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Poster Spotting on Dr Who

April 23, 2010 By drbexl 2 Comments

17th April 2010: “The Doctor is summoned to Blitz-torn London by Winston Churchill, and the Daleks are waiting for him!” Visit the BBC site.

Unidentifiable posters in the background...

This looks a bit like "Feed the Pigs" in the Background!

Evacuation

Careless Talk Costs Lives

Careless Talk Costs Lives

Interestingly, I didn’t recognise any of the posters, but the above is MOST DEFINITELY not a real wartime poster (here’s one of the real ones), interesting decision by the BBC not to use real posters!

Dalek to Victory

Dalek to Victory

http://imdoctorwho.blogspot.com/2010/04/dalek-victory-poster.html

Keep Calm and Exterminate

Keep Calm and Exterminate

http://lifetheuniverseandcombom.blogspot.com/2010/04/doctor-who-daleks-wwii-keep-calm.html

Filed Under TV Show, poster Tagged With Churchill, Daleks, Dr Who, posters, Victory

Inside Out, North East

March 8, 2010 By drbexl Leave a Comment

Talking to Linda Barker, I appear for about, ooo, 10 seconds, and then again a bit later in the programme! A lot of the information from my PhD also makes its way into the words coming from Linda Barker’s mouth… and there’s a few ways that things have been interpreted that I might take issue with, but that’s the way TV programmes get made! The t-shirt is from Barter Books.

Filed Under TV Show, press cutting Tagged With Barter Books, Inside Out, keep calm and carry on

BBC: Inside Out: Tonight

March 8, 2010 By drbexl 2 Comments

I will probably be one of the last to see it, as I will have to wait for iPlayer, but you can watch on Sky if you have it! Filming was undertaken at the Imperial War Museum about a month ago… it was quite a rush to get there in time, but a novel and enjoyable experience being interviewed by Linda Barker (Changing Rooms fame)

Once Linda had finished interviewing Richard Slocombe (who I must contact!), Curator at the Imperial War Museum, we disappeared into the new “Ministry of Food” exhibition, which would open two days later. We found a set of posters which the Museum had indicated would not cause copyright issues, and took around an hour to pull some footage together. The entire segment is expected to be 9 minutes, so I look forward to my 30 seconds of fame… no I don’t know which bits they’ve used either!

Filed Under TV Show, keep calm and carry on Tagged With BBC, Inside Out, keep calm and carry on

The One Show

March 8, 2010 By drbexl Leave a Comment

I’ve just been chatting to the Researchers from The One Show about “Keep Calm and Carry On”, which they are planning to cover on 29th March.  I had tried pitching to The One Show before, but hadn’t been picked up.  It looks like I won’t actually be on it, as they will be filming at Barter Books (Alnwick is a little far from Winchester, although I really want to go and see the store!), but as usual, I hope that my historical knowledge makes a contribution… and is acknowledged! It will be interesting to see who else they talk to – I know it includes James Aulich, who wrote this great book on War Posters, and was behind the digitisation project at the Imperial War Museum.

Filed Under Barter Books, TV Show, contemporary relevance, keep calm and carry on Tagged With BBC, James Aulich, Press, The One Show

8th March: BBC Inside Out

March 4, 2010 By drbexl 2 Comments

The other week I was filmed for ‘Inside Out North East’, and this will be shown (in the North East) on Monday evening, but will then be available on iPlayer afterwards.  I have had a few questions as to why I am on in the North East when I am based in the South. The 21st century poster story starts in a bookshop in Alnwick… Barter Books…

Filed Under Barter Books, TV Show, contemporary relevance, keep calm and carry on Tagged With BBC, Inside Out, keep calm and carry on

The Ministry of Food (The Imperial War Museum)

February 15, 2010 By drbexl Leave a Comment

A great video from the Imperial War Museum, for the newly launched exhibition “Ministry of Food“.  “During the Second World War, getting the most from your little plot of land was crucial. This film, produced by the Ministry of Agriculture in 1941, explains how to prepare an area of ground for growing your veg, and shows why not having space is simply no excuse.”

The Imperial War Museum can be found on Twitter, YouTube, Flickr and Facebook, so plenty of ways to follow the exhibits.

There’s a great bit of coverage in Culture 24, and I hadn’t realised until we came to the end of filming last Wednesday (for BBC Inside Out North East, interviewed by Linda Barker, don’t know when it’s going to be aired yet), that the exhibition hadn’t yet opened. The Museum has put on a display a number of it’s great Home Front posters, and a number of displays which attempt to “give a sense” of what life was like on the Home Front in the Second World War.

Filed Under Exhibition, Imperial War Museum, TV Show Tagged With Dig for Vitory, Imperial War Museum, Ministry of Food

Inside Out: The BBC

January 28, 2010 By drbexl Leave a Comment

Today I’ve been talking to the team from ‘Inside Out, North East‘ re: a programme they are making about the Keep Calm and Carry On phenomenon. Every time someone contacts me about the story, I find it fascinating that it continues to roll on (even as we’re officially exiting the recession, I believe!), and I’m looking forward to a trip to the Imperial War Museum for some filming.

Filed Under TV Show, contemporary relevance, keep calm and carry on Tagged With BBC, contemporary relevance, Inside Out, keep calm and carry on

Yesterday: Spirit of 1940, Video Links

January 14, 2010 By drbexl 1 Comment

As promised, I’ve been sent a lovely little set of videos… enjoy!

Filed Under TV Show, second world war Tagged With Spirit of the 1940s, Videos, Yesterday

YESTERDAY NEEDS YOU! Experience ‘The Spirit of 1940’ and share your story

January 13, 2010 By drbexl 1 Comment

1940 was a remarkable year in which Britain experienced the blitz, saw the start of food rationing and sent evacuees away from their homes. To commemorate the 70th anniversary of this astounding year, factual channel Yesterday is releasing a selection of TV shows that celebrate the spirit of 1940 during wartime in Britain, and now Yesterday needs you!

Ration Book Britain is coming to your screens on 15 January, and marks the launch of six specially commissioned shows. To celebrate the first show, Yesterday are asking for your help in compiling an online library of stories and memorabilia from WW2.

What are your memories of the Second World War? How did you experience life with rations? Yesterday would love to know, and is inviting you to share your experiences with others by asking for your help in collating memories and stories from times gone by.

Getting involved is easy. You can send us your own stories, pictures or scans from a scrap book. Did you keep photos of your wartime sweetheart that has always stayed with you? Or how about sharing a favourite recipe that your grandma used to make? Were you a child growing up during the war, or perhaps you’re a youngster now and can persuade your grandpa to dig out his medals?

You can send your memories in any format by email and we’ll pick the best to display on the Yesterday website for all to see. You could even record a wartime story on your new iPhone, and submit a sound bite! Getting involved is easy, simply visit www.visityesterday.co.uk or email your stories to your1940story@uktv.co.uk

The first commission from The Spirit of the 1940s begins with Ration Book Britain, a brand new, one hour special that begins on 15 January 2010 at 5pm. This particular show will commemorate the 70th anniversary of the start of food rationing in Britain, with a unique look at this period of austerity in British history and the impact that rationing had on individual lives.

Helping to document 14 years of food rationing is chef and passionate food lover Valentine Warner, who’ll use all his culinary skills to recreate some of the important wartime recipes, while we’ll also hear firsthand memories from the people tasked with keeping Britain fighting fit throughout the WWII.

Tune in to Ration Book Britain exclusively on Yesterday: Sky 537, Virgin 203, Freeview 12 on 15th January 2010 at 5pm. For more information visit www.visityesterday.co.uk

Been promised some exciting videos shortly too, so look out for those!

Filed Under TV Show, second world war Tagged With Rationing, Spirit of the 1940s, UKTV, Yesterday

BBC: Pitching for "The One Show"

August 18, 2009 By drbexl Leave a Comment

Below is an abstract I have submitted to “The One Show” – who knows if it will get picked up or not, they may already have something lined up, but worth an email (or few!)

“September 3rd 2009 marks the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War.

In 2000 a poster was discovered in the bottom of a box of books, bought at auction by a book-seller in Alnwick.  The poster, designed by the Ministry of Information in 1939, was intended to be posted in the event of an invasion.  It was (probably) distributed around the country in the same way that other posters were – to post offices, train stations, etc.  Two other posters in the series “Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution will bring Us Victory” and “Freedom is in Peril, Defend it with all your Might” were posted widely.  But as Britain was never invaded, “Keep Calm and Carry On” was never used.

Until now…!

The poster has had a resurgence, particularly since November 2008, when the credit crunch really hit, with many using it as a mantra to get through their daily lives.  Catching the mood of the nation it has been widely distributed, copied onto mugs, T shirts and student walls.

DR BEX LEWIS

Dr Bex Lewis is an expert on 2nd World War propaganda posters.  Her blog http://ww2poster.wordpress.com/ gets many hits about “Keep Calm and Carry On” and it’s variations (which include “Now Panic and Freak Out!”)

Bex Lewis completed her PhD entitled “The planning, design and reception of British Home Front propaganda posters of the Second World War” in June 2004 (examined by Asa Briggs) at the University of Winchester.  She is currently a Lecturer in History, and Associate Lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Winchester.”

Filed Under TV Show, keep calm and carry on, second world war Tagged With BBC, Press Release, The One Show