In episode 68 we explore themes of time, place, race and identity in BLITZ , the 2024 World War II drama written and directed by Academy and BAFTA-Award-winning filmmaker Steve McQueen. BLITZ is told from the unique perspective and epic journey of a 9-year-old biracial boy named George (played by newcomer Elliott Heffernan) whose mother sends him from London to safety in the English countryside. But George doesn’t want to go to the countryside and be separated from his mother and grandfather Gerald (Paul Weller). Defiant and determined George makes his escape to return home to East London.

Our guest, Tré Ventour-Griffiths, is a multiply-disabled historian, creative writer, and sociologist with interests in Black histories, race and disability, pop culture and insurgent politics. His PhD research uses creative storytelling methods to consider a multigenerational story of Caribbean Northants (Northamptonshire) Post-1942. 

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TIMESTAMPS

0:56 - Exploring Blitz World War 2 Historical Context

3:44 - Introduction to Tré Ventour-Griffiths

5:12 - Tré Ventour-Griffiths's Research and Scholarship

15:10 - Time and Relativity in BLITZ

25:33 - Black rural and town peoples in the UK

29:42 - Generic Break

30:18 History of Racial Hostilities in UK, Social, Economic and Sexual Policing

43:55 - Empire Arcade -- Representation and Racism in British Culture and Art

51:34 - Desire for Historical Representation of Black Children as Children

54:30 - Where to Watch BLITZ

56:17 - Disclaimer

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