second world war

ww2

Nightingales and Nitroglycerine: The Secret War of Eric Maschwitz

Apr 30, 2026

•

6 min read

Nightingales and Nitroglycerine: The Secret War of Eric Maschwitz

How the writer of "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" spent the summer of 1940 touring with a suitcase full of time-bombs and Molotov cocktails.

Matt Eaton

entertainment

+10

Delhi to Calcutta? Imagine London to Danzig

Apr 6, 2026

•

5 min read

Delhi to Calcutta? Imagine London to Danzig

The Growing Importance of British Army Welfare in India and Burma

Matt Eaton

burma

Mar 22, 2026

•

5 min read

"I Accuse Mr Amery"

What About Welfare for The Forgotten Army?

Matt Eaton

ww2

And now for something completely different

Mar 8, 2026

•

9 min read

And now for something completely different

Using the Performing Arts to Fight Fascism

Matt Eaton

entertainment

The Quintessential Englishman: Leslie Howard’s Wartime Crusade and the Mystery of Flight 777 Part 1

Feb 20, 2026

•

5 min read

The Quintessential Englishman: Leslie Howard’s Wartime Crusade and the Mystery of Flight 777 Part 1

Fighting fascism with a monologue, a cardigan, and a pipe

Matt Eaton

Greer Garson

Mrs Miniver: More Effective for Morale than Five Battleships?

Feb 8, 2026

•

4 min read

Mrs Miniver: More Effective for Morale than Five Battleships?

For once, Churchill may not have been exaggerating!

Matt Eaton

british army

Jan 23, 2026

•

4 min read

The Mask of Valour

Dissembling Fear at El Alamein

Matt Eaton

army welfare service

+10

Una birra, per favore. That's yer lot until next month!

Jan 12, 2026

•

5 min read

Una birra, per favore. That's yer lot until next month!

The Second World War's Beer Shortage

Matt Eaton

entertainment

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.2

Dec 26, 2025

•

5 min read

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.2

In which an RAF Erk goes to the ball and puts his foot in it

Matt Eaton

entertainment

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.1

Dec 18, 2025

•

5 min read

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.1

In which Major Plaistowe's villain enjoys a fairy-tale ending

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Dec 5, 2025

•

1 min read

The Show Must Go On

But first, a short intermission...

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Nov 22, 2025

•

5 min read

Too little, too late: Indian Entertainment in the Mediterranean

Or try running a 35mm film on a 16mm projector!

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Nov 9, 2025

•

4 min read

Remembering the Wartime ENSA Troupers

Representing ENSA at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Day

Matt Eaton

war diaries

Oct 31, 2025

•

6 min read

Twice the man, Ten times the war diary

An ode to the war diary of the 5 Battalion Grenadier Guards, January 1944

Matt Eaton

military welfare history

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

Sep 29, 2025

•

6 min read

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

Hospital Welfare & Entertainment

Matt Eaton

army welfare service

+11

Sep 5, 2025

•

6 min read

The Day the Show Almost Stopped

A guided bomb, a birdcage, and the sinking of the S.S. Marnix Van Sint Aldegonde

Matt Eaton

army welfare service

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

Aug 8, 2025

•

7 min read

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

Canadian vs British Organised Troop Entertainment

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Jul 11, 2025

•

7 min read

'Bastard’ Basil: Drury Lane’s Dictator?

“I am afraid that Mr Basil Dean rather tends to trail his coat on occasion.”

Matt Eaton

army welfare service

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Jun 14, 2025

•

5 min read

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Unusually for the Italian Campaign, a story where the British Army distinctly lacked balls

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

Jun 1, 2025

•

4 min read

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

John Hobson's life

Matt Eaton

entertainment

May 18, 2025

•

6 min read

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

Basil Dean, ENSA, and social memory

Matt Eaton

entertainment

May 2, 2025

•

5 min read

Don’t Let’s Be Beastly to the Germans

The portrayal of Germans and Germany in wartime entertainment

Matt Eaton

service entertainment

Ralph Reader: The Gang Show, the Hat Girl, and the Spy

Apr 18, 2025

•

5 min read

Ralph Reader: The Gang Show, the Hat Girl, and the Spy

Every now and then you read historical documents, an anecdote catches your eye and you do a double-take.

Matt Eaton

ww2

The Case of George Formby & Operation Baytown?

Mar 23, 2025

•

4 min read

The Case of George Formby & Operation Baytown?

Cautionary tale about using memoirs or biographies of entertainers

Matt Eaton

cinema

Mar 7, 2025

•

2 min read

Bloody Cheesed and Far From Home

Why I started researching organised entertainment

Matt Eaton

second world war

Nightingales and Nitroglycerine: The Secret War of Eric Maschwitz

Delhi to Calcutta? Imagine London to Danzig

"I Accuse Mr Amery"

And now for something completely different

The Quintessential Englishman: Leslie Howard’s Wartime Crusade and the Mystery of Flight 777 Part 1

Mrs Miniver: More Effective for Morale than Five Battleships?

The Mask of Valour

Una birra, per favore. That's yer lot until next month!

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.2

The Festive Sack was Positively Bulging in Italy, 1944 Pt.1

The Show Must Go On

Too little, too late: Indian Entertainment in the Mediterranean

Remembering the Wartime ENSA Troupers

Twice the man, Ten times the war diary

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

The Day the Show Almost Stopped

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

'Bastard’ Basil: Drury Lane’s Dictator?

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

Don’t Let’s Be Beastly to the Germans

Ralph Reader: The Gang Show, the Hat Girl, and the Spy

The Case of George Formby & Operation Baytown?

Bloody Cheesed and Far From Home

Quick Links

Subscription

Socials