Research from: https://history.blog.gov.uk/2014/06/27/keep-calm-and-carry-on-the-compromise-behind-the-slogan/
https://www.london.ac.uk/about/history/history-senate-house/story-behind-keep-calm-carry
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https://www.london.ac.uk/about/history/history-senate-house/story-behind-keep-calm-carry
Want extra content and my general, unimportant, life updates as an American in the UK straight to your inbox? Join the free Girl Gone London newsletter here: https://sendfox.com/lp/366d52
Some people have asked for a small way to say "thanks" if they've found my information helpful or entertaining. There's no need, but if that's you, I have a little "buy me a coffee" option here (okay, or tea, we're in the UK, after all): https://www.buymeacoffee.com/girlgonelondon
Check out the Girl Gone London book on Amazon, a humorous and practical guide to life in the UK as an expat: https://amzn.to/3iobJGt
// CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE: https://girlgonelondon.com/how-to-move-to-the-uk-from-america-2/
// WHO AM I
Hi! I’m Kalyn, an American expat in the UK, and I’m super glad you’re here (yes, I’ve lived in the UK for almost 10 years and the word “super” is still very much part of my vocabulary!) Whether you’re thinking about moving to the UK or just visiting, I have plenty of information and other resources for you below, so make sure to find your section and let me help you make the most of your trip or your move to the always-sunny, beautiful, and historic UK (okay, two of those things are true, but if you squint really hard at the lights when the London Underground is coming into station, you can kind of pretend it’s the sun?)
----MOVING TO THE UK (OR DREAMING OF IT?----
//GIRL GONE LONDON BOOK
Check out the Girl Gone London book on Amazon (https://amzn.to/3iobJGt), a humorous guide to life in the UK that every future expat needs to read.
//MOVING TO THE UK COURSE
If you want more practical tips, my comprehensive course on moving to the UK is the perfect gift to yourself to save hours and hours of time and tons of headaches. Use code “Friend” for $20 off and check out everything that’s included here: https://courses.girlgonelondon.com/courses/the-ultimate-guide-to-moving-to-the-uk/
VISITING THE UK?
//ULTIMATE LONDON’S VISITOR’S GUIDE
This is the most all-inclusive, up-to-date visitor’s guide (that’s always kept up to date, thanks to be virtual, no more trying to go to a restaurant that no longer exists! Your London trip is no small cost, so make sure you are truly ready and making the most of it with the guide here: https://courses.girlgonelondon.com/courses/the-ultimate-guide-to-london-for-visitors/
CONTACT:
For all subscribers and partnership enquiries, please use kalyn@girlgonelondon.com
And make sure you subscribe to my channel!
DISCLAIMER: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. In addition, I participate in several other affiliate programs that allow me to earn while I recommend products that I use and love.
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Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00In 1939, deep in the heart of the secretive Ministry of Information, a famous British slogan was being born.
00:07However, if you were to ask anyone if they knew about it up until about the year 2000, they'd probably say, no, never heard of it.
00:15In this video, we're unveiling the truth behind the keep calm and carry on wartime slogan,
00:21including why officials were so worried that it would offend the British people, what happened to the 2.45 million posters that were never used,
00:31and how its inclusion in a Christmas list in the 21st century made it rise in popularity.
00:37You've heard it before, keep calm and carry on.
00:40It's on basically everything you can find in UK gift shops, mugs, posters, calendars, blankets, key rings.
00:48People have used the phrase and transformed it into ridiculous iterations like, keep calm and eat a custard cream, keep calm, I'm the boss, and keep calm and drink wine.
00:59But before we dig into the history, let's talk about how this modern craze came to be.
01:04One of these keep calm and carry on posters, which had been essentially hidden from public view and not widely known about until the 21st century, was found in a bookshop in 2000.
01:15The owners liked it, framed it, put it on the wall, and suddenly it starts to gain a bit of interest.
01:21They eventually made copies and sold the prints, and with the help of the Guardian in 2005, who added one of these posters to their Christmas ideas list, it took off.
01:31And I think the surprising thing for most people is that this craze wasn't a resurgence.
01:36It was the first time that most people in the UK had even seen the slogan, let alone people around the world.
01:42Now the slogan does go back to 1939, and it was actually part of a series.
01:46There were three home publicity campaign posters, and they were designed to inspire and rally the British public at home for the war effort.
01:55The other two slogans read, your courage, your cheerfulness, your resolution will bring us victory, and freedom is in peril.
02:04Defend it with all your might.
02:06The goal behind these posters was to attract attention, obviously, be universally appealing to most Brits, and reflect a calming influence, while also inspiring the potential need for action.
02:18Simplicity was key here.
02:21Each poster was predominantly text-based, and that was in part due to budget constraints, but also to allow for a flexible design.
02:28An earlier draft of the Keep Calm one actually said, keep calm, don't panic.
02:34The choice of red and white wasn't random either.
02:36Very few things typically are when it comes to government posters, propaganda, publicity campaigns.
02:42The colors were carefully selected to produce a psychological reaction.
02:46Red symbolized an urgency and a strength, while the white provided a contrast that ensured clarity and readability.
02:54Now, a staggering 2.45 million copies of the Keep Calm and Carry On posters were printed after receiving official approval.
03:03However, they were meant to be kept in reserve, and only displayed in the event of a severe bombing or significant attacks on British soil.
03:11And they were never widely distributed.
03:13Behind the scenes, officials actually argued over the effectiveness of the slogan.
03:17Some believed it was too bland, while others thought it implied that the British public was panicking, something that could be seen as condescending or patronizing rather than reassuring.
03:28Because of these concerns, resources were directed to promoting the Your Courage poster instead.
03:34Just four weeks later, the entire campaign was scrapped anyway.
03:38And by 1940, there was a serious paper shortage, which, funnily enough, I've talked about in another video.
03:44Link below.
03:45And this led to the majority of these posters being pulped and recycled.
03:50Even the posters that were displayed weren't part of the official campaign.
03:54A few unauthorized ones did surface over the years, including one in a lab in Bedfordshire and another hung in a shop in Leeds, but these were very few and far between.
04:04And as I mentioned, for decades, the slogan remained pretty unknown until its fateful discovery in 2000.
04:11Once it gained traction, it spread like wildfire, and it still invokes what the original creators did intend, which is this sense of calm, the British stiff upper lip, and resilience in the face of adversity.
04:23It's just that it wasn't really used in British wartime.
04:26Now, as with anything widely recognized, parodies and adaptions soon followed in the 21st century.
04:32Some notable ones include Now Panic and Freak Out, which is a humorous inversion of the original slogan, Get Excited and Make Things, a motivational twist encouraging creativity.
04:43McFly had an entire tour that they called the Keep Calm and Play Louder Tour.
04:48You have the Don't Keep Calm, Get Angry and Save Lewisham A&E, which was a protest slogan used against NHS budget cuts.
04:58And during the pandemic, Washington, D.C., even released one that said Keep Calm and Wash Your Hands, which amusingly features the British crown despite being a U.S.
05:07government initiative.
05:09So despite its rocky start, the Keep Calm and Carry On slogan has become one of the most enduring symbols of British resilience.
05:16Ironically, its success came not through government propaganda, but through an accidental discovery and a collective cultural embrace decades later.
05:25It reminds us of the power of words, the unpredictability of history, and the way simple messages can take on new meanings in different eras.
05:33Whether it's wartime morale, modern motivation, or a joke about biscuits, this once forgotten phrase continues to carry on.
05:41And honestly, that's a pretty fitting legacy.
05:43That brings us to the end of this video.
05:45Comment below and let me know your thoughts.
05:47As always, I'll see you next time.