Introduction

Abstract

The articles comprising this volume have been prepared at the invitation of the InterUniversity History Film Consortium for delivery at two conferences held at the Imperial War Museum. With one exception they have been revised or extended in the light of subsequent discussions. The majority of the articles are the work of historians, based upon the record material which has become increasingly available in recent years. They thus represent the perspectives of current historical thinking. By contrast the contributions by Mr Ian Dalrymple and Lady (Helen) Forman, dealing respectively with the Crown Film Unit and the non-theatrical film distribution scheme of the Ministry of Information, are based on the personal experiences of two contemporaries who served, in a distinguished capacity, in the departments which they discuss. Tom Harrisson’s contribution is in a category of its own. He founded and directed Mass-Observation which provided the Ministry of Information with independent assessments of the impact of its film propaganda. His contribution printed here was, however, based on research which he and his assistants carried out 25 years later in the archives of Mass-Observation and which led to his important book on British attitudes during the Blitz.