"Now Up At Our Works..." He Talked... ...This Happened - Careless Talk Costs Lives
Two photographic panels: two men drinking in a pub, one speaking while a third reads a newspaper behind, then a red-toned night scene of firemen at a burning building. The lines 'He talked...' and '...This happened' tie a casual remark to a bombing disaster, the fear-appeal tell; the cause is asserted by layout, not shown.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1939
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) for the British government; printed by Lowe & Brydone Printers Ltd., London
- Region
- Western and Central Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Churchill Government
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- Security and surveillance, Home front
- Event
- World War II
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (UK Crown copyright, 50 years from publication, expired before 1996; no URAA restoration)
His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) for the British government; printed by Lowe & Brydone Printers Ltd., London. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), World War II Foreign Posters, NAID 44266572.
Text on the object
"NOW UP AT OUR WORKS..." HE TALKED.. ..THIS HAPPENED CARELESS TALK COSTS LIVES A.G./9 PRINTED FOR H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE BY LOWE & BRYDONE PRINTERS LTD., LONDON. 51-7345
