British People in Pictures

Professor David Smith has a new research project in the wings and is going to England next summer to get a good start on it.

'THE BRITISH PEOPLE IN PICTURES' : NATIONAL CHARACTER AND PROPAGANDA IN WORLD WAR TWO

The aim of my project is the study of “’the British People in Pictures” (BIP) a series of books conceived to counter Nazi propaganda during the Second World War by providing a comprehensive view of British life in all its aspects when Britain’s independence as a nation was under threat. Between March 1941 and 1950, 113 (BIP) books were published by eminent authors, novelists, journalists, and authorities. These volumes which were limited to 48 pages contained some 4,000 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs, sold at a reasonable cost to the public. The series encompassed wide range of subject areas – History and Achievement, Arts and Craftsmanship, Literature, Education and Religion, Science and Engineering, Social life, Sport, Natural History. Some two million copies were sold primarily to readers in the USA, Latin America and the Empire and Commonwealth. Rather than directed to readers on the Home Front, the publishers saw the series as a means to counteract negative perceptions of Britain, the British Empire and Commonwealth that were held abroad. The editors hoped that the series “will contribute to the better understanding of Great Britain and the British Commonwealth,” as the aim was for individual writers to present all aspects of the British way of life, accomplishments and heritage. However the contributors possessed the editorial freedom to interpret the subject they had chosen as they liked.

The series was originated by Hilda Matheson, a pioneer of radio talks on the BBC in the 1930’s, working on propaganda for the Ministry of Information. After Matheson’s death in 1940, Walter Turner took charge of the project and suggested the titles and enlisted the writers. Turner remained the driving force behind (BIP) until his death in 1946. Collins and Adprint published and produced (BIP). Wofgang Foges and Walter Neurath, both émigrés from Austria, designed the layout of the books.