![]() ![]() According to design expert Stephen Bayley, founder of London’s Design Museum, it worked: “In an unlikely wartime victory, the Ministry of Information achieved an ironic detachment and a stylish stoicism beyond the reach of advertising professionals of the day,” he said in an email. Waterfield and a graphic design by illustrator Ernest Wallcousins. ![]() The sleek result was a collaboration between different civil servants, with words from speechwriter A.P. The Ministry of Information, the wartime institution which commissioned the design, laid down some simple ground rules: the design had to stand out from posters issued by other departments, it had to use a “special and handsome type” and “bear a distinctive uniform device” making it “difficult or impossible for the enemy to print reproductions” – which is ironic given the ultimate fate of the poster. Rare color photos cast new light on World War II Defend it with all your might.” The public’s reaction wasn’t great, and by the time the blitz started, it was decided that the third poster had the wrong kind of message: “There was a fear that morale would fall apart, but it turned out that people didn’t need to be told to keep their chins up – they just wanted to be told what to do,” said Lewis. The other two posters carried the not quite so catchy “Your courage, your cheerfulness, your resolution will bring us victory,” and “Freedom is in peril. It was created in 1939 as part of a series of three posters, and although 2.5 million copies were printed, they were never actually used: “While the other two were put up as soon as they came off the printer, this one was held back in expectation of bombardments or an invasion,” said the author of a new book titled “Keep calm and carry on: The truth behind the poster” Bex Lewis during a phone interview. Peter 'Always laugh when you can.Keep calm and carry on: a quintessentially British phrase that has been exported and imprinted the world over.īut before becoming a viral meme, this remnant of World War II was first overlooked and then forgotten for over 60 years. Truman 'An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today' Laurence J. 'A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining and wants it back the minute it begins to rain' Mark Twain 'It's a recession when your neighbor loses his job it's a depression when you lose your own' Harry S. Funny, wise and stirring - it is a perfect source of strength to get us all through the coming months. ![]() The book is packed full of similarly motivational and inspirational quotes, proverbs, mantras and wry truths to help us through the recession, from such wits as Churchill, Disraeli and George Bernard Shaw. Gordon Brown had one up in 10 Downing Street and James May wears a Keep Calm T-shirt on the telly - it is suddenly everywhere. Though it never saw the light of day in 1939 (it was only supposed to go up if Britain was invaded), it has suddenly struck a chord in our current difficult times, now we are in need of a stiff upper lip and optimistic energy once again. Keep Calm and Carry On was a World War 2 government poster discovered in a dusty box nine years ago. ![]()
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