Britain | Atomic number

Britain’s nuclear-test veterans want compensation

Other countries have accepted the argument for redress

Witnesses to the second test of Britain's Hydrogen bomb. 31st May 1957
Photograph: Mirrorpix

First came a flash that lit “the sky on fire”. Then Gordon Coggon saw the bones in his hands and blood pumping through his veins, as if he were looking at an X-ray. Next he felt an intense heat, like someone was “pushing a fire through his belly”. Around him men were shouting for their mums. He soon turned to look at the dark red, blue and green mass before him. The mushroom cloud “was a very awesome sight. But frightening at the same time.”

Explore more

This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Atomic number”

From the September 21st 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

Someone with their eyes blindfolded

Are British voters as clueless as Labour’s intelligentsia thinks? 

How the idea of false consciousness conquered the governing party

A nurse attending to a pateient behind curtains, the light coming through the blinds

Blighty newsletter: Starmer’s silence puts the assisted-dying bill at risk


The best British companies to work for to get ahead

A new ranking of firms by pay, promotions and hiring practices


How the best British employers find and promote their staff

No degree? Some employers care much less than others

A tiny island fights the scourge of plastic on the beach

A Northern Irish experiment in recycling

A sticking-plaster policy for Britain’s strained courts

Magistrates get more power. Will they get punch-drunk on it?