Forensic Research Archive of Manipulation and Exploitation
T-O--W-H-O-? To You, 1939 UK poster: A yellow owl on a branch before a full moon under the title 'T-O--W-H-O-? To You'

T-O--W-H-O-? To You

A yellow owl on a branch before a full moon under the title 'T-O--W-H-O-? To You', with a four-line verse telling the reader to wait and listen until the road is clear. This is a road-safety rhyme with no argument beyond the instruction; the closest fit is transfer, since the tell is the owl's night sight used as the model for careful crossing.

Propaganda techniques used in this poster

Transfer
Date
1939
Period
Second World War
Made by
Thomas Tilling Group of Companies, England
Region
Western and Central Europe
Country
United Kingdom
Medium
Poster
Issuer type
Corporation
Regime
Churchill Government
Leader
Winston Churchill
Audience
Domestic public
Purpose
Warn or inform
Themes
Home front, Security and surveillance
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
Held by NARA, Unrestricted; UK private-firm wartime print, hosted by owner decision
Thomas Tilling Group of Companies, England. National Archives and Records Administration, 44-PF-477.

Text on the object

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

T-O--W-H-O-?
TO YOU

The owl by nature sees at night
But you have not this second sight
So wait and listen, stand and peer
Until you're sure the road is clear

ISSUED BY THE THOMAS TILLING GROUP OF COMPANIES, ENGLAND

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