Author: Stephen M. Cullen
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1844683869
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 410
Get Book Here
Book Description
“A fascinating examination of one of the best-known British forces of the Second World War . . . An efficient and increasingly professional military unit.” —History of War What was the Home Guard? Who were the men and women who served in it? And what can be said of their real role and significance once the popular myths have been stripped away? Despite the fame of the Home Guard—of Dad’s Army—the true story of this wartime organization tends to be neglected. The myths obscure the reality. Stephen Cullen’s aim in this thoroughgoing new study is to cut through the misunderstandings in order to reassess the Home Guard and its contribution to Britain’s war effort—and to deepen our understanding of the men and women who were members of it. He sets the Home Guard in the long historical context of domestic defense planning, then focuses on the preparations made before the outbreak of the Second World War. In detail he traces the changing role of the Home Guard during its wartime existence as it adapted to meet the multitude of challenges it faced—from civil defense and intelligence gathering to training for guerrilla warfare. “This enjoyable and well-illustrated book covers the ‘rags to riches’ story of the Home Guard from the 1940 volunteer in civilian clothing, armed with a keepsake from an earlier war, to the fully trained and equipped part-time soldier.” —The Armourer “An interesting and accurate account of a force that was in fact a well drilled, well organised and by wars end, a very professional fighting unit by the time of its stand down in 1944.” —WW2 Connection
Author: Juergen Kamm
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1137552956
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 371
Get Book Here
Book Description
This collection offers an overview of British TV comedies, ranging from the beginnings of sitcoms in the 1950s to the current boom of 'Britcoms'. It provides in-depth analyses of major comedies, systematically addressing their generic properties, filmic history, humour politics and cultural impact.
Author: Christopher Hart
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1910481009
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 188
Get Book Here
Book Description
A collection of original essays from leading academics on the media during and after World War 2. The chapters in this volume address both contemporary and post-war uses of World War 2 - with contributions from television, journalism, cinema, popular music, radio and popular memory studies.
Author: Juliette Pattinson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1350199478
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 233
Get Book Here
Book Description
This book skilfully combines cutting-edge historical research by leading and emerging researchers in the field to investigate the utilization of British humour during the Second World War as well as its legacy in British popular culture. Juliette Pattinson and Linsey Robb bring together case studies that address a variety of situations in which humour was generated, including wartime jokes, films, radio, cartoons and private drawings, as well as post-war recollections, museum exhibitions and television comedy. By adopting an original interpretative framework of various wartime and post-war sites, this books opens up the possibility for a more variegated, richer analysis of Britain's wartime experience and its place thereafter in the cultural imagination. Through the lens of humour, this book promises to add critical nuance to our understanding of the functioning of British wartime society. Covering sources such as The British Cartoon Archive, BBC World War II People's War Archive and The Ministry of Information, and including analysis of the lasting role of comedy in Britain's memories and depictions of the war, the result is a rich addition to existing literature of use to students and scholars studying the cultural history of war.
Author: Malcolm Atkin
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1526745941
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Get Book Here
Book Description
This historical study of the UK’s WWII homeland defense service dispels the propaganda and pop culture myths to reveal its true wartime role. In 1940, Britain formed an armed citizen militia to act as the first line of defense in case of Nazi invasion—an essential, if suicidal, mission intended to buy time for the organization of regular forces. Officially, they were the Home Guard. Later, a British sitcom that ran for nearly a decade in the 60s and 70s dubbed them Dad’s Army. That show contributed to a distorted perception of the Home Guard that persists today. But as Malcolm Atkin reveals in this thought-provoking book, the Home Guard’s image was manipulated from its earliest days. Sifting through official documents and contemporary histories, as well as stories, artwork and poetry of the era, and comparing these with postwar films and histories, Atkin explores how the myths of the Home Guard arose and were exploited. He also shows how the strong sense of gallows-humor amongst its volunteers—which fits in with a long tradition of self-deprecating humor in the British army—was taken out of context and became the basis of the TV series. To the Last Man strips back the myths, analyzing how the modern perception has evolved. The result is a new, gritty, and sometimes shocking appreciation of the role that the Home Guard was expected to play in the Second World War.
Author: Rodney Foster
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0670919829
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 511
Get Book Here
Book Description
Colonel Rodney Foster, who retired to Hythe in the south of England after a military career in British India, joined the Home Guard in 1940 and kept a diary every day - a highly illegal act at the time - and in it meticulously chronicled his service in the real Dad's Army.
Author: Juliette Pattinson
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 1526106140
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 277
Get Book Here
Book Description
Men in reserve focuses on working class civilian men who, as a result of working in reserved occupations, were exempt from enlistment in the armed forces. It uses fifty six newly conducted oral history interviews as well as autobiographies, visual sources and existing archived interviews to explore how this group articulated their wartime experiences and how they positioned themselves in relation to the hegemonic discourse of military masculinity. It considers the range of masculine identities circulating amongst civilian male workers during the war and investigates the extent to which reserved workers draw upon these identities when recalling their wartime selves. It argues that the Second World War was capable of challenging civilian masculinities, positioning the civilian man below that of the 'soldier hero' while, simultaneously, reinforcing them by bolstering the capacity to provide and to earn high wages, frequently in risky and dangerous work, all which were key markers of masculinity.
Author: Robin Wichard
Publisher: Pen and Sword Military
ISBN: 1399018132
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 351
Get Book Here
Book Description
The 1940s remains an iconic period in world history and retains a fascination for so many. Re-enacting the 40s is becoming increasingly popular but there is little available information explaining how to start in the hobby. This book is the first to offer enthusiasts of the 40s a way to advance their interest whether it be military or civilian. Each chapter deals with a different aspect of re-enacting from civilian roles (including children) to military roles with many different potential impressions explored for each area. Each chapter is lavishly illustrated with many previously unseen color photographs of contemporary re-enactors and events. There are further chapters introducing those people who portray wartime political and military leaders as well as those who bring back to life some of the most iconic musicians and performers of the period. For those choosing to enter the hobby through ownership of a civilian or military vehicle, that is also covered with many examples of some of the most well-known vehicles. Each chapter offers a brief contextual history with detailed notes on where to obtain uniform and equipment, some of the best groups to join as well as links to related sites and recommendations for wider reading. No book can cover every single possible role but this offers an excellent starting point for further research and involvement while stressing the need to always remain respectful of those we seek to commemorate.
Author: Gabriel Moshenska
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473822300
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 162
Get Book Here
Book Description
The Second World War transformed British society. Men, women and children inhabited the war in every area of their lives, from their clothing and food to schools, workplaces and wartime service. This transformation affected the landscapes, towns and cities as factories turned to war work, beaches were prepared as battlefields and agricultural land became airfields and army camps. Some of these changes were violent: houses were blasted into bombsites, burning aircraft tumbled out of the sky and the seas around Britain became a graveyard for sunken ships. Many physical signs of the war have survived a vast array of sites and artefacts that archaeologists can explore - and Gabriel Moshenskas new book is an essential introduction to them. He shows how archaeology can bring the ruins, relics and historic sites of the war to life, especially when it is combined with interviews and archival research in order to build up a clear picture of Britain and its people during the conflict. His work provides for the first time a broad and inclusive overview of the main themes of Second World War archaeology and a guide to many of the different types of sites in Britain. It will open up the subject for readers who have a general interest in the war and it will be necessary reading and reference for those who are already fascinated by wartime archaeology - they will find something new and unexpected within the wide range of sites featured in the book.
Author: Stephen Cullen
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1848842694
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 257
Get Book Here
Book Description
What was the Home Guard? Who were the men and women who served in it? And what can be said of their real role and significance once the popular myths have been stripped away? Despite the fame of the Home Guard of Dads Army the true story of this wartime organization tends to be neglected. The myths obscure the reality. Stephen Cullens aim in this thoroughgoing new study is to cut through the misunderstandings in order to reassess the Home Guard and its contribution to Britains war effort and to deepen our understanding of the men and women who were members of it. He sets the Home Guard in the long historical context of domestic defense planning, then focuses on the preparations made before the outbreak of the Second World War. In detail he traces the changing role of the Home Guard during its wartime existence as it adapted to meet the multitude of challenges it faced from civil defense and intelligence gathering to training for guerrilla warfare. Using vivid eyewitness testimony and oral history, he takes a grassroots look at the men - and women from all ages and social backgrounds who made up this national defense force. The equipment, uniforms, weapons and vehicles they used and the field defenses they manned are described as their role developed over the course of the war. He also examines the evolution of popular views of the Home Guard from wartime days to the present the notion of the Peoples Army, the thinking of early Home Guard commentators like George Orwell, and the writings of more recent historians who have sought to explain an organization that retains such an extraordinary hold on the popular imagination.
