Canteens are democratic establishments, founded on principles of communal eating and rest. At the V&A, employee life revolves around the staff canteen, a welcoming space to socialise, relax and eat. During the Second World War, the concept of communal eating gained a new importance, with government subsidised restaurants springing up across urban centres to feed the hungry masses. Deep in the V&A’s institutional archive, we uncover an extraordinary example in Bethnal Green’s ‘Museum Restaurant’.
Previous blog posts have explored the V&A’s wartime chronicles; the evacuation of precious objects, staff deployments, and the infamous blast in South Kensington’s western wing. V&A Policy Files ED 84/308, 309 and 314 paint an equally eventful picture of Bethnal Green during this time. Initially requisitioned by the British Army in 1939, the grounds hosted generators and hutments for an East End Search Light Unit. Eager to aid the war effort, the museum nervously accepted the army’s requests, expecting the lease to end within six months (ref. ED 84/308). Bethnal Green Museum remained in the British Army’s custody until 1948 and was targeted by vicious raids throughout. Fortunately, little damage was sustained, though this policy file page lists ‘trivial’ objects lost to enemy bombs in 1941 (ref. ED 84/309).
Hutments were erected on the green land immediately north of the Museum building, while outside mess rooms and adjacent spaces were converted into a telephone centre for district Searchlight control. In 1941, a restaurant for the ‘Londoner’s Meal service’ and a central kitchen for school dinners were established, with Lord Wooten, Minister of Food, performing an opening ceremony (ref. A1069/5). Officially dubbed ‘British Restaurants’, the centres catered to citizens struggling to access food or power. They were publicly funded spaces, offering simple, unrationed food at subsidised prices. London County Council led the way, providing approximately. 150,000 vulnerable people with ‘emergency feeding centres.’ These establishments bolstered domestic diets, which had been slashed to meagre rations by 1941. Soon the general public adopted them as well, drawn to the comfort, familiarity and nourishment offered by the communal caffs.
These images capture the splendour of the Museum’s makeshift dining room, with renaissance sculpture and antique ceramics adorning the hall, while customers dive into puddings, pies, sausages and stews – common fare on restaurant menus. Despite the public popularity, the canteen was a contentious topic within staff circles. In 1946 incumbent curator Montague Weekley declared the cafe as a ‘malodorous mess’ ; ‘a most sordid affliction’ and an ‘awful defilement’ (Burton and Goodfellow, 1985; ref. A1069/5). Nevertheless, the eventual departure of the wartime provisions provided a blank slate, creating a gold opportunity to reimagine the museum for a new era.
By the 1950s, growing inflation and changing tastes had dampened the appeal of ‘social feeding centres’ and the last British Restaurant closed its doors in 1955. On the 13th January 1949 The Advisory Council recorded that Bethnal Green Museum had been redecorated and the ‘school meals service’ transferred elsewhere (ref. MA/46/1/5). Its reopening in 1950 heralded a gradual transition from ’19th century annexe’ to rightful museum of British applied arts. Over time BGM evolved into the ‘Museum of Childhood’ visitors would later come to know and love, with the emphasis on childhood objects and experiences beginning to flourish from the mid-1950s.
These records reveal a fascinating social legacy of wartime relief, one that resonates with our hectic modern lives. In a world grappling with division, pervasive loneliness, and soaring inflation, what can the simple act of eating lunch together teach us about the values of connection, nourishment, and compassion?
Archival sources
BGM, WAR A.R.P : ‘Setting up a Search Light Unit during Second World War’ ; Ed 84/308
BGM, WAR A.R.P : Damage due to Enemy Action Ed 84/309
Standing Commission on Museums and Galleries Ed 84/314
Misc. Articles about the history of Bethnal Green Museum A1069/5
MA/46/1/5
Read more about the V&A during wartime Britain on our blog.
