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How Scarborough saved the world

The DocumentaryThe Secret History of GCHQ
Episode 1 of 2

GCHQ's Scarborough station and its role in WW2, the Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The work of GCHQ started just after the end of World War One as telegraph became a vital means of military communications. We hear from people who worked at the listening station in the Yorkshire seaside resort of Scarborough during World War Two and the Cold War. BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera reveals how Government Communications Headquarters – GCHQ - has been listening in for 100 years. And Gordon reveals the vital role played by the Scarborough station during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

(Photo: A general view of GCHQ Scarborough during a visit by Prince Charles in 2014. Credit: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

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27 minutes

Last on

Sun 8 Dec 201918:32GMT
BBC World Service News Internet

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Broadcasts

  • Wed 4 Dec 201911:32GMT
    BBC World Service except West and Central Africa
  • Wed 4 Dec 201918:32GMT
    BBC World Service Australasia
  • Wed 4 Dec 201921:32GMT
    BBC World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
  • Wed 4 Dec 201923:32GMT
    BBC World Service except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa
  • Thu 5 Dec 201902:32GMT
    BBC World Service except West and Central Africa
  • Thu 5 Dec 201903:32GMT
    BBC World Service West and Central Africa
  • Sun 8 Dec 201918:32GMT
    BBC World Service News Internet