The winter of 1940-41 was the season of the Blitz. From St Paul's Cathedral to the East End, from the very heart of the capital to the cities of the midlands, throughout the length and breadth of the land the bombs rained down as Germany attempted to bludgeon Britain into submission. As the civilian populations below cowered in their shelters or manned the fire services there could be no doubt that this was an island under siege. Drawing exclusively on the photo archive of "The Mirror" newspaper group this volume brings to life this extraordinary period in British history. Remarkably a number of these images have never seen the light of day before thanks to wartime censors and now 70 years after the fact they reveal for the first time the harsh realities of life and death during the Blitz. Written by Gavin Mortimer, who has previously published "The Longest Night: Voices from the London Blitz (Orion 2005)", this book weaves together these incredible images with newspaper articles, diary entries and first-hand accounts to create a compelling chronological account of Britain's darkest and most difficult period in her long history.