Skip to main content

1940s Collection

Background image1940s Collection: Nude by David Wright

Nude by David Wright
Erotic painting by David Wright, best known for his pin ups, showing a nude woman from an unusual angle, with her legs and bottom in the light, and her back in the shadows. Date: c.1948

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- What are you doing about Education?

WW2 Poster -- What are you doing about Education?
What are YOU doing about EDUCATION Army Education Poster, by Sgt H F (Fred) Darking (1911-1999), Royal Engineers. 1945

Background image1940s Collection: Design for textile with trees and shrubs

Design for textile with trees and shrubs. Charcoal on detail paper. Silver Studio. 1943

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Formation Signs

WW2 Poster -- Formation Signs
Formation signs, dated 8 May 1945

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Join the ATS

WW2 Poster -- Join the ATS
Fill his place in jobs like these Join the ATS. Colour photolithograph recruitment poster, artist unknown, published by HMSO. Showing a cook, a clerk, a typist and a driver. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- British tanks in action

WW2 Poster -- British tanks in action
British tanks hurled Italy out of Abyssinia, and in Libya completely wrecked Axis plans of conquest. Colour photolithograph. Associated with the Royal Armoured Corps. 1942

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Flies Foul Food

WW2 Poster -- Flies Foul Food
Flies Foul Food. Your health depends on wholesome food - keep it covered from flies! Colour lithograph poster after 2nd Lt Stacey Hopper

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Smash Em Up

WW2 Poster -- Smash Em Up
Smash em up, but theirs not ours. Colour lithograph after Starr. Tank recognition poster, showing the easily recognisable differences between British and German tanks. 1941

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Danger, Don t Touch

WW2 Poster -- Danger, Don t Touch
Danger, Don t Touch. Poster signed top left, A. Games, published by HMSO, London

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Your Release can be delayed with VD

WW2 Poster -- Your Release can be delayed with VD
Your Release can be delayed with VD! Colour lithograph, British Army anti-venereal disease medical information poster, after 2nd Lieutenant Stacey Hopper

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Army Officer and other badges

WW2 Poster -- Army Officer and other badges
Distinctive Badges of Rank of Officers in the Army, showing corresponding ranks in Royal Navy, Army, & Royal Air Force. Colour lithograph published by Gale and Polden Limited, Aldershot

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- be discreet

WW2 Poster -- be discreet
You may be a walking RAF - but don t let everyone know it! Be discreet! Colour lithograph by Sgt Norman Tiger Harrison, Royal Corps of Signals, India

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Keep mum, shes not so dumb

WW2 Poster -- Keep mum, shes not so dumb

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Quick! Your binoculars

WW2 Poster -- Quick! Your binoculars
Quick! Your binoculars. Supply poster, lithograph. Put your binoculars on Active Service Now! 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ENSA Entertainments, Swing Vogue

WW2 Poster -- ENSA Entertainments, Swing Vogue
Photolithograph poster inscribed NaFI presents ENSA Entertainments for HM Forces. Its modern, its new, its bright, its Swing Vogue

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Typhus, How Is It Spread?

WW2 Poster -- Typhus, How Is It Spread?
Information poster on typhus and how it is spread. Colour lithograph, British Army anti-typhus medical information poster, after 2nd Lieutenant Stacey Hopper

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Swat It

WW2 Poster -- Swat It
Swat It! Flies breed in hundreds at a time. Each one you kill means the end of hundreds yet unhatched! Colour lithograph poster after 2nd Lt Stacey Hopper, published 1944

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Your Friends Are Needed Now

WW2 Poster -- Your Friends Are Needed Now
Your Friends Are Needed Now. Urge Them To Join The ATS. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by Frank Newbould, published by HMSO

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ATS Eyes Of The Guns

WW2 Poster -- ATS Eyes Of The Guns
ATS Eyes Of The Guns. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by Beverley Pick, published by HMSO. Showing women helping with anti-aircraft defence. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- You are wanted too! Join the ATS

WW2 Poster -- You are wanted too! Join the ATS
You Are Wanted Too! Join The ATS. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by unknown artist, published by HMSO

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Let Us Go Forward Together

WW2 Poster -- Let Us Go Forward Together
Let Us Go Forward Together. Colour photolithograph poster, with a picture of Winston Churchill in coat and hat, with British tanks and bombers behind him. 1939-1945

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Mightier Yet

WW2 Poster -- Mightier Yet
Mightier Yet! Britains Mechanised Army grows stronger every day. Recruitment poster produced by HMSO, printed by Greycaine Limited, showing Vickers Mark 2 medium tanks. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Malaria Strikes the Unprotected

WW2 Poster -- Malaria Strikes the Unprotected
Malaria Strikes the Unprotected, Darkness brings Danger, Be Prepared. Colour photolithograph poster published by the Times of India Press, Bombay, warning against malaria

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Buy Savings Certificates

WW2 Poster -- Buy Savings Certificates
Back them up! Buy Savings Certificates. Photolithograph poster, published by the National Savings Committee. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ATS recruitment poster

WW2 Poster -- ATS recruitment poster
ATS recruitment poster. Every member of the ATS learns a job that will help her to earn her living in the post-war world. Auxiliary Territorial Service

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Mosquitoes Mean Malaria

WW2 Poster -- Mosquitoes Mean Malaria
Of tanks & guns there is no need, said Adolf to Benito, Just wait till they begin to breed, And leave it to Mosquito! Mosquitoes Mean Malaria

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- the ATS wants Cooks

WW2 Poster -- the ATS wants Cooks
The ATS wants Cooks. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph, artist unknown, published by HMSO

Background image1940s Collection: Design for Printed Textile in brown and beige

Design for Printed Textile in brown and beige. Watercolour on copy paper. Silver Studio. 1941

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Don t Waver, Help Wavell

WW2 Poster -- Don t Waver, Help Wavell
Dont Waver, Help Wavell. En---ds War Weapons Week, 17-24 May 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Be Prepared

WW2 Poster -- Be Prepared
A Story and a Warning, .Darkness brings Danger, Be Prepared. Colour photolithograph poster, published by The Times of India Press, Bombay

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Tablet day

WW2 Poster -- Tablet day
Tablet day! Colour lithograph poster after 2nd Lt Stacey Hopper. Medical related poster for British soldiers on active service in Italy

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- This Is The Year

WW2 Poster -- This Is The Year
This Is The Year! Its Up To Us To Let Em Have It! Colour photolithograph after Clive Upton. 1944

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 poster, activities of 52 (Lowland) Division

WW2 poster, activities of 52 (Lowland) Division
Screen-print poster, published circa 1950, showing the activities of the 52nd Lowland Division during the Second World War, with a map of Northern Europe, and unit badges along the top and bottom

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ATS Carry The Messages

WW2 Poster -- ATS Carry The Messages
ATS Carry The Messages. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by Beverley Pick, published by HMSO. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster - Is Your Journey Really Necessary?

WW2 Poster - Is Your Journey Really Necessary?
Is Your Journey Really Necessary? Colour photocopy of a poster, issued by and published for the Railway Executive Committee. Signed lower right, Bert Tyomps

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Smash Japanese Aggression

WW2 Poster -- Smash Japanese Aggression
Smash Japanese Aggression. Propaganda poster, colour lithograph, showing the Gloucester Regiment in action. 1945

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- National Savings

WW2 Poster -- National Savings
The Most You Can Save Is The Least They Deserve. Coloured photolithograph poster after Elgar. Published by the National Savings Committee and His Majestys Stationery Office

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Map of the British Army

WW2 Poster -- Map of the British Army
A Map of the British Army with Battle Honours, Military Achievements and Regimental Badges, first published in 1944 by HM Forces Savings Committee

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ATS recruitment

WW2 Poster -- ATS recruitment
Enquire about service in the ATS at... Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph, artist unknown, published by HMSO. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Women of Britain Come Forward Now

WW2 Poster -- Women of Britain Come Forward Now
Women of Britain -- These scientific instruments demand nimble fingers and quick brains. Come Forward Now. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- ATS At The Wheel

WW2 Poster -- ATS At The Wheel
ATS At The Wheel. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by Beverley Pick, published by HMSO. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Back Them Up

WW2 Poster -- Back Them Up
Back Them Up! Colour photolithograph printed by Fosh and Cross Ltd, published by HMSO. Showing a British Commando raid on a German-held port in Norway. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Volunteer ATS

WW2 Poster -- Volunteer ATS
if you are over 17 and a half or 18, under 19, Volunteer ATS. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph by unknown artist, published by HMSO. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Serve in Silence

WW2 Poster -- Serve in Silence
Serve in Silence. Se Taire C est Servir. Colour photolithograph, with a profile of Britannia against a Union Jack flag. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Auxiliary Territorial Service

WW2 Poster -- Auxiliary Territorial Service
Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS), the new womens service, recruitment poster. Colour photolithograph, artist unknown, published by HMSO. Showing a woman in uniform blowing a bugle. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Theres a grand job waiting

WW2 Poster -- Theres a grand job waiting
Theres a grand job waiting - you can still volunteer, ATS. Recruitment poster, Auxiliary Territorial Service. Colour photolithograph, artist unknown, published by HMSO. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Camouflage Hints

WW2 Poster -- Camouflage Hints
Camouflage Hints. Printed poster designed by Sgt H F (Fred) Darking (1911-1999), Royal Engineers, showing how to use camouflage nets to restrict visibility from the air. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Union Jack on sale here

WW2 Poster -- Union Jack on sale here
Union Jack On Sale Here - Daily Except Sunday. Poster advertising the newspaper Union Jack, 1943-1944. 1944

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- 10th Essex in War and Peace

WW2 Poster -- 10th Essex in War and Peace
With The 10th Essex in War and Peace. Colour photolithograph poster with a wartime scene, after Norman Howard, published by the Essex Regiment Museum, 1990

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- War Supplies For Russia

WW2 Poster -- War Supplies For Russia
War Supplies For Russia. Coloured photolithograph after Blake. A convoy of British and American lorries streams along the Persian route to Russia. 1942

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Careless Talk Costs Lives

WW2 Poster -- Careless Talk Costs Lives
but for Heavens sake don t say I told you! Careless Talk Costs Lives. Colour photolithograph poster by Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse)

Background image1940s Collection: WW2 Poster -- Flies Foul Food -- Keep Food Covered

WW2 Poster -- Flies Foul Food -- Keep Food Covered
Flies Foul Food - Diarrhoea and Dysentery Follow. Keep Food Covered! Colour lithograph poster after 2nd Lt Stacey Hopper

Background image1940s Collection: Poster for Locarno on the Swiss Riviera

Poster for Locarno on the Swiss Riviera. The town is located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore (Lago Maggiore) in the Swiss canton of Ticino, close to Ascona at the foot of the Alps 1944

Background image1940s Collection: Illustration, Jersey in Jail, man and two women

Illustration, Jersey in Jail, man and two women
Illustration, Jersey in Jail, showing a thin man whose trousers are too big for him, chatting with two women -- Very few have any superfluous fat of their own. 1940-1945

Background image1940s Collection: Nude pin-up by David Wright

Nude pin-up by David Wright
Pin-up by David Wright, almost entirely nude, save for a pair of high heeled shoes and a book she has been reading placed strategically in her lap. Date: c.1945

Background image1940s Collection: Evacuation - World War Two - Children Safer in the Country

Evacuation - World War Two - Children Safer in the Country
Evacuation - World War Two - Children are Safer in the Country.... leave them there. Governement advice recommending children stay away from the big cities and targets of the bombers. circa 1942

Background image1940s Collection: Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley Mk. V aeroplane

Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley Mk. V aeroplane
Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley Mk. V Z6625 aeroplane in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Illustration, Jersey in Jail, Nazi soldiers in the street

Illustration, Jersey in Jail, Nazi soldiers in the street
Illustration, Jersey in Jail, showing Nazi soldiers marching down a street -- Sing, all you mis-begotten bounders, sing. 1940-1945

Background image1940s Collection: Supermarine Type 365 Spitfire aeroplane

Supermarine Type 365 Spitfire aeroplane
Supermarine Type 365 Spitfire P.R. Mk. XI aeroplane, in blue with black and white stripes. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Handley Page Harrow K6962 aeroplane

Handley Page Harrow K6962 aeroplane in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Beauty on Parade, American Weekly pin up by David Wright

Beauty on Parade, American Weekly pin up by David Wright
Pin-up by David Wright featuring a red-haired woman in a pale blue negligee gazing at her reflection in a hand mirror. 1947

Background image1940s Collection: Play the Game Football book cover

Play the Game Football book cover
Front cover of a book depicting a young boy kicking a football on the front cover. Date: c.1941

Background image1940s Collection: Westland Wyvern VP120 aeroplane

Westland Wyvern VP120 aeroplane, in silver. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Illustration, Jersey in Jail, farming

Illustration, Jersey in Jail, farming
Illustration, Jersey in Jail, showing people farming -- Within a year, very few were still working on the land. 1940-1945

Background image1940s Collection: Boeing B-17 aeroplane

Boeing B-17 aeroplanes, one in blue, the other in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Martin Baker M. B. 5 aeroplane

Martin Baker M. B. 5 aeroplane
Martin Baker M.B.5 aeroplane in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: RAF Poster, Help Britain Finish The Job! WW2

RAF Poster, Help Britain Finish The Job! WW2
RAF Poster, Help Britain Finish The Job! Showing two British Hawker Hurricane fighters flying over a British aircraft carrier at sea during the Second World War

Background image1940s Collection: Heather Honey by David Wright

Heather Honey by David Wright showing a semi-naked woman covered by a diaphanous black negligee. Wright produced a series of over 160 illustrations or pin-ups for The Sketch during the 1940 s

Background image1940s Collection: Westland Whirlwind aeroplanes

Westland Whirlwind aeroplanes
Westland Aircraft Ltd, Whirlwind aeroplanes, mostly in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Caring for Evacuated Mothers and babies

Caring for Evacuated Mothers and babies
Public Information poster issued by the Ministry of Health relating to the caring of evacuated babies during the bombing of Britain

Background image1940s Collection: Ministry of Health Poster - Evacuation

Ministry of Health Poster - Evacuation
Shes in the Ranks too! Caring for Evacuees is a National Service circa 1942

Background image1940s Collection: Illustration, Jersey in Jail, squadrons overhead

Illustration, Jersey in Jail, squadrons overhead
Illustration, Jersey in Jail, with people excited to see British squadrons flying overhead, giving them hopes of liberation. 1940-1945

Background image1940s Collection: Cover design, Lady Arabellas Birthday Party

Cover design, Lady Arabellas Birthday Party, by Margaret and Mary Baker. Showing a chaotic party with children misbehaving. 1940

Background image1940s Collection: Esme in Blue by David Wright

Esme in Blue by David Wright
Beautiful portrait of the artists wife, Esme by David Wright, better known for his pin ups. She sits with her arms folded and looks over her shoulder while wearing a turban style scarf on her head

Background image1940s Collection: Fairey Battle K9182 aeroplane

Fairey Battle K9182 aeroplane in camouflage paint. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: The Sky Devils Air Circus Poster

The Sky Devils Air Circus Poster
Poster, The Sky Devils Air Circus, Great 1944 Display, 10 years ahead of its time! Come and win 500. Issued by Air Pageants Ltd. 1944

Background image1940s Collection: Save Power at Work - Help your Fuel Watcher

Save Power at Work - Help your Fuel Watcher
World War Two public information poster for the Ministry of Food & Power - Save Power at Work. " Hi! Don t leave that machine running idle! And turn off that Blue Pencil Light!" circa 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Cover design, Jersey in Jail 1940-45

Cover design, Jersey in Jail 1940-45, by Horace Wyatt, with illustrations by Edmund Blampied. 1940-1945

Background image1940s Collection: Bristol Beaufighter Mk. 1F aeroplane

Bristol Beaufighter Mk. 1F aeroplane
Bristol Beaufighter Mk.1F MM856 aeroplane in camouflage colours. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Tempest aeroplanes

Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Tempest aeroplanes
Supermarine Spitfire Mk. 1, Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Vb, and Hawker Tempest aeroplanes, all in camouflage paint. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Westland Wapiti 1 aeroplane

Westland Wapiti 1 aeroplane
Westland Wapiti 1 of No. 601 (County of London) Squadron, Auxiliary Air Force. 1940s

Background image1940s Collection: Pin-up calendar girl by David Wright, 1950

Pin-up calendar girl by David Wright, 1950
A woman with her red hair swept up in a bun, poses elegantly in some diaphanous lingerie as she speaks on a red telephone. Date: 1950

Background image1940s Collection: Poster - Ministry of Health Evacuation Scheme

Poster - Ministry of Health Evacuation Scheme
Mothers - let them go - give them a chance of greater safety and health. Public Information poster issued by the Ministry of Health Evacuation Scheme circa 1942

Background image1940s Collection: Illustration, Jersey in Jail, freedom

Illustration, Jersey in Jail, freedom
Illustration, Jersey in Jail, showing people celebrating their freedom at the end of the war. 1940-1945




For sale as Licensed Images

Choose your image, Select your licence and Download the media