Editing The War Game (section)

==Synopsis==
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The film begins by describing Britain's nuclear deterrence policy of threatening would-be aggressors with devastation from the [[Royal Air Force]]'s nuclear-armed [[V bomber]]s. Due to the number of [[counterforce|V bomber bases]] (particularly in a crisis situation that would see them dispersed throughout Britain), as well as [[Countervalue|major civilian targets]] in cities, Britain is described as having more potential nuclear weapon targets per acre than any other country.

On 15 September, [[United States|American]] forces in [[South Vietnam]] are authorised to use [[tactical nuclear weapon]]s in response to an ongoing [[China|Chinese]] invasion. The [[Soviet Union]] and [[East Germany]] threaten to invade [[West Berlin]] if America does not change course. The next day, the British government declares a state of emergency and transfers responsibility for Britain's day-to-day running to a body of [[Regional seat of government|regional commissioners]]. The first task of newly established emergency committees is the mass evacuation of children, mothers, and the infirm to various safe areas including [[Kent]]. Under threat of imprisonment, homeowners accommodate the evacuees, while unoccupied properties are requisitioned by the government. Rationing is implemented, booklets on how to prepare for nuclear attack are distributed, and [[Four-minute warning|emergency sirens]] are tested, with these being estimated to provide around three minutes' warning until impact, or under thirty seconds in the case of [[Submarine-launched ballistic missile|submarine attack]]. There are no government-built shelters, while efforts to build private ones are soon frustrated by a shortage of construction supplies.

On 18 September, the Soviets and East Germans invade West Berlin as previously threatened. NATO launches a counterattack, that is quickly overrun, resulting in the use of American [[tactical nuclear weapon]]s. The Soviets immediately launch their own nuclear weapons at strategic targets, as their above-ground [[Liquid-propellant rocket|liquid-fuelled]] missiles are highly vulnerable to a NATO first strike.

In Kent, a one-[[TNT equivalent|megaton]] warhead [[air burst]] six miles from [[Canterbury]] devastates the city and its surrounding areas. At one house, a defence worker and a boy in the yard are struck by the heat wave, causing their eyeballs to melt. Furniture inside the house is ignited, and the building is then demolished by the [[Effects_of_nuclear_explosions#Blast_damage|shockwave]]. At another house, another boy suffers [[flash blindness]] as a consequence of looking directly at an explosion 27 miles away; his father carries him inside, and hides with the rest of his family under a table as the house is shaken by the distant shockwaves of successive explosions. In [[Rochester, Kent|Rochester]], an airburst causes a [[firestorm]] which sets the town ablaze. Meanwhile, British V bombers enter Soviet airspace to [[Mutual assured destruction|inflict similar devastation]].

The attack overwhelms Kent's emergency services, with each surviving doctor being faced with at least 350 casualties. The worst-affected victims are left to die alone or shot by police as a form of [[mercy killing]]. Cases of [[Post-traumatic stress disorder|PTSD]] occur among the survivors of the attacks. Dead bodies are disposed of by being burned; to prevent relatives from interfering, destroyed areas are sealed off, and police are [[Police use of firearms in the United Kingdom|routinely armed]]. [[Radiation sickness]] is rampant, while essential supplies and utilities are non-existent or severely limited.

The majority of Britain's remaining food supplies are reserved for those maintaining law and order, causing riots to break out over access to food and other resources. The riots soon turn into armed skirmishes between the authorities and desperate civilians; the latter are shown seizing a truck carrying a shipment of weapons and a food [[warehouse]]. Elsewhere, individuals convicted of causing civil disturbance or obstructing government officers are executed by police [[firing squad]]s, with the father of the blinded boy from earlier in the film being among those shot. Due to food shortages, [[scurvy]] re-emerges as a consequence of a lack of easily-available [[vitamin C]].

On [[Christmas Day]] in a [[Dover]] refugee facility, children orphaned in the attack are asked what they want to be when they grow up; they either "don't want to be nothing" or simply remain silent. Another child is described as only having seven bedridden years to live before dying from a chronic illness resembling [[leukemia]], while an expectant mother who was exposed to radiation is unsure if she will suffer [[stillbirth]]. In closing, the real-world press is described as saying nothing about the dangers of nuclear weaponry.