The politics of popular cultural production and performance in Britain since the Great War

The articles that follow were selected and developed from two conferences happening almost simultaneously on opposite sides of the world. The first was the Eric Richards Symposium in British and Australasian History held at Flinders University in Adelaide between 31 January and 3 February 2017, and the second was the Historians of British Art panel ‘Conflict as Cultural Catalyst in Britain’ at the College Arts Association, New York City, February 15–18, 2017. From these two meetings comes this special co-edited edition of Contemporary British History, which explores aspects of the relationship between conflict and cultural production in Britain (and where appropriate Australia and Ireland) throughout the 20th century. Through this selection of essays an examination is conducted into how, for example, cultural production derived from, or in anticipation of, conflict was used to foster specific social identities, pre-write and re-write regional, national and imperial histories, and catalyse or resist change (often violent) in Britain and beyond. Taken together they offer an imaginative and imaginary geography of what James Ryan described as ‘cultural formations, attitudes, beliefs and practices’.