An excellent documentary called The White Christmas Story was broadcast on BBC Radio2 on December 23. Narrated by actor Martin Sheen with contributions from Mary Ellen Barrett (Irving Berlin’s daughter), Jody Rosen (author of the book White Christmas) and Benjamin Sears (editor of The Irving Berlin Reader), the hour-long programme looked in depth at the origins and then success of the most famous song in the world. Bing was in evidence throughout. We heard him singing “When the Folks High-Up Do the Mean Low Down��  and “Silent Night��  (1935) in the lead up to his 1942 version of “White Christmas�� . Various portions of several of Bing’s interviews were used, including the rare “Let’s Talk to Lucy�� . An extract from the 1945 show Cavalcade of America - The Road to Berlin was played to illustrate the importance of the song to wartime servicemen.

The show can still be heard at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01874gk/The_White_Christmas_Story/