Editors note: Professor Maggie Andrews is the consultant historian on Radio 4’s epic drama series set in Great War Britain, Home Front. In this blog, Maggie tells us what appeals to her about the scope of Home Front and expands on Season Two’s theme of recruitment.
Why Home Front
One of the exciting things about working with a long running drama is its ability to show war effecting ordinary people’s everyday lives on the home front; the different characters show that there are numerous histories of the war.
When does the next series start?
Season Two of Home Front starts on 1 December. In December 1914, with recruitment figures starting to dip, there was growing pressure on everyone at home to do more for the war.
Who is your favourite character?
I have a real soft spot for Kitty, she shows how war mucked up people’s personal lives and how for many ordinary people just surviving was heroic.
What history does Season Two reflect?
In looking at the scripts I obviously check for any historical inaccuracies that might have slipped through, things that don't quite ring true in relation to the behavior and attitudes of people at the particular point of the war that the episode is set in.
Recruitment campaigns used celebrities to broaden their appeal and recruited at entertainment events; a trip to the theatre could turn out to be a recruitment rally. The music hall star Vesta Tilley dressed as a soldier and sung songs such as - Jolly Good Luck to the Girl Who Loves a Soldier, Real Good Boys are We - and young children in replica uniforms were mascots for the recruitment drives in regional theatres. In Home Front, twelve year old Jessie Moore finds the idea of working for the theatre more alluring than joining the Girl Guides.
Medical officers inspected 200 recruits a day; but working class poverty resulted in many recruits being rejected; some due to poor teeth others for being too short. Poor Joe Macknade is one such rejected recruit desperate to sign up. Then bantam battalions were created for men under 5ft 3inches and patriotic dentists provided free dental care – often removing the offending teeth.
Some employers supported recruitment by promising to keep men’s jobs open for them or giving wives financial support. A few women gave out white feathers to men not in uniform, others were less enthusiastic about husbands or sons volunteering; which could lead to financial hardship, particularly for those described as ‘unmarried wives’.
Propaganda posters tried to get women to support recruitment asking them - Is Your “Best Boy” wearing Kharki ? If not don’t YOU THINK he should be ? Young middle –class women also volunteered, going to nurse, run canteens or drive ambulances on the Western and Eastern Fronts.
Home Front Season Two starts on BBC Radio 4 at noon on Monday 1st December. To catch up with Season One, you can listen online or sign up for our podcasts.
