and the King sends for Churchill...Daniel Massey stars as the elderly Winston, recalling the pivotal events of his life, with Fiona Walker as his wife Clementine, Ioan Meredith as Lloyd George, John Rowe as Herbert Asquith, and John Moffatt as Neville Chamberlain.Episode list1. A Shooting Star2. Crisis at Agadir3. Gallipoli4. Class Wars5. The Aristocrat and the Guttersnipe6. One Day in MayCastWinston Churchill/Lord Randolph Churchill – Daniel MasseySir Henry Wolff/'Jacky' Fisher, the First Sea Lord/Stanley Baldwin – Nigel DavenportQueen Victoria/Lady Randolph – Diana OlssonMrs Jeune/Clementine Churchill – Fiona WalkerLord George Hamilton/Desmond Morton/Harold Nicholson – Benjamin WhitrowW H Smith/Herbert Asquith/Ernest Bevin/Sefton Delmer/Chips Channon – John RoweLord Salisbury/First Sea Lord/Admiral de Robeck/Sir Clive Wigram/Churchill’s secretary/Anthony Eden – Hugh DicksonDavid Lloyd George – Ioan MeredithAlfred von Kiderlen-Waechter/General Liman von Sanders/Josef Goebbels – Michael WolfKaiser Wilhelm/Putzi Hanfstaengel – Wolf KahlerSir Edward Grey – John Franklyn-RobbinsCount Metternich/German reporter – Andreas KlattC.P. Scott/Andrew Bonar Law/Ramsey MacDonald – Hugh FraserCommissioner of Police/Lord Kitchener – David de KeyserAdmiral von Tirpitz/Hitler – Michael MellingerGeorge V/George VI – David KingJohn Reith – Graham CrowdenHerbert Smith – Donald GeeNeville Chamberlain – John MoffattEdward Marsh – Hugh WaltersRadio announcer/Leo Amery – Godfrey KentonCab driver – Alan PolonskyDirected by Louise PurslowTechnical presentation by Roy Fraser, Hilary Carruthers and Charlotte HulmeBugler: Sergeant Alan Sessions, Royal Marines School of Music, DealFirst broadcast BBC Radio 4, 7 March-11 April 1990© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd