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Witness History

Creating Cluedo

Witness History

BBC

Personal Journals, Society & Culture, History

4.51.6K Ratings

🗓️ 14 January 2026

⏱️ 11 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Air raids and blackouts during World War Two helped Anthony Pratt invent one of the most popular family board games: Cluedo.

But the musician's real inspiration came from his job in the 1930s, playing piano at murder mystery parties in English country houses and hotels.

Once war broke out, Anthony killed time at home in Birmingham by developing rules for his new 'whodunnit' game. While he created the colourful characters and weapons, his wife Elva drew up the board, based on the rooms of a Tudor mansion.

The first version was launched in 1949, and since then more than 150 million copies have been sold around the world, including in the US where it’s known as Clue.

Anthony and Elva's daughter Marcia Lewis tells Jane Wilkinson about how her parent's idea became a global hit.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.

For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

Recent episodes explore everything from the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue.

We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher.

You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: Cluedo box, 1949. Credit: Family photo)

Transcript

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0:00.0

BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts.

0:07.0

Hello, I'm Greg Jenner, and good news,

0:09.5

Your Dead to Me, is back for a new series.

0:11.6

Here we go.

0:12.1

Yes, we'll explore Emperor Nero's notorious reign with Professor Marybeard and Patton Oswald.

0:16.9

I would not want my daughter having the remote control, not alone an empire.

0:21.0

We'll dissect the decadent life of Philippe Duke-Dolion with Tom Allen.

0:24.8

I've often tried to pretend I'm an aristocrat and being very quickly knocked down.

0:29.1

And there'll be so much more with comedians like Olga Koch, Mike Mosniak and Rihelina.

0:33.0

I'm excited.

0:33.7

You're dead to me.

0:34.5

The comedy podcast that takes history seriously.

0:37.0

Listen first on BBC Sounds.

0:43.3

Hello and welcome to witness history from the BBC World Service with me, Jane Wilkinson.

0:49.1

And if you haven't heard us before, thanks for dropping by. We're the podcast that brings history to life in just nine minutes through the eyes of one key witness and lots of truly amazing news archive.

1:01.5

So if you enjoy it, please do subscribe wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

1:07.8

And now settle back for a classic who-done-it

1:11.0

about how one of the most popular board games was invented during World War II.

1:16.6

We are gathered here because a murder has been committed.

1:21.9

But it wasn't by Colonel Mustard in the library with the candlestick.

1:27.8

Instead, let's turn detective for a visit to a 1930s English country house

1:33.5

where a group of partygoers have gathered.

...

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