During the 1960’s, Japan started to enjoy economic growth and political stability. With the success of the 1964 Olympics, Japan entered onto the International stage after the devastation of World War II.
Under these circumstances, Japan opened the door for Japanese to travel abroad by liberalising passports and ending restrictions on foreign currency. The number of Japanese going abroad increased and Japanese immigration to the UK restarted after a long absence during the war.
In the 1960’s and 1970’s, some Japanese came and settled in the UK, such as those who married British spouses, young travellers, expatriate businessmen who decided to remain, and people running small businesses including restaurants and shops catering to Japanese residents, creating a Japanese community.
The “Wasurena-gusa” Project, run by the Japan Association in the UK, records the history of the Japanese community through interviews of those who settled in the UK from 1950 onwards.
We have two edited versions. One is full length (approx. 30 minutes) in Japanese only and a short version (approx. 5 minutes) in both Japanese and English.
Growth of Japanese population in the UK
| Project Organiser: | Japan Association in the UK |
| Chairman: | Chizuko Winter |
| Adviser: | Keiko Itoh |
| IT Consultant: | Izumi Kurosawa |
| Production Leader | Momoko Williams |
| Camera: | Kazuyo Yasuda |
| Editors: | Manami Takeda, Naoko Tamiya, Eriko Takefuji-Lawler |
| Subtitles: | Sumiko Okada, Zuzanna Bendiul, Maria Oliveira, Cristina Carloni, Yisi Yang |
| Proofreading: | Gerard O’Neill |
| Web design: | Tsutomu Ishida |
| Sponsored by: | The Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation, The Japan Society |
| Supported by: | The Embassy of Japan |
