Keeping the home fires burning : entertaining the troops at home and abroad [during the Great War

"Keeping the Home Fires Burning tells the story of how the troops and the general public were kept happy and content during the First World War. Between 1914 and 1918 there was entertainment of the masses for the sole purpose of promotion of the war effort. It was the first time that a concerted effort to raise and sustain morale was ever made by any British government and was a combination of government sponsored ideas and lucky happenstance. It was all picked up and used by the new Propaganda Ministry. The range of activities was wide and varied, from poetry to cinema, from music hall singers and artists to the creation of battlefield heroes. There was postcard humour and deliberate veneration of philanthropists - and war participants - like Woodbine Willie. The theme of Keeping the Home Fires Burning is backed up by 40 illustrations from the time, including participants, posters, battlefield views and so on."..M.F History / Military / World War I Cover 1 Book Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 6 Acknowledgements 7 Introduction 8 Prologue 11 PART I Keep Safe, Keep Believing 16 Chapter 1 To Have and Have Not 17 Chapter 2 Daddy, What Did You Do in the War? 36 PART II No Thin-spread Lines of Bloodied Heroes 58 Chapter 3 Music Halls and Home Entertainment 59 Chapter 4 The Church Has One Foundation 69 PART III Moving Mountains 78 Chapter 5 Is There Really a Price on His Head? 79 Chapter 6 Gathering Lilacs, Keeping the Fires of Home Burning 89 Chapter 7 Woodbine Willie 99 PART IV Keep Smiling Through 110 Chapter 8 Art for the People 111 Plate section 124 Chapter 9 Old Bill 140 Chapter 10 A Canadian Genius 151 Chapter 11 A Touch of Satire 157 PART V Using What We’ve Got 170 Chapter 12 Heroes, Villains and Victims 171 Chapter 13 People’s Poetry 187 Chapter 14 Shoulder Arms, Mr Chaplin? 199 PART VI Shrines for the People 212 Chapter 15 A Forest of Flowers 213 Chapter 16 An End 221 Conclusion 227 Sources 229 Notes 233 Index 238 Back Cover 242 "Keeping the Home Fires Burning tells the story of how the troops and the general public were kept happy and content during the First World War. Between 1914 and 1918 there was entertainment of the masses for the sole purpose of promotion of the war effort. It was the first time that a concerted effort to raise and sustain morale was ever made by any British government and was a combination of government sponsored ideas and lucky happenstance. It was all picked up and used by the new Propaganda Ministry. The range of activities was wide and varied, from poetry to cinema, from music hall singers and artists to the creation of battlefield heroes. There was postcard humour and deliberate veneration of philanthropists - and war participants - like Woodbine Willie. The theme of Keeping the Home Fires Burning is backed up by 40 illustrations from the time"--Publisher's description Covers a much-ignored aspect of the First World War - how both troops and the general public were kept bolstered and entertained during the war.