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written and narrated by Johnnie Walker MBE This is the story of man's fight for freedom. The beginning is in the past. The middle is now. The end is in the future. It is a story of sadness and of triumph. August the fourteenth, as disc jockeys Robbie Dale, Johnnie Walker and Ross Brown leave Liverpool Street, London, spurred on toward the sea by the hundreds of cheering people. See them now as they stand on the tender. There are tears in their eyes as their families, their homes and their loved ones are left behind. Three O'Clock on this Monday afternoon and on two six six, Big Lil is heard for the last time. Caroline is alone. These three men prepare for midnight for, in a few hours time, they are to challenge the might and the power of the British Government. They will become criminals. Midnight approaches. It is August the fifteenth. Johnnie Walker announces that Caroline belongs to you, that she loves you and she will continue. The Beatles sing 'All You Need Is Love'. These two men sound happy but underneath, they are sad, for they now know that they have passed the point of no return. They are not sad for long. They are joined by other men who also gave up so much to fight for freedom. The seas are rough and cool. Life is hard but, as each day passes, the moment of triumph draws nearer. The British people rally round. They send food, they send comfort and they send their love. 'All You Need Is Love' and love overcomes. The British Government relents. Caroline raises her anchor and heads for England. See her now, majestically and proudly, sailing up the river toward the capital that has welcomed so many victors in British history, but none as victorious as these men. They stand on the deck, waving to the millions of people who line the Thames. This time, the tears flooding from their eyes are tears of happiness. The insurmountable odds have been surmounted. They reunite with their families, with their friends, with their loved ones. We are near the end of our story. London's skyline has a new landmark pointed toward the heavens - Caroline's aerial, at last beaming out its love and music to a free and peaceful nation. We have overcome. The battle is over. Free radio becomes a way of life, but never taken for granted, for no man will ever forget Monday, August the fourteenth, nineteen hundred and sixty seven. |