of Truly Great British Innovation
Alan Turing, a brilliant British mathematician and cryptographer, played a vital role in World War II. His work on the Enigma machine and the development of the "Bombe" machine significantly shortened the war and potentially saved millions of lives.
Sir Frank Whittle, a Royal Air Force (RAF) engineer, credited with inventing the jet engine. His work on the jet engine significantly impacted World War II, leading to the first flight of a British jet aircraft, the Gloster E.28/39, in May 1941.
Radar stations, like this one at Poling, West Sussex, were built by the RAF during the Second World War to detect and track enemy aircraft.
The NHS Nightingale Hospital London was a temporary hospital established at the ExCeL London convention center and was rapidly planned and constructed, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Churchill's innovative idea of Mulberry Harbours - essentially artificial ports - played a key role in the success of D-Day.
“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few” “It is easier to take risks when the results of not doing so are really serious,” she concluded. Mrs Spence agreed, although she cautioned that there often needs to be a collective ‘will’ in order to encourage innovation to happen on a truly grand scale: “Whether war or crisis, entrepreneurial freedom to solve the gritty issues requires collaboration and cooperation between scientists, academics, innovators, businesses, the professional users and politicians to be successful,” she said. “Great Britain is brilliant at coming together in crisis to ‘win the war’ against whatever enemy.”
existed in our area, were re-purposed to focus on essential innovation and design of armaments, shipping, submarines and aircraft,” she said. “That innovation not only related to ‘things’ but to ways of working, including bringing to the fore the role of women in those industries.” Ms Winskell, was also keen to highlight how British innovation was put to good use, not just during the war, but in the difficult years that followed victory over Nazi Germany. “After six years of war, factories, businesses, schools, pubs and whole streets and therefore homes, were destroyed. The resilience of the North East came to the fore [and] innovation was necessary to quickly re-build [so] prefab housing sprang up, built by redeployed shipyard workers.” So, are we as innovative as we once were? Is innovation really within our DNA as Britons? HM Lord-Lieutenant of Tyne and Wear is in no doubt: “This innovative spirit continues into the present day, with traditional family skills in manufacturing and engineering developing and
innovating in new industries – most notably renewable energies such as wind power here in Tyne and Wear,” she noted proudly. “Many of those businesses, so strong in the war, remain so today,” she added. For 2025 King’s Award winner Sophie Costello, CEO of Costello Medical, it was the way the nation reacted to the Covid-19 pandemic that convinced her British innovation remains as strong as ever - though it often takes a significant catalyst to fully unleash it: “We tend to see the greatest innovation and entrepreneurship when we are facing our biggest challenges and when we are all pulling in exactly the same direction against a common ‘enemy’,” she explained. “The most tangible example was when we had to adapt to Covid – the whole company came together to deal with the various challenges and in a much more efficient, collaborative and innovative way than we see in other scenarios.” “We were fully united, saw that we had to adapt quickly and so pulled together to do it.
King’s Awards Magazine 2025
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