<P> Keep Calm and Carry On was a motivational poster produced by the British government in 1939 in preparation for World War II . The poster was intended to raise the morale of the British public, threatened with widely predicted mass air attacks on major cities . Although 2.45 million copies were printed, and although the Blitz did in fact take place, the poster was hardly ever publicly displayed and was little known until a copy was rediscovered in 2000 at Barter Books, a bookshop in Alnwick . It has since been re-issued by a number of private companies, and has been used as the decorative theme for a range of products . </P> <P> Evocative of the Victorian belief in British stoicism--the "stiff upper lip", self - discipline, fortitude, and remaining calm in adversity--the poster has become recognised around the world . It was thought that only two original copies survived until a collection of approximately 15 was brought in to the Antiques Roadshow in 2012 by the daughter of an ex-Royal Observer Corps member . </P>

Where did the phrase keep calm and carry on come from