We grinned and beared it : measure for measure - length.

The tape contains more than one programme. 1.We grinned and beared it: This programme describes health conditions and health care among the poor in 20th century Britain before the NHS. Narrated by four nonagenarians, two of whom were doctors practising in deprived areas of the country, it makes extensive use of archive film clips to illustrate their experiences. Their reminiscences are richly detailed and amount to a comprehensive picture of a time in which many people had little choice in sickness but to grin and bear it. Memories of the workhouse, parsh relief, terror and secrecy over mental illness in the family, Spanish 'flu, diphtheria and the predicament of G.P.s faced with conditions they could do little or nothing to alleviate, make up compelling and moving film. 2. Measure for measure: the first in a series of three films in the series, this programme looks at ̀length'.