Tomorrow will be a better day - vernacular rainbow displays during the COVID-19 lockdown in Britain

The first UK lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic during the Spring of 2020 resulted in numerous communal and individual creative interventions and responses, that were widely shared and often copied in both the physical and online worlds. Many of these activities developed spontaneously as new customs and rituals often borrowing for those observed in countries which had entered lockdown earlier, from the communal clapping on Thursday evenings, to the display of teddy bears in front windows, along with scarecrows, curb side gifts, competitive mooing, and the omnipresent display of rainbows. At the same time online communities circulated related drawings, videos and memes extending the reach of these responses and at the same time prompting and provoking others. Profusely illustrated with images from the author’s extensive collection of photographs this paper examines the origins and development of U.K. rainbow displays in both online and physical worlds and explore their role as a vehicle for expressions of solidarity with the NHS and the evoking of a ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ Blitz spirt as exemplified by Captain Tom Moore. The cultural significance of such displays was recognised by HM The Queen in her March 2020 broadcast when she referred to the need for the country to pull together, suggesting that such new traditions and customs were an expression of ‘our national spirit’ that will help to define the country’s future.