Re: The Pages of Punch

1943: Needing a sergeant

Clearly she means that the sergeant should be herself. It is not possible to determine who she was talking about and what sort of looking after he is said to need. We can only guess.

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1943: Unarmed combat

The sergeant would not be likely to refer to this ironic fact. Indeed unarmed combat could sometimes have been called for during the time between D Day and the German surrender in May 1945.

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1943: Scrap metal

Collecting scrap metal was an important way of supporting the war effort because it would be recycled and used in the factories making machines for the fighting forces. One does wonder how this boy had managed to get hold of those particular items.

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1943: Insulting the cook

Alongside the shortages there were numerous substitutes, of varying efficacy, on offer. The cook has just been told that his creation is being considered as an effective substitute for rubber. Not that suitable for eating then…

Re: The Pages of Punch

Brilliant - nothing like a bit of sarcasm

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1942: All doing their bit

They are all doing their bit. The sons are in the Army, the Navy and the Boy Scouts. The daughter is part of the Women’s Land Army. I’m not sure what the husband is doing - probably in the police but I can’t work out what he is holding in his right hand.

Having seen off all her family the mum is off to do something really practical with that serious looking spanner.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1944: The Polish Airforce

The RAF (and the UK) owed a great debt of gratitude to the Polish airmen who contributed massively to its battles against the Luftwaffe.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_War_Memorial

During the Battle of Britain the Polish contribution was particularly valuable.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1944: She wants a holiday

Unusually this is a cartoon totally unconnected with the war.

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1944: Taking shelter

This cartoon accurately reflects the need for haste in taking shelter in an air raid.

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1944: The enemy doesn’t stand a chance

This is a curious cartoon. There was nothing secret about the intention to invade. Eisenhower had declared that it would take place on D Day.

What does the artist intend us to think? The ‘very shortly’ if true, does not look wise. Furthermore the future conqueror doesn’t look very warlike. The casualties would obviously be severe, though they turned out to be not as heavy as had been feared.