Main content
Britain's World War Two crime wave
How criminals from looters to con artists thrived in London during the Blitz.
During times of crisis in the UK, World War Two is often remembered as a period when the country rallied together to fight a common enemy. British politicians still refer to the so-called "Blitz Spirit" when calling for national unity. But as Simon Watts has been finding out from the BBC archives, there was a crime wave during the war years, with a massive increase in looting and black marketeering.
PHOTO: A government poster from World War Two (Getty Images)
Last on
Sun 24 May 202023:50GMT
BBC World Service South Asia
More episodes
Broadcasts
- Fri 22 May 202007:50GMTBBC World Service
- Fri 22 May 202011:50GMTBBC World Service
- Fri 22 May 202017:50GMTBBC World Service except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa
- Sat 23 May 202002:50GMTBBC World Service except Australasia
- Sun 24 May 202023:50GMTBBC World Service South Asia
Podcast
![]()
Witness History
The story of our times, told by the people who were there
