'Thorough and engaging ... you can't understand England without understanding the BBC' New York Times

'Fascinating and informative' Daily Telegraph

'A dramatic tale of innovation and determination' Guardian

In 1922, a tiny group of men and women came together to found the BBC, using what had been a weapon of war - Marconi's wireless - to remake culture for the good of humanity.

Twenty years later, when George Orwell famously quit the Corporation, he decided he was done 'doing work that produces no result'. Yet the BBC is now one of Britain's most beloved institutions. Stars once fainted at the microphone; now a select few spend their Saturdays waltzing for the nation's entertainment in front of studio cameras.

From Daleks to Desert Island Discs, the BBC has blazed a trail for British entertainment. Yet it has also always been at the forefront of global change, both breaking and covering the most important stories of the century on Panorama and BBC News.

This is a stirring and monumental history of the British cultural stalwart which created modern broadcasting one hundred years ago.