Geoff Dibb, author of Oscar Wilde – A Vagabond with a Mission, got in touch to tell us about his research and how The British Newspaper Archive has helped. We’d love to hear about your own research experiences – email press@britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk to tell us your story. ************** Researching Oscar Wilde in libraries I began researching Oscar Wilde’s lecture tours of Britain and Ireland after reading a letter from Wilde, written while lecturing in Leeds. I live about 10 miles south …
Search The British Newspaper Archive for the words ‘Tube strike’ and you’ll find hundreds of stories about London Underground strikes of the past. While most newspapers printed serious reports, we’ve found a few that couldn’t resist making a joke or two. Tu-be or not tu-be The Derby Daily Telegraph imagined how William Shakespeare would have responded to the Tube strike of 1919: Derby Daily Telegraph – Wednesday 05 February 1919 Image © Local World Limited. Image created courtesy of …
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In this month’s ‘behind the scenes’ blog post, Scott and Andrew from The British Newspaper Archive’s scanning team tell us about their trip to London to attend Who Do You Think You Are? LIVE. ************** Welcome to the second update from the newspaper scanning team in Boston Spa, Yorkshire. We are now in full operation and working to the high standards that the original Colindale team set for us. Who Do You Think You Are? LIVE In February, we …
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The WW1 Gallipoli Campaign began on 25 April 1915, resulting in the loss of approximately 50,000 men from Australia, Britain, France and New Zealand. A poignant letter from an attending nurse was sent to an Australian woman living in London and printed in the Tamworth Herald. ‘It breaks my heart to see them’ The letter describes the nurse’s work at the Dardanelles during World War One and includes this incredibly moving comment: ‘It’s a sad time for us all, …
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Hannah Velten recently got in touch to tell us how she uses The British Newspaper Archive to research a rather niche subject – the history of animals within society. Show us what you’re researching at the moment by emailing press@britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk ************** One day it could be a toad emerging from a rock or a person kicked by a horse – I never know what I’m going to find when I log into The British Newspaper Archive each day. …
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St George’s Day and the anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth both fall on 23 April. ‘There will be justice and victory’ This patriotic advert from Ford was published in The Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer to mark the day during World War Two. It states that ‘wherever the tongue of Shakespeare is spoken, there will be justice and victory’. View the whole newspaper page The Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer – Thursday 22 April 1943 Image © Johnston …
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Thousands of extra newspaper pages were added to The British Newspaper Archive in March, including a brand new title – the Evening Despatch. Search the newspapers 24 other titles were updated this month, including the Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, the Dublin Evening Mail and Nottingham Evening Post. You’ll find a full list of recent additions provided below. Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette – 1769, 1801, 1804, 1805, 1806, 1810, 1812, 1814, 1815, 1816, 1817, 1818, 1819 …
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WW1 editions of the Evening Despatch now online The Evening Despatch was published in Birmingham throughout World War One. Over 4,000 pages from newspapers published in 1915, 1917 and 1918 have just been made available to search online. Search the Evening Despatch Newspaper pages added every week Thousands of extra pages are added to The British Newspaper Archive each week. We’ll be adding more from the Evening Despatch soon, so be sure to check the recent …
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Search The British Newspaper Archive for the words ‘April Fool’ and you’ll find hundreds of examples of ‘hilarious’ pranks that were staged on 1 April in the past. We’ve selected our favourites for you to enjoy. WW1 football ‘bomb’ A ‘bomb’ was dropped on German troops during the First World War. After scrambling to take cover, the men discovered it was actually a football with the words ‘April fool!’ written on it. View the whole newspaper page Coventry Evening …