Reconstruction of the blitzed cities proceeded slowly. This bomb fell on a London cinema in 1940 and failed to explode; it was defused and removed in 1949. Lost bombs of London Photographers mass to get a picture of the star. After an hour of cutting and cooling, the fuse was finally extracted and the bomb winched out of the 30 foot shaft. For the first time in nine years "Rip Van Winkle" saw the light of day, and a square mile of London breathed again.