Post Early this Christmas

Christmas Wishes (1944) is a charming animated film encouraging the British public to post early for Christmas, and a seasonal highlight from the IWM Film archive. Such short films, known as newsreel trailers, were shown with cinema newsreels and are one example of an array of media used by the British Ministry of Information “to help sustain public morale and to stimulate the war effort”.

Explore more wartime newsreel trailers online and available for licensing via IWM Film.

Halas and Batchelor was a British animation company, founded by husband and wife John Halas and Joy Batchelor, to initially create films for the Ministry of Information in the Second World War. Dustbin Parade (1941), about re-cycling materials for munitions, and Filling the Gap (1941), encouraging people to grow vegetables, are two other examples of their animated films.

'TIS THE SEASON: COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS

How Britain Celebrated Christmas in Wartime
Christmas Under Fire: IWM Film

© IWM (Art.IWM PST 16433) Poster issued by the National Savings Committee.


CHRISTMAS HOURS

IWM houses the biggest archive of wartime film in the UK and our collection also includes posters, photographs, oral history recordings and documents. Please contact us for licensing enquiries but make sure you order in time to avoid disappointment!

During the festive period we will be running a limited service from Friday 20 December (image & sound orders only) with licensing operations closed from 25 December until 2 January 2020.