Archive

war diaries

Oct 31, 2025

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6 min read

Twice the man, Ten times the war diary

An ode to the war diary of the 5 Battalion Grenadier Guards, January 1944

Matthew Eaton

luftwaffe

The Messy Outcomes of the Bari Raid and its Implications for the Allied Supply Chain in Italy

Oct 17, 2025

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5 min read

The Messy Outcomes of the Bari Raid and its Implications for the Allied Supply Chain in Italy

2 December 1943

Matthew Eaton

military welfare history

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

Sep 29, 2025

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6 min read

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

Hospital Welfare & Entertainment

Matthew Eaton

army welfare service

+11

Sep 5, 2025

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6 min read

The Day the Show Almost Stopped

A guided bomb, a birdcage, and the sinking of the S.S. Marnix Van Sint Aldegonde

Matthew Eaton

burma

Aug 22, 2025

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4 min read

Einstein’s Secret Weapon and Italy 1944

Morale, the Censor, and a Bit of Wishful Thinking

Matthew Eaton

army welfare service

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

Aug 8, 2025

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7 min read

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

Canadian vs British Organised Troop Entertainment

Matthew Eaton

italian campaign

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

Jul 26, 2025

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5 min read

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

Bringing much-needed colour and a reminder of home to the troops

Matthew Eaton

entertainment

Jul 11, 2025

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7 min read

'Bastard’ Basil: Drury Lane’s Dictator?

“I am afraid that Mr Basil Dean rather tends to trail his coat on occasion.”

Matthew Eaton

‘Morale is a psychological problem like sex’

Jun 28, 2025

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4 min read

‘Morale is a psychological problem like sex’

Finding easter eggs in the National Archive

Matthew Eaton

army welfare service

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Jun 14, 2025

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5 min read

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Unusually for the Italian Campaign, a story where the British Army distinctly lacked balls

Matthew Eaton

entertainment

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

Jun 1, 2025

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4 min read

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

John Hobson's life

Matthew Eaton

entertainment

May 18, 2025

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6 min read

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

Basil Dean, ENSA, and social memory

Matthew Eaton

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Twice the man, Ten times the war diary

The Messy Outcomes of the Bari Raid and its Implications for the Allied Supply Chain in Italy

Only When I Laugh: Raising patient morale during the Italian Campaign

The Day the Show Almost Stopped

Einstein’s Secret Weapon and Italy 1944

Keeping it Clean and Avoiding ENSA's 'Rank and Filth'

Ortona, Canadian Drag Artistes & The Tin Hats

'Bastard’ Basil: Drury Lane’s Dictator?

‘Morale is a psychological problem like sex’

The Great Ping Pong Crisis of Italy 1944

Until the day break and the shadows flee away

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

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