Archive for 2017

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[ecrea] New Publication: Keep Calm and Carry On: The Truth About the Poster

Sun Oct 08 21:40:47 GMT 2017





I am delighted to say that I have a new book published with the Imperial War Museum (non-academic, although it draws upon my PhD research), which gives new insights into the phenomenon that is Keep Calm and Carry On:


The book tells the story of the now infamous *Keep Calm and Carry On* poster, produced by the British government in the Second World War. The poster was part of a series of three (with another produced shortly after) designed to keep morale up on the outbreak of war, when it was expected that the country would be subjected to immediate and sustained bombardment. As noted, in my earlier work, *Keep Calm and Carry On* was merely a footnote to the other two posters in the series ‘Your Courage <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Your_Courage,_Your_Cheerfulness,_Your_Resolution_Will_Bring_Us_Victory.svg>‘, and ‘Freedom is in Peril <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Freedom_Is_In_Peril_Defend_It_With_All_Your_Might.svg>‘ – known as the ‘red posters’, despite the fact that they also came in green and blue! Those two posters, that were displayed almost as soon as the war started attracted negative coverage from the press who were a) threatened by possible censorship b) felt that the government was out of touch with contemporary thinking as to the kind of messages that were appropriate.

This book is divided into 4 sections:

 1. *Posters: A Propaganda Device*, which looks particularly at First
    World War posters
 2. *Maintaining Morale in a State of Total War*, which looks
    particularly at Second World War posters in general
 3. *Creating ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’*, which tells the story of the
    development of *Keep Calm and Carry On*in 1939
 4. *Rediscovery and Legacy of ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’*, which looks at
    the 21st century story of *Keep Calm and Carry On*, after its
    discovery by Barter Books
    <https://www.barterbooks.co.uk/html/giftShopKC.php> in 2001.

Overall, the book seeks to set the story of that well known poster against the wider archival research I did for my PhD in an accessible and interesting way.

http://drbexl.co.uk/2017/10/04/writer-new-publication-keep-calm-carry-truth-behind-poster-i_w_m-keepcalm/


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