“Fragments from France” are collections of Captain Bruce Bairnsfather‘s First World War cartoons produced for each issue of “The Bystander”, a weekly magazine.
Noel Downing collected and kept 7 volumes of “Fragments” while he was serving with the Welsh Guards in France and they remain in our archive.
Possibly these copies were delivered directly to him at the front line. No doubt Noel appreciated a good joke and Bairnsfather’s cartoons delivered the best antidote to the reality of the war.
After the first volume was published, and over a quarter of a million copies were sold, Bairnsfather became a household or rather a “trench-hold” name.
Captain Bairnsfather’s pictures are “the real thing” […] They make the Old Army laugh. They make the New Army laugh. They make civilians laugh. They make the Press Bureau laugh. They – but what’s the use of saying more? Everybody knows Bairnsfather and his “Fragments.”
From Foreword to Vol. 3
His main characters Old Bill, Bert and Alf were typical British Tommies fighting the Bosche. “Seriously comical and comically serious”, they were shown to the reader as a proof that human nature and humour survive the horrors of war.
As General Sir Ian Hamilton said […], “The creator of Old Bill has rendered great service to his country, both as a soldier and as one who has done much to lighten the darkest hour.”
From Foreword to Vol. 7
Sources
- The Bystander’s Fragments from France by Capt. Bruce Bairnsfather, Vols. 1-7, Tallis House, Whitefriars, & 190, Strand, London, 1916 – 1919
- The Bystander, No. 764, 24 Jul 1918