Editing Protect and Survive

{{Short description|1974–1980 UK public information campaign}}
{{For|the Doctor Who audio play|Protect and Survive (audio play)}}
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{{EngvarB|date=September 2017}}
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[[Image:ProtectAndSurvive.jpg|thumb|right|Front cover of the ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet]]
'''''Protect and Survive''''' was a public information campaign on [[civil defence]]. Produced by the British government between 1974 and 1980, it intended to advise the public on how to protect themselves during a [[nuclear attack]]. The campaign comprised a pamphlet, newspaper advertisements, radio broadcasts, and [[public information film]]s. The series had originally been intended for distribution only in the event of dire national emergency, but provoked such intense public interest that the pamphlet was published, in slightly amended form, in 1980. Due to its controversial subject, and the nature of its publication, the cultural impact of ''Protect and Survive'' was greater and longer-lasting than most public information campaigns.

==Origins==
''Protect and Survive'' had its origins in civil defence leaflets dating back to 1938, titled ''The Protection of Your Home Against Air Raids''.<ref name="nigelcook">{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/TheProtectionOfYourHomeAgainstAirRaids |title=The Protection of Your Home Against Air Raids |first=Nigel B.|last= Cook |publisher=Internet Archive |access-date=1 June 2013}}</ref> These advised the homeowner on what to do in the event of air attack. This evolved as the nature of warfare and [[geopolitics]] changed, with the [[pamphlet]]s updated first into ''The Hydrogen Bomb'' in 1957, and later into ''Advising the Householder on Protection against Nuclear Attack'' in 1963.<ref>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Taras|year=2019|title=[[Nuclear War in the UK]]|publisher=Four Corners Books|isbn=978-1-909829-16-9|pages=14–17}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mgr.org/libro.pdf |title=Advising the Householder on Protection Against Nuclear Attack |website=www.mgr.org |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140514204059/http://www.mgr.org/libro.pdf |archive-date=14 May 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> This document, of which 500,000 copies were made, garnered considerable public and government criticism when it was first released for its lack of explanations or conveyance of the reasoning behind the advice that was given.  The Estimates Committee were similarly bemused by the advice, calling for its withdrawal.  Civil defence personnel were summoned to [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] meetings in which they responded to all the points of criticism that were raised.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1963/dec/02/civil-defence-handbook-no-10 |title=Civil Defence (Handbook No. 10) (Hansard, 2 December 1963) |date=14 May 2014 |access-date=16 August 2016 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140514202739/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1963/dec/02/civil-defence-handbook-no-10 |work=[[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]] |archive-date=14 May 2014 }}</ref> The 1963 pamphlet was then accompanied by a series of public information films produced in 1964, called ''[[Civil Defence Information Bulletin]]s''. These films were intended to be broadcast in a [[state of emergency]]. Pamphlets similar to those prepared in 1963 briefly appeared in [[Peter Watkins]]' controversial 1965 BBC [[docudrama]] ''[[The War Game]]'', in a scene where they were distributed to people's homes. The 1964 bulletins were not depicted in the film.

The fallout radiation advice in ''Protect and Survive'' was based on 1960s fallout shelter experiments<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=7805718 |journal=The British Journal for the History of Science |publisher=Cambridge Journals Online |title=Architects of Armageddon: the Home Office Scientific Advisers' Branch and civil defence in Britain, 1945–68 |year=2010 |doi=10.1017/S0007087409990392 |access-date=1 June 2013|last1=Smith |first1=Melissa |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=149–180 |s2cid=145729137 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> summarised by Daniel T. Jones of the Home Office Scientific Advisory Branch<ref>{{cite web| date= 1 August 2006 | url=http://glasstone.blogspot.com/2006/08/nuclear-weapons-1st-edition-1956-by.html| title= U.K. Home Office Scientific Advisory Branch 'Protect and Survive' civil defence research| publisher= blogspot.com| access-date=1 June 2013}}</ref> in his report, ''The Protection Against Fallout Radiation Afforded by Core Shelters in a Typical British House'' which was published in ''Protective Structures for Civilian Populations'', Proceedings of the Symposium held at Washington, D.C., 19–23 April 1965, by the Subcommittee on Protective Structures, Advisory Committee on Civil Defense, US National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council.<ref name="nigelcook"/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=82IrAAAAYAAJ |title=Protective Structures for Civilian Populations|year=1965|access-date= 1 June 2013}}</ref> The fallout radiation was represented by measurements of the penetration of cobalt-60 gamma radiation, which has a high mean energy of 1.25 MeV (two gamma rays, 1.17 and 1.33 MeV). This is considerably more penetrating than the mean 0.7 MeV of fallout gamma rays.<ref name= "nigelcook"/> Therefore, the actual protection given against real nuclear weapon fallout would be far greater than that afforded in the peacetime cobalt-60 shielding measurements.

===Wartime Broadcasting Service===
{{main|Wartime Broadcasting Service}}
During the early 1970s, the BBC and the Home Office produced a radio script advising the public of what to do in the event of nuclear attack. This was eventually published in October 2008 on the BBC's website,<ref name="tbuBBCwake">{{cite web|title= BBC transcript to be used in wake of nuclear attack |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/03_10_08nuclearattack.pdf |publisher =BBC News |access-date=30 June 2011 }}</ref> with the full correspondence made available to the public via The National Archives.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2008/october/wartime.htm?homepage=news |title=The National Archives |publisher=The National Archives |access-date=30 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110102170725/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2008/october/wartime.htm?homepage=news |archive-date=2 January 2011 }}</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7648042.stm BBC nuclear bomb script released]. Comedian [[Harry Shearer]] reads it in the style of [[Walter Cronkite]]</ref> The script used very similar language and style to the later ''Protect and Survive'' series. In particular, it emphasised the need for citizens to remain in their homes,<ref name="tbuBBCwake"/> and not to try to evacuate elsewhere.

During the exchange of correspondence between the BBC and various government departments, several letters seem to suggest that a booklet for public consumption was already being discussed. In a letter<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7960825 |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20081023221637/http%3A//www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details%2Dresult.asp?Edoc_Id%3D7960825 |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 October 2008 |title=DocumentsOnline &#124; Image Details |publisher=The National Archives |access-date=30 June 2011}}</ref> from the Central Office of Information, dated 12 March 1974, a request for information from The Home Office about a proposed booklet read as follows:<ref name= "ho322">[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/displaycataloguedetails.asp?CATLN=6&CATID=8324802&SearchInit=4&CATREF=HO+322/775 HO 322/775] at The National Archives</ref>

{{blockquote|Meanwhile I should be grateful if you could let me have a copy of your revised advice to the householder. I will assume that this will form the text of the Official Announcement and that what Probert is discussing with your Information Division is the production of a booklet on public advice.}}

This was replied to on 15 March 1974 by the Home Office, clearly stating that such a booklet was being produced, and that they were also targeting the same information at television:<ref name= "ho322"/>

{{blockquote|It seems likely a basic booklet will be produced... we expect rather more attention to be paid to the dissemination of this advice through other media, in particular television.}}

==Campaign==
The purpose of the ''Protect and Survive'' scheme was to provide members of the British public with instructions, primarily via broadcast media, on how to protect themselves and survive a [[nuclear attack]]. The broadcasts were to be supplemented by a pamphlet which was to act as an ''[[Aide-mémoire|aide-memoire]]'' for householders; despite the pamphlet's later prominence in British culture, the campaign was originally conceived as being broadcast-led, with the pamphlet being confirmed later.<ref name="Young2019">{{cite book|last=Young|first=Taras|year=2019|title=[[Nuclear War in the UK]]|publisher=Four Corners Books|isbn=978-1-909829-16-9|pages=25–29}}</ref> The scheme was not intended to be made public during peacetime, and would only have been broadcast if a nuclear attack was deemed likely by the Government during an international crisis. The information detailed a series of steps recommended to be undertaken by British civilians to improve their chances of survival in the event of a nuclear strike on the United Kingdom.

===Basic advice===
The following advice was common to all components of the campaign, but is presented here according to the ordering contained in the pamphlet.

====Nuclear weapon effects====
{{see also|Effects of nuclear explosions}}
It was explained that everything within a certain radius of a nuclear explosion would be destroyed, and that the heat and blast effects would be extremely destructive for the first five miles and could still cause severe damage beyond this. The formation of and risk from radioactive fallout was also explained.<ref name=jstor>{{cite journal |last1=Lee-Frampton |first1=Nick |title=Protect and survive |journal=New Zealand International Review |date=March-April 1985 |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=25-27 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/45233492|jstor=45233492}}</ref><ref name=Young2019ps>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Taras|year=2019|title=[[Nuclear War in the UK]]|publisher=Four Corners Books|isbn=978-1-909829-16-9|page=29}}</ref>

====Household shelters====
The advice on preparing a shelter at home caused much of ''Protect and Survive'''s later infamy.<ref name=Young2019 /><ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb>{{cite book |last1=DeGroot |first1=Gerard J. |title=The Bomb: A History of Hell on Earth |date=2005 |publisher=[[Random House|Pimlico]] |isbn=0712677488 |pages=319-–320}}</ref> The campaign aimed to convince people of the importance of staying at home instead of self-evacuating elsewhere on the basis that one's local authority would offer the best help.<ref name=grauniad260704>{{cite web |last1=Barkham |first1=Patrick |title=Whitewash your windows, then await further instructions |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/jul/26/terrorism.society |website=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=17 May 2025 |date=26 July 2004}}</ref><ref name=Young2019ps /> It then sought to explain how best to prepare one's home for use as a post-attack shelter intended for fourteen days' use.<ref name=grauniad160317>{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Mark |title=Protect and Survive: Armageddon advice guide to be republished |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/mar/16/protect-survive-nuclear-war-republished-pamphlet |website=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=17 May 2025 |date=16 March 2017}}</ref> Ideally, a cellar or basement would be used as the fallout room; if not, householders were to use a ground-floor room, hall, or passage which was as far away from the roof and outside walls (or at least had the smallest amount of outside wall) as possible.<ref name=jstor /> To reduce the risk from radiation, windows and other openings were to be blocked up and the floor and outside walls made thicker; bricks, concrete and other building blocks, timber, boxes of earth or sand, books, and furniture were recommended as examples of the thick and dense materials to be used.<ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb /><ref name=jstor />

Once the basic fallout room had been prepared, it was to be followed by an inner refuge for additional protection during the first forty-eight hours following an attack. Recommendations included:<ref name=Young2019ps />
*Making a [[lean-to]] from strong boarding or from doors taken from upper rooms, with a length of wood fixed to the floor to stop them from slipping, which was then reinforced with bags or boxes containing earth, sand, books, or even clothing, and the two open ends partly walled in with similar boxes or with heavy furniture<ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb /><ref name=worldend>{{cite book |last1=Gere |first1=Charlie |author1-link=Charlie Gere |title=World's End |year= 2022 |publisher=[[Goldsmiths, University of London|Goldsmiths Press]] |isbn=9781913380007 |pages=163–166|url=https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/33236/1/World's%20End%209781913380007_book.pdf}}</ref>
*Using a sufficiently large table or tables,<ref name=deegarrison>{{cite book |last1=Garrison |first1=Dee |title=Bracing for Armageddon: Why Civil Defense Never Worked |year=2006 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0195183193 |page=171}}</ref> to be surrounded and covered with heavy furniture filled with sand, earth, books, or clothing
*Using the [[Staircase#Utilization|stair cupboard]],<ref name=grauniad160317 /> reinforced with bags of sand or earth on the stairs and along the wall of the cupboard (as well as any adjacent outside wall)

Fallout room provisions were to be sufficient to last the prescribed fourteen days.<ref name=deegarrison /><ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb /> It was recommended to stock three and a half gallons of drinking water per person,<ref name=grauniad160317 /> and to then double this amount to have sufficient provision for washing. The water was to be bottled for immediate use in the fallout room,<ref name=Young2019ps /> with additional supplies to be contained in the bath, basins, and other containers,<ref name=grauniad160317 /> and all of this sealed or covered against fallout.<ref name=Young2019ps /> The fallout room was to be stocked with foods which could be "eaten cold, which keep fresh, and which are tinned or well wrapped", and which were to be kept in a closed cabinet or cupboard; it was recommended to maintain a variety of foods including sugar, jams, and other sweet foods, cereals, biscuits, meats, vegetables, and fruits and fruit juices. Children would need tinned or powdered milk and babies "their normal food as far as is possible."<ref name=Young2019ps /> These provisions were to be accompanied by tin and bottle openers,<ref name=deegarrison /> cutlery, and crockery.<ref name=Young2019ps /> In the "Food Consumption" film, it was stated that only minimal eating was needed since householders would normally be resting under shelter;<ref name=worldend /> those reading the pamphlet were merely told to eat sparingly.<ref name=Young2019ps /> Whether people would have been able to acquire fourteen days' worth of provisions if the ''Protect and Survive'' advice had been issued for real was disputed at official level,<ref>{{cite book |author1=[[Home Office]] |title=ES 1/1979 |year= 1979 |chapter=Food and Agriculture Controls in War |quote=[N]o arrangements could ensure that every surviving household would have, say, 14 days supply of food after attack.}} Cited in {{cite book |last1=Clarke |first1=Bob |title=Britain's Cold War |date=2012 |publisher=History Press |isbn=9780752488257}}</ref> let alone unofficially.

A battery-powered radio would have been essential for receiving outside messages, and it was recommended to take a spare radio in addition to batteries; aerials were not to be extended until an attack was concluded. The basic "survival kit" was rounded off with stocks of warm clothing<ref name=Young2019ps /> and a copy of the ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet. In terms of additional provisions, the following items were all described as useful:<ref name=Young2019ps />
*Bedding and sleeping bags
*Saucepans and portable stoves with fuel
*Torches with spare bulbs and batteries, candles, and matches
*A table with chairs
*Toilet articles, soap, toilet rolls, buckets, and plastic bags (see also the following paragraph on sanitation)
*Changes of basic clothing
*A first aid kit and medicines<ref name=cnnprotectandsurvive>{{cite web |last1=Vonberg |first1=Judith |title=Draw the curtains, bury the dead: Cold War advice for nuclear attack |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/16/europe/cold-war-nuclear-guide |website=[[CNN]] |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref>
*Sand, cloths, or tissues for wiping down plates and utensils
*A notebook and pencils for writing messages
*Brushes, shovels, cleaning materials, rubber or plastic gloves, and a dustpan and brush
*Toys and magazines
*A mechanical clock and a calendar

Special toilet arrangements needed to be made in order to conserve water. Toilet articles had already been mentioned in the provisions list (see above), and were mentioned again in relation to sanitation; the buckets or other containers were to be covered and fitted with bag liners, and if possible a chair should be improvised as a toilet seat.<ref name=cnnprotectandsurvive /><ref name=grauniad260704 /> A disinfectant solution was also to be kept. A dustbin for toilet waste was to be kept just outside the fallout room; all other waste was to be either put in a separate dustbin if available or put in plastic bags or paper until it could be taken outside the house.

Though the heat flash was claimed to be incapable of igniting the bricks and stone of a then-typical British house, internal contents could be ignited if windows were left unprotected. It was therefore advised to remove easily ignited articles from the attic and upper rooms (with fires being judged to be most likely in those areas), net curtains or thin materials from windows (but not heavy curtains and blinds since these would provide protection against flying glass), old newspapers and magazines, and boxes, firewood, and easily ignited materials from the outside of the house. Windows, including glass panes, were to be coated with light-coloured paint so that they would reflect away the heat flash even if the subsequent blast wave was to shatter them.<ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb /><ref name=deegarrison /> Buckets of water were to be kept on each floor, and a fire extinguisher was ideal. Doors, or at least those that had not been used for making the lean-to variety of inner refuge, were to be closed to help prevent the spread of fire. The fire hazard from damaged gas, oil, and elecriticity supplies, and the resulting need to know where and how to turn these off, was stressed.

The suitability of different types of housing stock was assessed. Those living in a block of flats were to avoid the top two floors and make alternative shelter arrangements (five storeys or more) or to shelter in the basement or the ground floor (up to four storeys). Single-storey homes such as bungalows were described as ill-suited for shelter purposes; if a shelter had to be made in such a building, householders were to select a place that was furthest away from the roof and outside walls as described earlier.<ref name=Young2019ps /> Those living in caravans or similar accommodation were to be advised on what to do by local authorities.<ref name=bellinirb>{{cite book |last1=Bellini |first1=James |title=Rule Britannia: A Progress Report for Domesday |year=1986 |orig-year=1981 |publisher=Cape |isbn=0224018981 |page=198}}</ref>

====Warnings and actions on warning====
The various warning signals were explained (and, in the films, were accompanied by recordings of how they would sound). An [[Four-minute warning|attack warning]] would involve sirens sounding a rising and falling note as well as warnings delivered via radio. A fallout warning would involve three loud bangs (from [[Maroon (rocket)|maroon rockets]]) or whistles in quick succession. When the immediate danger had passed, sirens would sound the all-clear with a steady note.

On hearing the attack warning, people who were already at home (or could reach it within "a couple of minutes") were to send any children to the fallout room first, turn off gas, electricity, and oil supplies as described earlier, close stoves and damp down other fires, shut their windows and draw the curtains, and finally go to the fallout room. Those who could not reach their homes were to take cover in nearby buildings if they were not already indoors, or to take any other kind of cover if they could not reach a building in time, including lying flat in a ditch and covering up their hands and head.<ref name=grauniad160317 />

It was claimed that once an attack had ended there would be a short period before fallout started to descend; during this time, mains water was to be used for firefighting and for topping up water reserves, and then turned off. If the water supply was externally interrupted, water heaters and boilers (including hearth fires with back boilers) were to be extinguished and taps turned off. Fuel supplies were to be turned off if this had not been already done. Toilets were to be left unflushed and were to have their chains removed and their handles taped up in order to preserve the water in their cisterns.<ref name=grauniad160317 /> Any structural damage was to be countered by using curtains or sheets to cover up holes and broken windows. The survival kit was to be kept at hand if it was not already in the fallout room. Neighbours could be helped if the fallout warning had yet to be sounded.

On hearing the fallout warning, those who were outdoors were to take indoors cover as soon as possible and wipe off as much dust from themselves as they could before entering, while those at home were to go to the fallout room if they had not done so already and stay inside the inner refuge for the next forty-eight hours. After this time had elapsed, the radiation risk would have lessened, but it was stressed that exposure could still be lethal and that people should remain at home until told via radio that it was safe to leave.

Once the fallout risk was acceptably low, the house could initially be left for a few minutes to complete essential tasks (to be done by those aged over thirty if possible). To avoid bringing radioactive dust into the house, footwear was to be wiped down between excursions, and ideally separate outdoor footwear would be kept.

If there were casualties from an attack, the household would have had to provide initial medical help. The radio was to be monitored for information on such medical services and facilities as might be available and on which cases were to be treated as urgent.<ref name=cnnprotectandsurvive /> Infamously,<ref>{{cite web |title=Doomsday, Target London 13, A Set of Photomontage Posters on Civil Defence in London |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/15015 |website=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Ruiz |first1=Pollyanna |editor1-last=Ross |editor1-first=Karen |editor2-last=Price |editor2-first=Stuart |title=Popular Media and Communication: Essays on Publics, Practices and Processes |year=2008 |publisher=[[Cambridge Scholars Publishing]] |isbn=9781443810340 |page=178 |chapter=Walking the Net: Smooth Space and Alternative Media Forms}}</ref><ref name=gerarddegrootthebomb /> it was advised that the body of anyone who died in the fallout room was to be placed in another room and covered as securely as possible with an attached identification (in the relevant film, separate identifications were to be attached to both the body and its covering<ref name=worldend />). If no instructions were issued within five days on what to do next, the body was to be buried in a temporary grave as soon as it was safe to leave the house.<ref name=bellinirb /><ref name=cnnprotectandsurvive /><ref name=grauniad260704 />

Once the all clear had been sounded, there would no longer be any immediate danger and so normal activities could be resumed (though, as disarmament campaigners pointed out,<ref>{{cite web |title='On hearing the all-clear you may resume normal activities' |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/15038 |website=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Back to Normal! Target London 12, A Set of Photomontage Posters on Civil Defence in London |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/15014 |website=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref> whether there would be any normal activities to be resumed was another question).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Clarke |first1=Bob |title=Britain's Cold War |year=2012 |publisher=History Press |isbn=9780752488257}}</ref>

===Print===
The ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet was prepared in 1976, and some 2,000 copies were printed and secretly issued to chief executives of local authorities and senior police officers. Its existence having been brought to public attention by the ''Times'' (see below), a slightly revised edition was printed in 1980, and made available through [[Office of Public Sector Information|Stationery Office]] bookshops.<ref name="Young2019" /> As published then, the pamphlet was priced at 50 pence,<ref name=Young2019a>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Taras|year=2019|title=[[Nuclear War in the UK]]|publisher=Four Corners Books|isbn=978-1-909829-16-9|pages=36–39}}</ref> but was intended for free distribution to all British households should a crisis period develop.<ref name=square>{{Cite book|last1=Campbell |first1=Duncan |author-link=Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952)|title=War Plan UK|orig-date=1983|date=2015|isbn=978-1-326-50612-4|page=33}}</ref> The contents of the pamphlet would also be printed in national newspapers if the risk of nuclear attack increased, with printers' proofs of this version being prepared beforehand.<ref name="Young2019" /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Young |first1=Taras |title=Protect and Survive – Creating the Campaign |url=https://coldwar.org.uk/protect-and-survive-creating-the-campaign/ |website=Nuclear War in the UK |access-date=12 April 2025 |date=28 June 2017}}</ref>

Early drafts featured what Taras Young called "clumsy choices"; the stay-at-home language included a statement that "only fools run away", while drawings for the inner refuge showed it being prepared with cushions and mattresses rather than the bulkier items of the final version. The Central Office of Information expressed concern that the "Deaths" section would be unduly worrying; the heading was thus removed and the information folded into the "Casualties" section.<ref name="Young2019" />

The main pamphlet was complemented in 1981 by two publications regarding the construction of [[fallout shelters]]: an A5 pamphlet called ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters'' with techniques for building a home shelter, and an A4 book called ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters – Technical Guidance'' for the design and construction of long-term and permanent shelters, some of which involved elaborate designs. The A5 pamphlet was later described as "neither flesh nor fowl" in an 1986 memorandum, and as early as 1983 it was felt that the information therein should instead be incorporated into a future revision of ''Protect and Survive''. One of the shelters described in both ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters'' publications was essentially identical to the Second World War-era [[Air raid shelter#Morrison shelter|Morrison shelter]], with assembly instructions being little changed from those presented in an 1941 pamphlet for the same;<ref name=youngdomnucshel>{{cite web |last1=Young |first1=Taras |title=Domestic Nuclear Shelters |url=https://coldwar.org.uk/domestic-nuclear-shelters/ |website=Nuclear War in the UK |access-date=12 April 2025 |date=30 July 2018}}</ref><ref name=Young2019a /> another type of shelter was based on the [[Air raid shelter#Anderson shelter|Anderson shelter]], also of Second World War vintage.<ref name=pressreader>{{cite magazine |last1=Young |first1=Taras |title=Preparing for armageddon |url=https://www.pressreader.com/uk/bbc-history-magazine/20200903/281616717739493 |magazine=[[BBC History|BBC History Magazine]] |access-date=2 April 2025 |date=3 September 2020|via=[[PressReader]]}}</ref>

In response to extensive criticism of ''Protect and Survive'', a follow-up pamphlet entitled ''Civil Defence: Why we need it'' was published in November 1981 which attempted to defend the government's approach to civil defence.<ref name=strangedeathofcivdefedu>{{cite web |last1=Preston |first1=John |title=The strange death of UK civil defence education in the 1980s |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0046760X.2014.979253 |website=[[Taylor & Francis|Taylor & Francis Online]] |access-date=2 April 2025 |date=17 December 2014}}</ref><ref name=Young2019a />

One final pamphlet, ''Nuclear Weapons'', did not carry ''Protect and Survive'' branding (and, indeed, had been first published in 1956<ref>{{cite web |title=Manual of Civil Defence. Volume 1, pamphlet no. 1 : nuclear weapons 1956 |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1500054826 |website=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=8 May 2025}}</ref>), but an updated version was published in the same year as the main ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet and has been referred to alongside the other pamphlets. This pamphlet contained a more technical discussion of nuclear weapon effects and countermeasures.<ref name=Young2019a />

====Publication of the pamphlet====
''Protect and Survive'' was formally published in May 1980, but had come to the public's attention before that via a series of articles in ''[[The Times]]'' newspaper in January 1980.<ref name=times1>Evans, P. (1980) 'Civil defence-1: Government to give greater priority to protect millions of people' ''The Times'', 16 Jan, p. 4</ref> This wave of interest had been preceded by numerous letters to ''The Times'' in December 1979<ref name=time2>Thompson, K, Nonhebel, G. (1979) 'Reviving Civil Defence (Letters to the Editor)' The Times, 29 Nov, p. 17</ref><ref name=times3>Chambers, D. (1979) 'Reviving Civil Defence (Letters to the Editor)' ''The Times'', 1 Dec, p. 13</ref> questioning what Civil Defence arrangements were in place in the UK.

This was then followed by a ''Times'' leader on 19 January 1980 which noted that: "In Britain, a Home Office booklet "Protect and Survive" remains unavailable."<ref name=times4>The Times, (1980), A Lethal Failure of Duty, 18 Jan, p. 13</ref>  Following this unexpected publicity for ''Protect and Survive'', The Minister of State at the Home Office, [[Leon Brittan]], responding on the subject in the House of Commons on 20 February 1980 said that:<ref name=times5>''The Times'', (1980), Revision of pamphlet on UK civil defence, 22 Feb, p. 10</ref>

{{blockquote|...attention has been focused on the decision of the Home Office not to publish, in advance of an imminent attack, the pamphlet entitled "Protect and Survive". It is not a secret pamphlet, and there is no mystery about it. It has been available to all local authorities and chief police and fire officers and to those who have attended courses at the Home Defence College at Easingwold. It has been shown to interested members of parliament and to journalists. It has not been published, for the simple reason that it was produced for distribution at a time of grave international crisis when war seemed imminent, and it was calculated that it would have the greatest impact if distributed then.<ref>HC Deb 20 February 1980 vol 979 cc628</ref>}}

The Minister then went on to say the Home Office had received over two hundred letters from the public on civil defence. Following the press and parliamentary focus on ''Protect and Survive'', as well as an episode of the BBC's ''Newsnight'' programme which focused on the campaign, the government chose to publish the pamphlet in May 1980.<ref name="Young2019" />

===Television===
[[Image:Protect And Survive logo.png|right|thumb|150px|The ''Protect and Survive'' end credit seen at the end of each film accompanied by a circle animation and electronic musical phrase composed by [[Roger Limb]]]] ''Protect and Survive'' was adapted for television as a series of twenty short [[public information film]]s. The films were [[classified information|classified]], intended for transmission on all television channels if the government determined that nuclear attack was likely within 72 hours. However, recordings leaked to [[CND]] and the [[BBC]], who broadcast excerpts from them on ''[[Panorama (TV series)|Panorama]]'' on 10 March 1980, shortly after the [[Soviet invasion of Afghanistan]].<ref name="panorama">{{cite episode | title=If the Bomb Drops | series=Panorama | network=British Broadcasting Corporation | airdate=10 March 1980}}</ref>

The films were produced by Richard Taylor Cartoons, who also produced the ''[[Charley Says]]'' child safety films and children's animation ''[[Crystal Tipps and Alistair]]'',<ref name="Young2019" /> and were ready for use by at least 1975,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_warnings.htm|title=Protect & Survive – Casualties|website=[[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|The National Archives]]|access-date=30 June 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622211232/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_warnings.htm|archive-date=22 June 2011}}</ref> with rough cuts being screened at the Central Office of Information in November of that year.<ref name="Young2019" /> They were similar in content to the pamphlet, detailing the same instructions using voice-over narration, sound effects, and a combination of simple [[Stop-motion animation|stop-motion]] and [[Traditional animation|illustrated]] animation. [[Patrick Allen (actor)|Patrick Allen]] was chosen to narrate. His voiceover was later described as "the calm, clipped vowels of a male announcer, advising how to build shelters, avoid fallout, and wrap up your dead loved ones in [[polythene]], bury them, and tag their bodies."<ref name="newstatesman2018" /> He later parodied the recordings for [[Frankie Goes To Hollywood]]'s song "[[Two Tribes]]", announcing "Mine is the last voice you will ever hear. Do not be alarmed".<ref name="newstatesman2018">{{cite news | last=Rogers | first=Jude | date=2018-03-17 | title=Here come the bombs: the making of Threads, the nuclear war film that shocked a generation | url=https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/film/2018/03/here-come-bombs-making-threads-nuclear-war-film-shocked-generation | work=[[New Statesman]] | location=London | access-date=2019-10-12}}</ref>

Each episode concluded with a distinctive electronic musical phrase composed by the [[BBC Radiophonic Workshop]]'s [[Roger Limb]]. It featured two high- and low-pitched melodies coming together "like people". So great was the secrecy around production that Limb handed over his tapes to producer Bruce Allen in an alley.<ref name="newstatesman2018"/>

{|class="wikitable"
|+List of ''Protect and Survive'' films<ref name="iwm-list">{{cite web|last3=Allen|first3=Patrick|author1=Home Office|author2=Central Office of Information|title=Protect and Survive [Main Title]|url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060022098|website=Imperial War Museums|access-date=18 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018032643/https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060022098|archive-date=18 October 2023|location=London|language=en-gb|date=1980}}</ref>
|-
! {{abbr|No.|Number}}
! Title
! Length
! Notes
|-
|  1.
| "Nuclear Explosions Explained"
| 1:35
| Effects of atomic weapons
|-
|  2.
| "The Warnings"
| 2:53
| Attack, fall-out and all-clear warnings
|-
|  3.
| "What to Do When the Warnings Sound"
| 2:28
| "Immediate action" drill
|-
|  4.
| "Stay at Home"
| 1:40
| Techniques for sheltering in place
|-
|  5.
| "Choosing a Fall-out Room"
| 2:06
| Choosing a safe room
|-
|  6.
| "Refuges"
| 3:54
| Building an "inner refuge"
|-
|  7.
| "Materials to Use for Your Fall-out Room and Refuge"
| 1:55
| Radiation shielding materials
|-
|  8.
| "Make Your Fall-out Room and Refuge Now"
| 4:42
| Preparing for an attack
|-
|  9.
| "What to Put in Your Fall-out Room"
| 3:03
| Essential supplies
|-
| 10.
| "Action After Warnings"
| 4:13
| Detailed "immediate action" drill
|-
| 11.
| "Water and Food"
| 2:41
| Provisions for 14 days
|-
| 12.
| "Sanitation"
| 1:33
| Makeshift toilet arrangements
|-
| 13.
| "Fire Precautions"
| 2:02
| Expedient firefighting techniques
|-
| 14.
| "The Importance of Your Radio"
| 1:20
| Portable radio as a vital aid
|-
| 15.
| "Life Under Fall-out Conditions"
| 2:51
| Survival during an attack
|-
| 16.
| "What to Do After an Attack"
| 2:29
| Post-attack actions
|-
| 17.
| "Sanitation Care"
| 2:40
| Essential hygiene
|-
| 18.
| "Water Consumption"
| 1:28
| Safeguarding and rationing water
|-
| 19.
| "Food Consumption"
| 1:40
| Rationing food
|-
| 20.
| "Casualties"
| 1:27
| Advice on casualty care and mortuary actions
|}

The "Refuges" film was originally meant to cover outdoor bunkers as well as indoor shelters but the relevant scenes were cut;<ref>{{cite web |last1=Young |first1=Taras |title=Scrapped fallout shelter scene from Protect and Survive |url=https://coldwar.org.uk/scrapped-fallout-shelter-scene-from-protect-and-survive/ |website=Nuclear War in the UK |access-date=12 April 2025 |date=2 August 2018}}</ref> the subject of outdoor shelters was later covered in the ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters'' series of publications.<ref name=youngdomnucshel />

===Radio===
A collection of recordings for radio transmission were produced as part of the programme. These differ slightly from the films in that the voice was provided not by Patrick Allen, but by both male and female voices.<ref>[[Imperial War Museum]] Collection Search [http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80020615 sound recording 22202 (Central Office of Information)]. Retrieved 1 July 2012</ref> In addition, certain portions of the instructional copy are changed slightly. While it has been speculated that a small portion of these recordings is heard in ''[[Threads (1984 film)|Threads]]'', during the scene where the character of Bill Kemp is discussing removing internal doors to use for their shelter, this is in fact re-recorded by an actor.

==Political reaction==
Being published in peacetime and outside of its intended context as a supplement to the broadcast campaign, the ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet "seemed at once sinister and quite pathetic" and was rendered incapable of being taken seriously.<ref name="Young2019" /> Organisations such as the [[Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament]] protested that the pamphlet, by popularising the idea that a nuclear war could be survived, made such a war more likely. The protest organisations published and sold large numbers of copies of the pamphlet, considering that widespread reading of the pamphlet could only discredit the government's policy. Counter-pamphlets such as "Protest and Survive" by [[E P Thompson|Edward Palmer Thompson]]<ref name=Young2019alt>{{cite book|last=Young|first=Taras|year=2019|title=[[Nuclear War in the UK]]|publisher=Four Corners Books|isbn=978-1-909829-16-9|pages=33–35}}</ref> and "Civil Defence, whose Defence" by the Disarmament Information Group<ref>{{cite web |last1=Camino |first1=Elena |title=La minaccia nucleare: verso la presa di coscienza? |url=https://serenoregis.org/2022/08/13/la-minaccia-nucleare-verso-la-presa-di-coscienza/ |website=Centro Studi Sereno Regis |access-date=2 April 2025 |language=it |date=13 August 2022}}</ref> intended to debunk the pamphlet's arguments. In 1983, some press attention was drawn to an experiment by Ben Hayden, a member of Tower Hamlets CND, who decided to build a shelter in accordance with the ''Protect and Survive'' instructions and live there for the prescribed two weeks;<ref name=pressreader /> Hayden would later publish a book (''Ben's Bunker Book'') about his experiment, with its presentation mimicking that of the ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet.<ref name=Young2019alt />

''Protect and Survive'' was referred to by name in the 1980 [[Square Leg]] exercise scenario<ref name=square /> and in an initial draft of the 1982 [[Hard Rock (exercise)|Hard Rock]] exercise scenario; later versions of the Hard Rock scenario referred to it as "Public, Do-It-Yourself Civil Defence" instead, which [[Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952)|Duncan Campbell]] interpreted as a sign that the ''Protect and Survive'' brand had become internally embarrassing for the Home Office.<ref name=hard>{{cite news |last1=Campbell |first1=Duncan |author-link=Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952) |title=Bad Day at Hard Rock |url=https://www.duncancampbell.org/menu/journalism/newstatesman/newstatesman-1982/hard%20rock.pdf |work=[[New Statesman]] |pages =6–8 |date=17 September 1982 |via=duncancampbell.org |access-date=21 February 2023 |archive-date=7 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207142514/https://www.duncancampbell.org/menu/journalism/newstatesman/newstatesman-1982/hard%20rock.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Campbell |first1=Duncan |author-link=Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952)|title=War Plan UK|orig-date=1983|date=2015|isbn=978-1-326-50612-4|page=111}}</ref> These and other civil defence exercises also assumed that significant numbers of people would self-evacuate from perceived target areas despite the stay-at-home instructions given in ''Protect and Survive'' and other official communiques.<ref name=square /><ref name=subterraneattw>{{cite magazine |last1=MacGregor |first1=Jane |title=Operation Square Leg: Did You Survive 1980? |url=https://ia801909.us.archive.org/17/items/subterranea-5/Subterranea%205.pdf#page=21 |magazine=Subterranea |publisher=[[Subterranea Britannica]] |access-date=4 April 2025 |pages=18–20 |date=September 2004|issn=1741-8917|via=the [[Internet Archive]]}}</ref><ref name=hard />

A 1981 paper by Sid Butler, the Deputy Director of the Home Office Scientific Advisory Branch, analysed three different attack scenarios and the expected death toll if the stay-at-home advice was followed as compared to if the advice was ignored and people dispersed themselves; in all three scenarios, there were more immediate survivors as a result of self-dispersal. In the case of an attack "[[Countervalue|primarily on civilian targets]]", the paper predicted that the additional death toll which would be incurred by strict adherence to the stay-at-home advice would be in the region of 12 million.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Butler |first1=Sid |title=Scientific Advice in Home Defence |date=September 1981}} Cited in {{cite web |last1=Campbell |first1=Duncan |author1-link=Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952) |title=Planning for genocide |url=https://www.duncancampbell.org/menu/journalism/newstatesman/newstatesman-1982/planning%20for%20genocide.pdf|via=duncancampbell.org |website=[[New Statesman]] |access-date=9 April 2025 |date=1 October 1982}} Also cited in {{cite book |last1=Campbell |first1=Duncan |author1-link=Duncan Campbell (journalist, born 1952) |title=War Plan UK |date=2015|orig-date=1983 |isbn=978-1-326-50612-4 |pages=325–328}}</ref>

==Cultural impact==
The ''Protect and Survive'' campaign had a substantial impact on British popular culture in the early 1980s. Owing to the controversy surrounding the campaign, much of this cultural response was "barbed".<ref name=Young2019 />

In music, rock band [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]] recorded a song called "Protect and Survive" on their 1980 album ''[[A (Jethro Tull album)|A]]'', while the [[hardcore punk]]/[[D-beat]] band [[Discharge (band)|Discharge]] recorded the track "Protest and Survive", named after Edward Palmer Thompson's anti-nuclear manifesto, for their 1982 album ''[[Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing]]''. Actor [[Patrick Allen (actor)|Patrick Allen]], who narrated the associated public information films, recreated this narration for the 1984 [[UK Singles Chart|number one single]], "[[Two Tribes]]", by [[Frankie Goes To Hollywood]]. Irish folk band [[The Dubliners]] recorded a song called “Protect and Survive” on their 1987 record, ''[[25 Years Celebration]]''. Heavy metal band [[Wolfsbane (band)|Wolfsbane]]'s [[Wolfsbane (album)|self-titled 1994 album]] contains a song called "Protect and Survive". More recently, the campaign's logo and illustrations from the pamphlet can be seen on the cover of the 1997 "[[Karma Police]]" single by [[Radiohead]]. Also, London post-rock band [[Public Service Broadcasting (band)|Public Service Broadcasting]] recorded the track "Protect and Survive" using samples from the [[Roger Limb]] score set over a drum-heavy track with live performances incorporating visual elements taken from the government information film.

In print, [[Raymond Briggs]]' [[graphic novel]] ''[[When the Wind Blows (graphic novel)|When the Wind Blows]]'' (later adapted as [[When the Wind Blows (1986 film)|an animated film]], radio and stage play) obliquely mentions various aspects of the ''Protect and Survive'' programme. Louise Lawrence's children's novel ''[[Children of the Dust (novel)|Children of the Dust]]'' refers to one of the inner refuge designs mentioned in the leaflets and to the public information films and radio tapes.

On television, ''Protect and Survive'' was lampooned in the television series ''[[The Young Ones (TV series)|The Young Ones]]'' episode "[[Bomb (Young Ones episode)|Bomb]]." The ''Protect and Survive'' booklet appears on-screen during the episode as characters hide ineffectively under clothed tables and paint themselves white to deflect the blast, parodying its instructions on creating an inner refuge and whitewashing one's windows, respectively.<ref name=Young2019 /> The [[BBC]] television film ''[[Threads (1984 film)|Threads]]'' featured four of the series' films: ''Stay at Home'', ''Make Your Fall-out Room and Refuge Now'', ''Action After Warnings'' and ''Casualties''. Also, in the ''[[Spooks (TV series)|Spooks]]'' episode "[[Nuclear Strike (Spooks)|Nuclear Strike]]", the character [[Malcolm Wynn-Jones|Malcolm]] is seen viewing one of the information videos.

The full version of ''Protect and Survive'' is shown on a loop underground at the [[Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hackgreen.co.uk/ |title=Hack Green Official Website}}</ref> in Cheshire and the [[Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.secretnuclearbunker.com/ |title=Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker Official Website}}</ref> in Essex. Other copies are shown on loops at the [[Imperial War Museum]]s in London and [[Imperial War Museum North|Manchester]].
''[[Fallout: London]]'', a highly-publicized mod for the video game ''[[Fallout 4]]'', includes multiple references to the ''Protect and Survive'' material, including a themed overhaul of the [[Pip-Boy]] featuring similar animations in lieu of [[Vault Boy]].

==See also==
*[[Transition to war]]
*''[[Preparing for Emergencies]]'', a 2004 British emergency preparedness campaign that also saw the British government prepare an information booklet for mass distribution
*[[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom]]
*''[[Survival Under Atomic Attack]]'', a 1951 US Government publication on nuclear survival
*''[[Fallout Protection]]'', a 1961 US Government publication on nuclear survival
*[[Duck and Cover (film)|''Duck and Cover'' (film)]]
*''[[The War Game]]'' (film)
*''[[Threads (1984 film)|Threads]]'' (film)
*[[List of books about nuclear issues]]
*[[List of films about nuclear issues]]
*''[[Protect and Survive (Doctor Who audio)|Protect and Survive]]'' (''[[Doctor Who]]'' audio drama)
*''[[Om kriget kommer]]''
*''[[Sheltered (video game)]]''

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*Pamphlets
**[http://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/110193 Main ''Protect and Survive'' pamphlet]
**[https://michaelharrison.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Domestic-Nuclear-Shelters-The-Home-Office-1981.pdf ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters'']
**[https://archive.org/details/DomesticNuclearSheltersTechnicalGuidance/DomesticNuclearSheltersTechnicalGuidance/ ''Domestic Nuclear Shelters – Technical Guidance''] (Several versions included in collection)
**[https://archive.org/details/civil-defence-why-we-need-it/ ''Civil Defence: Why we need it'']
**[https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/nuclear-weapons The 1980 edition of ''Nuclear Weapons'']
*Films
**[http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060022098 Film collection] at the [[Imperial War Museum]]
**[https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20230801144436/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_warnings.htm ''Action After Warnings''. Video from the National Archive]
**[https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20230801151622/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1964to1979/filmpage_casualties.htm ''Casualties''. Video from the National Archive]
**[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yrv505R-0U Compilation]
*Protest pamphlets
**[https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/protest-and-survive ''Protest and Survive'']
**[http://www.jcmullen.fr/CDWD.pdf ''Civil Defence... Whose Defence?'']
**[https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/civil-defence-cruellest-confidence-trick ''Civil Defence: The Cruellest Confidence Trick'']
*''Advising the Householder on Protection Against Nuclear Attack'', a public information campaign that was a precursor to ''Protect and Survive''
**[https://archive.org/details/CivilDefenceHandbookNo.10AdvisingTheHouseholderOnProtectionAgainst Handbook]
**[http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/711680/index.html Film collection] (As ''[[Civil Defence Information Bulletin]]s'')
***[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My8McQs2iEE Compilation]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Protect And Survive}}
[[Category:Cold War broadcasting]]
[[Category:Cold War documents]]
[[Category:British animated short films]]
[[Category:Social guidance films]]
[[Category:Films about nuclear war and weapons]]
[[Category:Emergency management in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Public information films]]
[[Category:Cold War history of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:1975 animated short films]]
[[Category:1970s British animated films]]
[[Category:1980s British animated films]]
[[Category:1970s educational films]]
[[Category:1980s educational films]]
[[Category:British educational films]]