morale

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

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

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

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

burma

Aug 22, 2025

•

4 min read

Einstein’s Secret Weapon and Italy 1944

Morale, the Censor, and a Bit of Wishful Thinking

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

italian campaign

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

Jul 26, 2025

•

5 min read

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

Bringing much-needed colour and a reminder of home to the troops

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

entertainment

Germaine Sablon & Le Chant des Partisans

Feb 15, 2025

•

2 min read

Germaine Sablon & Le Chant des Partisans

« Ohé, partisans, ouvriers et paysans c'est l'alarme» Hey, partisans, workers and peasants this is the signal!

Matt Eaton

postal service

Jan 31, 2025

•

3 min read

A Letter from Italy, November 1943

Keeping in touch with home

Matt Eaton

ensa

Jan 19, 2025

•

5 min read

Providing a Reason to Fight: ENSA’s The Cathedral Steps, 25th September 1942

“Beneath every history, another history” - Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Nov 29, 2024

•

8 min read

Hollywood vs Ealing: USO vs ENSA

A Brief Comparison of US and UK Entertainment Organisations in the Second World War

Matt Eaton

entertainment

Delivering a Few Hours of Escape to the Troops

Aug 31, 2024

•

3 min read

Delivering a Few Hours of Escape to the Troops

Cinemas and the Armed Forces During the Second World War

Matt Eaton

entertainment

How ENSA Was Fondly Remembered After the War: The Desert Mice (1959)

Aug 24, 2024

•

1 min read

How ENSA Was Fondly Remembered After the War: The Desert Mice (1959)

In my last article I wrote about Virginia Vernon as ENSA’s secret weapon to address muddle and lack of organisation.

Matt Eaton

british army

Jul 28, 2024

•

5 min read

The Way Ahead: Britain in 1944

The relevance of Carol Reed's propaganda film when it was released on 6th June 1944

Matt Eaton

morale

Delhi to Calcutta? Imagine London to Danzig

"I Accuse Mr Amery"

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 Show Must Go On

Too little, too late: Indian Entertainment in the Mediterranean

Remembering the Wartime ENSA Troupers

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

Einstein’s Secret Weapon and Italy 1944

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

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

The Case of George Formby & Operation Baytown?

Bloody Cheesed and Far From Home

Germaine Sablon & Le Chant des Partisans

A Letter from Italy, November 1943

Providing a Reason to Fight: ENSA’s The Cathedral Steps, 25th September 1942

Hollywood vs Ealing: USO vs ENSA

Delivering a Few Hours of Escape to the Troops

How ENSA Was Fondly Remembered After the War: The Desert Mice (1959)

The Way Ahead: Britain in 1944

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