Spreading the faith: the propaganda of the British Union of Fascists

Abstract

The paper attempts to look at the British Union of Fascists’ (BUF) propaganda in the light of the partial agreement or ‘new consensus’ that has emerged in fascist studies in recent years. Based on the official BUF party press, publications, pamphlets, propaganda posters, speeches and the public appearances of the movement’s leading figures and other forms of propaganda, this article analyses the propaganda of the BUF as not just in terms of such crude ‘brainwashing’ or ‘social control’, but also as a form of social engineering – in other words, as a serious attempt to realise the ideas of an alternative modernity and of a political, economic, social and cultural revolution which enlists the enthusiasm, commitment and creativity of the fascist cause.