Description
Book SynopsisIn the 1930s, British colonial officials introduced drama performances, broadcasting services, and publication bureaus into Africa under the rubric of colonial development. They used theater, radio, and mass-produced books to spread British values and the English language across the continent. This project proved remarkably resilient: well after the end of Britain's imperial rule, many of its cultural institutions remained in place. Through the 1960s and 1970s, African audiences continued to attend Shakespeare performances and listen to the BBC, while African governments adopted English-language textbooks produced by metropolitan publishing houses.Imperial Encore traces British drama, broadcasting, and publishing in Africa between the 1930s and the 1980sthe half century spanning the end of British colonial rule and the outset of African national rule. Caroline Ritter shows how three major cultural institutionsthe British Council, the BBC, and Oxford University Pressintegrated their wor
Trade Review"Imperial Encore presents a deeply-researched and engaging narrative that actively enriches a subject that has for too long been pushed to the outside of imperial historiography."
* Twentieth Century British History *
"
Imperial Encore is an important contribution to the growing scholarship on the afterlives of empire. . . .In lucid prose and with an eye to compelling detail, Ritter has revealed how Britain’s cultural ambitions and institutional power did not simply survive the upheavals of the decolonization era, but thrived in its wake." * Journal of British Studie *
"Ritter’s highly-readable study is particularly strong in drawing out specific moments, experiences and voices. . . .
Imperial Encore highlights the integral, and ongoing, role of culture to the imperial project and illustrates why we must continue to interrogate those that control, utilise, and exploit these cultural forms today." * Cultural and Social History *
Table of ContentsIllustrations
Acknowledgments
Note on the Text
Abbreviations
Introduction
PART ONE. Cultural Imperialism during the Late Empire
1. Shakespeare in Africa: The British Council and Drama Export
2. "Bringing Books to Africans": Publishing in Colonial East Africa
3. "This Is London . . .": BBC Broadcasting to Colonial Africa
PART TWO. Cultural Imperialism after Empire
4. ". . . Calling Africa": Capturing the Cold War Audience
5. Patrons of Postcolonial Culture: British Publishers and African Writers
6. From Culture to Aid to Paid: Cultural Relations after Empire
Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index
