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When the Wind Blows (1982) is a graphic novel, by British artist Raymond Briggs, that shows a nuclear missile attack on Britain from the viewpoint of a retired couple, Jim and Hilda Bloggs, who live in Sussex; Briggs used the same characters in his earlier book Gentleman Jim, and they are similar to his parents as he later portrayed them in Ethel and Ernest. It includes references to the government leaflet, Protect and Survive, whose obvious inadequacy in the face of such a catastrophe makes the couple's suffering seem even more poignant.
The book was made into an animated film by director Jimmy Murakami in 1986. The couple's voices are spoken by John Mills and Peggy Ashcroft. The soundtrack consists of songs, many with an anti-nuclear theme, by prominent pop singers and groups, including Roger Waters, Genesis and David Bowie.
There was also a BBC Radio 4 dramatisation in 1983; a stage version, created at around the same time, has been performed several times since.
The title is a quotation from a traditional lullaby:
- Rock-a-bye, baby,
- In the tree top.
- When the wind blows,
- The cradle will rock.
- When the bough breaks,
- The cradle will fall,
- And down will come baby,
- Cradle and all.
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