John Bull Digs Deep Into His Pocket!
A grid of seven panels (whisky, tobacco, sugar, tea, matches, beer, cigarettes) shows each item part-filled in black marked 'TAX', with retail price and tax in dollars beneath, under the caption 'John Bull digs deep into his pocket!'. The tell is the selection: only wartime tax on seven consumer goods is shown, with no totals, earlier rates or other revenue for comparison (card-stacking).
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1939
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Not stated on the poster (no imprint or issuer visible)
- Region
- Western and Central Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Churchill Government
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Audience
- Foreign public
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- Home front, Economy and finance
- Event
- World War II
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Source
- Unidentified Source blurred: contractors, cutouts, buried disclosure
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Held by NARA, Unrestricted; hosted by owner decision
Issuer not stated. National Archives and Records Administration, 44-PF-249.
Text on the object
WHISKY Retail Price $4.60 Tax $3.20 TOBACCO Retail Price $ .37 Tax $ .28 SUGAR Retail Price $ .05 Tax $ .03 TEA Retail Price $ .50 Tax $ .10 MATCHES Retail Price $ .03 Tax $ .01 BEER Retail Price $ .18 Tax $ .11 CIGARETTES Retail Price $ .40 Tax $ .28 TAX (on each panel) JOHN BULL DIGS DEEP INTO HIS POCKET!
