In Popular Culture
Author and journalist George Orwell worked in Bush House between 1941 and 1943 and the building is said to have given him the idea, when writing 1984, both for the nightmarish Room 101 and the almost equally awful canteen at the Ministry of Truth.
Bush House was used by many celebrities, including Sir Paul McCartney, for his broadcasts to Russia.
For most English-language shortwave listeners (during the Cold War and after), Bush House has always been the unquestioned BBC World Service home. Although the Bush House complex was not designed for international broadcasting (like Broadcast House that RNZI uses in Wellington)—it nevertheless is perceived by many broadcasting professionals as being the stereotypical international broadcasting centre. With BBC World Service no longer at Bush House, a new era in international broadcasting has started for the UK. However, this new era begins with a new building that was built some 50 years distant from the Blitz (the event that led to Bush House's use).
Read more about this topic: Bush House
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