The Sutlers Supreme
On This Day – 20 December: NAAFI in the Press
As Christmas approached, newspapers across Britain – and further afield – were filled with stories touching on the work of NAAFI and the lives of those it served. From festive preparations behind barbed wire in Egypt to price disputes in Korea and Ulster, and from recruitment appeals to the sheer scale of food production required to support the Forces, these cuttings from 20 December span decades of service life, controversy, and quiet endurance during wartime and peace alike.
Christmas with the Forces – far from home
This group of cuttings reflects the reality of Christmas spent overseas, often in difficult or dangerous circumstances. While familiar traditions were carefully maintained where possible, the atmosphere was shaped by distance from home, security concerns, climate, and active operations.
Stories from Egypt’s Canal Zone, the Middle East, Malaysia, and the desert theatres show how NAAFI played a central role in sustaining morale – supplying Christmas dinners, puddings, beer, and everyday comforts, even when communities were living behind wire or operating in extreme heat.
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Coventry Evening Telegraph, 20 December 1951.
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Sunday Express, 20 December 1942.
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| Shropshire Star, 20 December 1968. |
Prices, supplies, and public criticism
Not all coverage was warm or celebratory. A number of 20 December reports highlight recurring public and political scrutiny of NAAFI pricing, access, and trading practices.
From complaints about beer prices for troops in Korea, to whisky price wars in Ulster, and concerns over sweets and cigarettes reaching civilians via military canteens, these articles underline the difficult balance NAAFI had to strike between operating as a commercial organisation and serving the needs of the Forces during periods of shortage and rationing.
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Daily Express, 20 December 1952.
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Daily Express, 20 December 1956.
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The Scotsman, 20 December 1967.
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Western Daily Press, 20 December 1940.
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People, recruitment, and the scale of the job
The final group draws attention to the people behind NAAFI’s work and the immense scale of its operations. Recruitment advertisements reveal the expectations placed on women managers and staff, while reports on food factories, mobile canteens, and overseas supply chains show just how industrial the task of “serving the Services” had become.
Alongside this are glimpses of daily life and accountability: court cases involving manageresses, official visits, and behind-the-scenes looks at how food and entertainment reached those on active service.
Closing reflection
Read together, these 20 December cuttings reveal NAAFI at one of its most exposed moments: under seasonal pressure, public scrutiny, and the immense logistical demands of supporting the Armed Forces at home and overseas. Christmas sharpened expectations — of fairness, generosity, and morale — while also magnifying shortages, grievances, and the sheer scale of what was required to keep service life functioning.
Whether supplying puddings in the desert, defending prices in Parliament and the press, or recruiting staff to sustain an expanding global operation, NAAFI appears here as both a familiar comfort and a contested institution. These brief reports, often tucked into the margins of larger stories, remind us how central — and how visible — NAAFI had become to the everyday realities of service life during war and peace alike.
Sources & References
The following contemporary newspaper reports illustrate how NAAFI’s Christmas presence overseas was presented to British readers on 20 December across different years.
Coventry Evening Telegraph, 20 December 1951
Sunday Express, 20 December 1942
Shropshire Star, 20 December 1968
Daily Express, 20 December 1952
Daily Express, 20 December 1956
The Scotsman, 20 December 1967
Western Daily Press, 20 December 1940
Crawley and Diatrict Observer, 20 December 1940
Irelands Saturday Night, 20 December 1941
Portsmouth Evening News, 20 December 1957
Felixstowe Times, 20 December 1941
Accessed via Findmypast (British Library Newspapers).
Reproduced under fair dealing for non-commercial historical research and commentary.
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