In December 2019 the news about a small cluster of pneumonia-like cases with an unknown cause linked to a seafood market in Wuhan was first reported. The new disease, later named Covid-19, became officially known as a pandemic that would shut down the global economy, force populations in numerous countries to stay at home and hospitalise world leaders and millions of ordinary people.
As we enter the second year of the pandemic it is worth reminding ourselves of how viruses have changed the world throughout the 20th Century. We begin with the so-called Spanish flu of 1918鈥�1920, the closest parallel and ancestor to the Coronavirus.
Spanish Flu
In March 1918 reports from Spanish journalists of a deadly strain of the influenza virus, subsequently known as 鈥楽panish Flu鈥� were broadcast across the world. The disease spread rapidly, exacerbated by infected soldiers moving from one camp to another during the last months of the First World War. The outbreak was quickly declared a pandemic.
麻豆官网首页入口 Television and Radio have commissioned several dramas and documentaries about the Spanish flu over the years, including the Radio 4 documentary 鈥楾he Great Flu Pandemic鈥� in 1970.
Armistice and Influenza
Sixty years after the end of the First World War, the 麻豆官网首页入口 called for members of the public to write in with their experiences of Armistice Day on 11 November 1918. The influenza epidemic had been circulating for 8 months by this time.
In her letter to the 麻豆官网首页入口, an auxiliary nurse recalled her experiences of the influenza virus, 鈥業 felt so ill that when the sirens went off鈥� I didn鈥檛 care鈥�. The pandemic lasted for 2 years and claimed the lives of over 50 million people worldwide.
Inoculations
The 麻豆官网首页入口 introduced an inoculation programme for its staff in response to seasonal flu in the 1930s, under the guidance of Sir Alexander Fleming. The uptake for inoculations by staff was low, and the 麻豆官网首页入口 wrote to Fleming in an attempt to find ways of increasing vaccination numbers.
Tuberculosis
During the Second World War there were a number of infectious diseases in circulation in the general population. The Ministry of Health were particularly concerned about the increase in cases of tuberculosis.
In a Home Service News Bulletin in 1942, the 麻豆官网首页入口 reported that these concerns were due to black-outs and overcrowding during wartime conditions. From Home News Bulletins, 30th June 1942.
Foot and Mouth Disease
In 1967 the United Kingdom experienced a major epidemic of Foot and Mouth Disease, which spread rapidly among livestock in Shropshire and the North West of England. Animals were quarantined, and Veterinary Officers controlled the movement of people in and out of infected areas.
Frank Gillard, Director of Radio for the 麻豆官网首页入口 circulated advice from the Ministry of Agriculture to all 麻豆官网首页入口 Producers, advising of the strict disinfectant precautions staff should take when working in infected areas.
Polio
The first effective vaccine against polio was introduced in 1952 and mass public vaccination programmes were rolled out globally. However the disease remained a threat in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1976, the 麻豆官网首页入口 broadcast the programme 鈥業nside Medicine鈥� and interviewed medical experts about their studies into the disease.
Areas of study included housing conditions, levels of immunity in hospital patients and the effects of the disease within immigrant groups.
AIDS
In the aftermath of the 鈥楧on鈥檛 Die of Ignorance鈥� public health campaign in Britain which aimed to raise awareness about AIDS, the 麻豆官网首页入口, ITV and Channel 4 launched a joint campaign in 1987.
It promoted continuing education about sexually transmitted diseases for people of all ages, including school children, and special programmes were broadcast across each channel including 鈥楶anorama鈥�, 鈥極pen Air鈥�, 鈥楬eart of the Matter鈥�. The campaign was the forerunner for the introduction of the EastEnders storyline in 1990, where Mark Fowler was diagnosed with HIV.
AIDS campaign for Schools
In the late 1980s programmes about HIV and AIDS were also included in broadcasts for schools. A special programme about AIDS was created as part of the 鈥楽cene鈥� series in 1987, which encouraged children to think about safe sex and responsibility in their relationships.
Emerging Viruses
The 麻豆官网首页入口鈥檚 long-running Science and Features programme 鈥楬orizon鈥� has produced a number of documentaries about infectious diseases, including 鈥楨pidemic鈥� (1973), 鈥楢IDS: A strange and deadly virus鈥� (1986), 鈥楨merging Viruses鈥� (1991) and 鈥楶andemic鈥� (1999).
Horizon published the transcript of its 鈥楨merging Viruses鈥� programme where leading experts offered their, sometimes highly prescient, views about future epidemics - 鈥榳e can be quite certain that there will be new epidemics. We鈥檙e not very well prepared to deal with them.鈥� From PUBS B 2443.
COVID-19
In late 2019 reports of a mystery virus began emerging from Wuhan province in China . By early 2020 the virus had spread throughout the World. Millions of people were hospitalised. Countries went into lockdown 鈥� streets emptied; schools and businesses closed; people stayed at home.
