A new commemorative magazine highlights the poignant realities of life during World War II
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a new magazine commemorating the 80th anniversary of VE Day is certainly a fitting tribute to wartime life.
Commissioned by The Mirror, World War Two: A History in 50 Photographs contains dozens of images that tell the stories of the war and the brave soldiers and citizens who lived through WWII. The reality of war is something many will never have to experience – and that is in no small part due to the sacrifices made by those who gave their lives for our future and freedom.
While memories fade of wartime life, iconic photographs from the past serve as an important reminder of the haunting reality. John Mead, the Head of Mirror Archives, said the team behind the magazine spent weeks scouring 25,000 photos to compile the commemorative issue.
He said: “We were looking for pictures that told the stories of the war and also the people involved in the war… and the photographers who took the pictures and were on the frontline.” Images such as that of the mushroom cloud over Hiroshima pack an emotional punch; John said: “They show why we should never use those weapons again.”
Carefully chosen from the Mirror archives, the 50 exceptional photos featured in the magazine capture the devastation, horror, hope and eventual triumph of World War II.
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Picture editor Ivor Game said: “You go for the truth, for what really matters and what picture could represent four or five different things.
“We have the evacuees and the gas masks, and for the Blitz we chose to go underground. You can imagine what is going on above ground. There is a photograph of a bomber going over Germany so we also see the war from above, and a British medic at the D-Day landings giving out food.”
From the rise of Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich, it follows the outbreak of war and the Blitzkrieg invasions. Photos of harrowing conflict are interwoven with the reality of life for so many during wartime; young children being evacuated, Land Girls trying to keep the nation fed, or a couple embracing as war rages on.
The horror of Auschwitz and the blood-soaked beaches of Normandy lead, via a devastating path, to surrender and the joy of VE Day and eventually, to VJ Day and the end of the conflict.
Including rare photographs from an unparalleled archive, the magazine is a fitting tribute to the many who fought, survived and helped rebuild the Britain we live in today.
World War Two – A History in 50 Photographs is available for purchase here.