The five episodes, which concentrate largely on the early half of the decade and the war years, are bookended by analysis. The first sets the scene by following the meticulous reconstruction of the house itself and a "Dig For Victory" garden, the transformation of the local shop and the establishment of a wartime cabinet (consisting of scientists and historians) who dictate the family's living conditions in accordance with the progression of the war. The fun really starts in episode two when the Hymers get to grips with blackouts, air raids, food shortages and building an Anderson shelter in the back garden. Life without mod cons doesn't suit them and initially, although there are light-hearted moments, Lyn and Kirstie are prone to a moan. In episode three life gets increasingly difficult when Michael returns to work in Yorkshire, leaving the women to cope with the hardest war years by themselves. The nature of this social experiment achieves a level of involvement that traditional documentaries can't get near. Not only is there enormous detail--the vegetable-root hair dye, the disposal of sanitary towels, the five-inch lukewarm baths--but also the family act as our entry point into a different world. Their experience cannot fail to engage our imaginations and our emotions. Conditions improve in the fourth instalment with the arrival of large numbers of US military and food parcels, but in the final episode, with the Hymers reflecting back on the 1940s from their everyday lives, we see that doing without has made a lasting impact. Emma Perry