Forensic Research Archive of Manipulation and Exploitation
ATS Carry the Messages, 1939 UK poster: A woman motorcyclist messenger in helmet and goggles checks a dispatch beside her

ATS Carry the Messages

A woman motorcyclist messenger in helmet and goggles checks a dispatch beside her motorcycle, under a dark sky with German bombers marked with crosses. The caption says the messenger 'is now an ATS girl', and the military setting and aircraft lend the role urgency and prestige.

Propaganda techniques used in this poster

Transfer
Date
1939
Period
Second World War
Made by
Auxiliary Territorial Service / War Office (recruiting); artist Beverley Pick; printed for HMSO by Field Sons & Co. Ltd., Bradford
Region
Western and Central Europe
Country
United Kingdom
Medium
Poster
Issuer type
State
Regime
Churchill Government
Leader
Winston Churchill
Audience
Domestic public
Purpose
Recruit
Themes
War and the military, Gender and suffrage
Event
World War II
Regime
Churchill wartime government
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)
UK government poster, c. 1939-1945; National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), WWII Foreign Posters, NAID 44266224.

Text on the object

Original (English) · read from the image, not independently checked

ATS CARRY THE MESSAGES
The motor cyclist messenger, roaring across country from
Headquarters to scattered units is now an ATS girl

[signature:] BEVERLEY PICK
PRINTED FOR H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE BY FIELD SONS & CO. LTD., BRADFORD. 51-3715.

More propaganda examples that use the same techniques

Fragments of the Abydos king list from Ramesses II's temple, in the British Museum: rows of royal cartouchesNew Kingdom EgyptFragments of the Abydos king list from Ramesses II's temple, in the British Museum: rows of royal cartouches0000 · Card stacking, TransferClay cylinder with the Ehulhul inscription of Nabonidus, king of Babylon, describing work on three templesNeo Babylonian EmpireClay cylinder with the Ehulhul inscription of Nabonidus, king of Babylon, describing work on three temples0000 · TransferSeated limestone statue of Hatshepsut as king, with feminine royal titles on the throne, reassembled from fragments broken up at Deir el-BahriNew Kingdom EgyptSeated limestone statue of Hatshepsut as king, with feminine royal titles on the throne, reassembled from fragments broken up at Deir el-Bahri0000 · Transfer, TestimonialGlazed-brick panel with a striding lion, from Babylon (reign of Nebuchadnezzar II)Neo Babylonian EmpireGlazed-brick panel with a striding lion, from Babylon (reign of Nebuchadnezzar II)0000 · TransferLimestone relief block of Ramesses II wearing the White Crown, a jubilee relief from his temple at HerakleopolisNew Kingdom EgyptLimestone relief block of Ramesses II wearing the White Crown, a jubilee relief from his temple at Herakleopolis0000 · TransferLine drawing of the Great Kadesh battle relief on the walls of the Ramesseum, from Breasted's History of EgyptNew Kingdom EgyptLine drawing of the Great Kadesh battle relief on the walls of the Ramesseum, from Breasted's History of Egypt0000 · Card stacking, TransferContent noteGypsum alabaster slab inscribed in cuneiform, from Nimrud (Kalhu), reign of Ashurnasirpal IINeo Assyrian EmpireGypsum alabaster slab inscribed in cuneiform, from Nimrud (Kalhu), reign of Ashurnasirpal II0000 · Transfer, Glittering generalitiesEgyptian alabaster jar inscribed with the name of Xerxes the Great in four languages (Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Egyptian), 486 to 466 BCEAchaemenid EmpireEgyptian alabaster jar inscribed with the name of Xerxes the Great in four languages (Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Egyptian), 486 to 466 BCE0000 · Transfer