The Wicked Witch (Rinso Advert),

1942
Sound
35m

Only a witch would be wicked enough to help Hitler on washing day, warns this fun wartime soap powder ad.

Other people's laundry habits are your business in this WWII advertisement for Rinso soap powder. Shades of Shakespeare give way to The Wizard of Oz, as a Dorothy-esque little girl forthrightly admonishes the wicked witch that "boiling's not the thing to do!" - if you want to beat Hitler, that is. Space and water heating accounted for three quarters of domestic fuel use, and so encouraging savings on the home front was vital to the war effort.

From January 1942, domestic coal was rationed to between 1700 and 2200 pounds per year, and the message that fuel must be saved for factories and military usage was repeatedly drummed home. A predecessor of the equally delightful Little Miss Muddlehead (also in BFI Player), this crafty cinema ad allies its marketing function to wartime savings propaganda with the help of a memorable rhyme. Such advertising took its place beside the multitude of communications, from striking government posters to radio broadcasts, already bombarding the British people with reminders to do their bit.

Ration Book Britain

As if the bombs weren't enough, wartime Britons faced another fearsome foe: the ration book...

Everyday goods, from food and fuel to clothing, became luxuries - especially with supplies from Britain's Empire territories routinely intercepted by Nazi U-boats. Public information messages urged housewives to get creative with dried eggs and potato peel. Austerity was soul-sapping, and lasted long after the peace was won.

But rationing did help foster a sense of 'all in it together' and focused minds on managing scarce resources (while also creating profitable opportunities for the entrepreneurial 'spiv'). Make-do-and-mend became second nature, and wartime Brits recycled and salvaged more diligently then even today's eco-conscious citizens.