Category Archives: British Cartoon Archive

Laughter in the Long Twentieth Century: David Low & Cartooning Fascism

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This blog post is written by Dr Amy Matthewson about her experience working on the Beaverbrook Engagement project and exhibition, funded by the Beaverbrook Foundation.

The Vision

It all began with a Call for Proposals from the British Cartoon Archive at the University of Kent. It was for a Visiting Scholar Grant from the Beaverbrook Foundation putting out a call for proposals to do an exhibition based on their cartoons that form part of the British Cartoon Archive’s collection.

Most of the Beaverbrook cartoons are available to view online and as I scrolled through, I was delighted to see that David Low formed a big part of the collection. Low is, arguably, one of the most celebrated political cartoonists of the 20th century and I have always wanted to take a closer look at his work. This grant, if successful, would give me the perfect opportunity to get to know Low, the cartoonist, as well as his work.

I proposed an exhibition exploring the use of humour during the interwar period in Britain. This was a time of uncertainty with a nation only just recovering from the horrors of the First World War, mass unemployment, global economic depression, and the rise of fascism. David Low’s cartoons would form the basis of the study.

The aim was to analyse the role of humour through satirical cartoons during a period of increased social and political tensions. How did Low’s cartoons function as a means of dissipating anxieties while simultaneously lampooning dictators’ and their fascist ideologies?

After waiting (with eager anticipation) for a few weeks, I had an interview and the proposal was a success! I was to spend the next few months researching and organising the exhibition, to be displayed at the Templeman Gallery at the University of Kent.

What is the Story?

Where to begin? I didn’t expect the David Low collection at the British Cartoon Archive to be so extensive and I found myself overwhelmed. Faced with a wealth of cartoons, personal correspondence, and books, the challenge was how to narrow the scope and select materials that will offer a cohesive narrative. What ‘story’ does this exhibition want to tell and how to tell it in a comprehensible way?

The first step was to immerse myself in the collection and I did this with great pleasure (I am a bit of a research geek…ok, a big research geek…). I spent a week going through the collection organising cartoons and correspondence into “Yes, Definitely,” “Maybe” and “No” categories. I didn’t manage to get through everything but felt satisfied with the dent I made in going through as much as I could.

Thankfully, this was not a solo venture. Karen Brayshaw, Special Collections and Archives Manager, and Clair Waller, Digital Archivist, offered valuable curatorial advice with extensive knowledge of their collection. There was also another Visiting Scholar, Dominic Janes, who brought another layer of support and encouragement as he worked through his own exhibition, a fascinating exploration of the LGBTQ+ community through the lens of cartoons. His exhibition was planned to run alongside mine.

Another key pillar to the project was three student interns, Isabel Walford, Freya Francis, and Freja Dixon, recruited through a competitive application process. Their involvement was central to the development and success of the project. And with this incredible team in place, I was well-supported.

When I got home and reviewed the pictures I took as a memory aid, a question kept coming up: What is the story here? Yes, there were many witty cartoons (one of my favourites is Hitler blown up as balloon with the caption, “All Blown up and Nowhere to go”) but I couldn’t simply have an exhibition of randomly compiled cartoons thrown up for viewers to decipher. Or could I?

David Low, All blown up and nowere [sic] to go, Evening Standard, 26 Jun 1933 [DL0741a]

I decided to have a Wall of Resistance as part of the exhibition – a blank wall covered with Low’s cartoons demonstrating his resistance to fascism. But is this enough of a story to tell for the exhibition?

Low… cartoons… fascism… satire… resistance… caricature… blown-up Hitler… so what? Again, the question: What is the story? As I sorted through the cartoons, a story started to fall into place. It’s simple – the cartoons themselves are the story. Far from being merely ‘funny pictures,’ they were sharp criticisms. Severe enough to irritate their satirical targets (Low’s cartoons were eventually banned in Nazi Germany as they annoyed Hitler), powerful enough to communicate complex messages, and effective enough to have editors scrambling to write to Low and ask him to tone things down in order to maintain peace in Europe.

Herein lies the story.

The Cartoon Museum

We planned a trip to Disneyland.

Well, not quite but for those who are enthusiastic about cartoons, the Cartoon Museum in London is as good as Disneyland. Karen arranged our outing to include a private tour led by Hannah Whyte, the Collections Curator, along with a lively discussion with Steve Marchant, the Learning Officer and Comic Art Curator.

However, as often happens, things did not go according to plan. There were severe delays on the train from Canterbury to London and so the student interns were not able to make their way to the museum. The day, however, was not completely lost. Dominic, Karen, Clair, and myself were able to go and we made the best of the situation by taking lots of pictures to share with the interns later.

The day ended the way all really good days end: with coffee and cake and a chance to share our thoughts and ideas. The project was really starting to take shape.

Photos of the Cartoon Museum in London.

 

Coming Together

The next few weeks were a blur of activity. With the framework of the exhibition in place, we turned our attention to translating our ideas into an engaging and coherent visitor experience. We needed to finalise the narrative boards – the storytelling foundation of the exhibition, as well as select and arrange the cartoons, objects, and supplementary materials in a way that would resonate with our audience.

There was much thought put into the narrative boards. Each board needed to draw out the historical and political contexts without losing the interest of the visitor. The boards needed to provide enough information without being too dense while also conveying complex ideas – the rise of fascism, the power of cartooning, the socio-political function of satire, as well as a reflection on what it is that makes people laugh (or makes people angry).

Panels from the exhibition

 

Isabel, Freya, and Freja played a crucial role in bringing the exhibition to life; Isabel’s keen eye worked to match images with key themes and narratives on the boards; Freya did research in selecting cartoons, interviews, and music for the listening pod; Freja dove into the archives, selecting books, objects, and other materials of visual interest to add to the exhibition.

Once the material was finalised, we sent everything to Clair for printing. Her technical expertise and familiarity with the Archives were invaluable. Clair meticulously checked every file, making sure everything was ready for installation.

And then… we waited.

Installation and Improvisation

While much of the groundwork had been done before the installation process, the final execution brought a set of challenges. The transition from concept to physical space required flexibility, creative problem-solving, and improvisation. Despite having detailed layouts and measurements, some of the materials did not fit quite where we had imagined, while other areas felt too sparse or too cramped.

There were empty frames waiting to be filled and hung; glass surfaces needed to be cleaned; books were queued for display; objects sat carefully arranged on trolleys; cartoon artwork was laid out across tables. And with every … “oh wouldn’t be great to have this over here…?” and “didn’t I see something that would be the perfect fit…?” there was running back and forth to the archives, deep in the basement (sorry Clair!).

Dominic and I worked closely on the sequencing of exhibits, paying attention to how the narrative would unfold for the visitor. We wanted to make sure our two exhibitions had a connecting thread. We moved shelves in cabinets around allowing for the materials to be better (and more clearly) displayed. Karen and Clair were right there to offer their expertise; Freja, Freya, and Isabel were a constant source of energy and support. They were everywhere: lifting, adjusting, dusting, and arranging and beyond their physical contributions, they offered ideas and suggested reconfigurations to improve the overall feel of the display cases.

Photos of the exhibtion being installed

 

With the exhibition complete, we then turned our attention on an afternoon workshop that invited two guest speakers: Dr. Harriet Earle, Senior Lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University and David Shenton, cartoonist specialising in queer comics. (details here: https://shorturl.at/fKcgZ)

This installation process was perhaps the best experience during my time with the British Cartoon Archive. While the research is always enjoyable, it tends to be a solitary pursuit whereas the installation process required cooperation and collaboration. This was an excellent example of what an exceptional and supportive group of people can do when working together.

The Story

Born in New Zealand in 1891, Low rose to prominence as an artist in Australia during his twenties and in 1919, he arrived in London to begin his career at The Star, a newspaper aligned with Liberal values. A committed Liberal himself, Low once described democracy, despite its flaws, as offering “the best blend of stability and dignity.” In 1924, media tycoon Lord Beaverbrook, invited Low to join his Conservative newspaper the Evening Standard. Low declined but when, four years later in 1927, Beaverbrook asked him again, Low agreed but with some reluctance. The decision drew sharp criticism and aware of these perceptions, Low insisted on maintaining editorial independence, a stance formalised in a contractual clause that distanced himself from the paper’s Conservative political view.


During the 1930s, Low waged a visual war against the rise of dictators’ and their fascist ideology. So much so, that in 1936, Percy Cudlipp, editor to the Evening Standard wrote to Low suggesting “that for the present [Low] avoid the dictators altogether” as was reluctant “to run what will seem to be a cartoonist’s campaign against the dictators.” About a year later in September 1937, Cudlipp wrote again:

You will see from the news that the state of Europe is extremely tense at the present time. That being so, I don’t want to publish anything in the “Evening Standard” which would add to the tension, or inflame tempers any more than they are already inflamed. There are people whose tempers are inflamed more by a cartoon than by any letterpress. So will you please, when you are planning your cartoons, bear in mind my anxiety on this score?

Did Low know the effects his cartoons were having? In May 1942, Low wrote:

Some American cartoonists draw H. [Hitler] and M. [Mussolini] as monsters of brutality eight feet high with big hairy arms covered with whiskers, hands dropping with blood, etc., I’m sure no one is more pleased at this then H. and M. themselves, for that is just the effect they have always striven, with all the arts of propaganda, to create among people just before they go out to defeat them.

That kind of thing no doubt had the effect of building up the idea that Hitler was too, too, too powerful to resist, and contributed to the beating down of the moral front. Personally, I know that the cartoons of mine that got under their skins most were those which made them look like damned fools…

Letter from Percy Cudlipp, editor to the Evening Standard, to David Low

Both the above citations highlight the power of seemingly simple ‘funny’ pictures. Cudlipp was genuinely concerned about the potential of political cartoons in disrupting the fragile peace in Europe. Low was aware of the effectiveness of his cartoons and took great pains to ensure his art was doing exactly what he intended it to do. And it was. The Nazis eventually banned Low’s cartoons in Germany, a move that only amplified his reputation. Empowered with the knowledge that he was hitting his target where it hurt most, Low continued his relentless visual assault on the dictators and their ideologies. Far from silly pictures, cartoons wield considerable power.

 

Laughter in the Long Twentieth Century is on display at the Templeman Gallery at the University of Kent – on now until early September 2025.

Laughter in the Long Twentieth Century – exhibition and event

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The British Cartoon Archive at the University of Kent invites you to join us for our workshop, entitled Laughter in the Long Twentieth Century that explores cartoons through the lens of fascism and queerness.

Date: 1 July 2025
Time: 1pm – 4pm
Location: Available both in person (University of Kent, Templeman Lecture Theatre) and online via MS Teams

This event will feature two guest speakers who will explore the ways in which cartoons have served as tools of resistance and reflection over the course of the long twentieth century.

  • Dr. Harriet Earle, Senior Lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University. Her research  focuses on representations of conflict and trauma in visual culture, especially comics. Her work explores conflict and violence and how this helps to understand PTSD and trauma.
  • David Shenton, cartoonist, specializes in queer comics. Shenton is known for his work “Controlled Hysteria,” Stanley and The Mask of Mystery, and Phobia Phobia. His comic strips have been featured in the collections Strips Aids, No Straight Lines, and AARGH.

For those able to attend in person, there is a tour of the exhibition Laughter in the Twentieth Long Century after the workshop. The exhibition explores cartoons created in the long twentieth century with focus on the interwar period and the decades that followed. The exhibition explores the rise of fascism and the (in)visibility of LGBTQ+ people and communities since the 1960s through the lens of cartoons, highlighting how humour acted both as a powerful tool of social control but also of resistance and defiance in the face of oppression and uncertainty.

Please RSVP at  cartoons@kent.ac.uk 

Thank you to the Beaverbrook Foundation for providing the funds to make this event possible.

 

VE DAY 80

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Thursday 8th May 2025 – VE DAY 80.

VE Day (also known as Liberation Day, Victory Day, or Victory over Fascism Day) is celebrated across Europe with public holidays and national observances. It marks the 80th anniversary of the day of formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany’s unconditional surrender. In the UK, while it is not a public holiday, the day is marked with events happening across the nation, including street parties and community celebrations, military processions, and a service of remembrance at Westminster Abbey.

David Low, The nightmare passes, Evening Standard, 08 May 1945 (LSE1228a) ©Associated Newspapers Ltd

Wartime context

After almost 6 years of conflict, Adolf Hitler had taken his own life on 30 April 1945 during the battle of Berlin, in which the Red Army of the Soviet Union were gradually taking control of the city. Hitler’s successor, Reichspräsident Karl Dönitz, authorised and signed the German Instrument of Surrender in Berlin at 22:43 local time on 8th May 1945.

Sidney ‘George’ Strube, “His last territorial claim”, Daily Express, 02 May 1945. (GS0703) © Express Syndication Ltd

On issue of this surrender, celebrations erupted across the Western world, particularly in the UK, North America and the USSR. In London King George VI, his family, and Prime Minister Winston Churchill appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. Churchill continued to Westminster, where he addressed the nation saying “God Bless you all. This is our victory. In our long history, we have never seen a greater day than this.”

Listen to Churchill’s victory speech (YouTube link): Churchill’s victory speech and Red Arrows flypast – VE Day 75 (BBC)

However, this day was not a complete end to the conflict. The war against Japan was still underway with Chinese and American forces engaged in action. In July, American, British and Chinese governments continued to demand surrender from Japan, which they rejected.

David Low, “Baby play with nice ball?”, Evening Standard, 09 Aug 1945 (LSE1258) ©Associated Newspapers Ltd

In August 1945 the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Soviets declared war on Japan, invading Japanese-held Manchuria. These two events persuaded the Imperial Army leaders to accept the terms of surrender on 15th August 1945 (VJ Day).

Watch footage of the atomic bomb attack and its aftermath (YouTube link): Hiroshima: 75th anniversary of the atomic bomb (Telegraph) 

 

David Low, Interminable finale, Evening Standard, 14 Aug 1945 (DL2450) ©Associated Newspapers Ltd

Illingworth, Leslie Gilbert, ‘Isn’t your way out hara-kiri?’, Daily Mail, 13 Aug 1945 (ILW0958) ©Associated Newspapers Ltd.

 

VE Day, 8th May 1945

On the evening of 7th May 1945 an announcement was made via news flash that VE Day (8th May) would be a national holiday. People gathered throughout London to celebrate. In Trafalgar Square mass crowds gathered, making their way up the Mall to Buckingham Palace hoping to catch a glimpse of the Royal Family during one of their eight appearances on the famous balcony that day.

This letter in Punch, signed by ‘H.F.E’, gives a comical report on one man’s journey into London to celebrate on VE Day. It’s author, Humphry Francis Ellis, first appeared in Punch in 1933 and became it’s literary and deputy editor in 1949.

Punch, “Report on VE day”, May 16 1945, p412-3.

 

 

 

The dragon : a paper for the Buffs and men of Kent, 1945 (F22891600) ©University of Kent

The Dragon was a serial magazine created by the Royal East Kent Regiment of the Queen’s Own Buffs. It was published from 1886-1961. This edition from May 1945 features a statement from Major General Scarlett, writing on behalf of the Regiment about the end of the war. This edition also includes correspondence, notices of births marriages and deaths, notice of awards given to serving members (including the Military Cross and Military Medal), lists of Prisoners of War who have returned home, updates from ongoing campaigns in Italy and Burma, and some sporting updates.

 

 

Service of Thanksgiving – VE Day (BUFFS/WHI/HF)

In Westminster Abbey short services of ‘thanksgiving for victory’ were held every hour from 9am until 10pm, with an estimated 25,000 people attending.

 

This Order of Service was published by Cambridge University Press in 1945, and contains the preaching notes of a sermon to be given during the service. This version has been annotated in places by an unknown hand, including the insertion of an additional line after the Lords Prayer, remembering those still fighting in the War against Japan.In Whitehall, crowds awaited Prime Minister Winston Churchill who addressed them from the balcony of the Ministry of Health building. Others gathered outside the Houses of Parliament in Parliament Square, where Churchill’s address was played over loudspeaker.

NEB [Ronald Niebour], “Just one more for the old family album sir”, Daily Mail, 08 May 1945 (NEB0247) ©Associated Newspapers

See more about the days celebrations here: Imperial War Museum, What You Need To Know About VE Day.

Continuing conflict and life back home

Of course, there were some who were still serving across Europe and in the conflict in East Asia and the Pacific on 8th May 1945, and others who remained Prisoners of War or were yet to return home. Troops held their own celebrations across Europe, while others continued to fight. Soldiers remained abroad to support peacekeeping, liberation and other post-war activities. They helped communities find food and shelter, and continued to attempt to bring to justice to those guilty of war crimes.

Giles; Ronald Carl, “And now for England – and a basin full of post-war planning”, Sunday Express, 13 May 1945 (CG/2/5/1311 – GAP2056) ©Express Syndication Ltd

Carl Giles was a popular Daily Express cartoonist, first joining them in October 1943. In 1945 he was appointed as their war cartoonist with the 2nd Army, during which time he drew from the front lines. Giles witnessed both the liberation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in April 1945, and the German surrender at Lüneburg Heath in May 1945. Speaking of the experience in 1992, Giles said, “Not a day or night goes by even now when I don’t think of Belsen”.

 

Carl Giles, The Giles VE-Day collection : cartoons from the Daily Express, 1995 (F18096600)

This book contains many of the cartoons he drew for the Daily Express during the war, alongside the front covers of that day. The back cover of the volume includes part of the front page from VE Day.

Those who did eventually return home had to find a way to adjust back to civilian life, facing the many challenges that might bring.

Joseph Lee, Window Cleaners / “Come now, ex-Sergeant Leathers, war-time soldier, civilian window-cleaner…. brace yourself! Face your future like a man!”, Evening News, 12 Jul 1945 (JL3093) ©Associated Newspapers Ltd.

Pages from ‘Every day a bonus’, Ken Clarke, 1999 (F22880600 – Buffs collection) ©Ken Clarke

Ken Clarke was a soldier in the British Expeditionary Force during WWII, serving from September 1939 in France. He was taken prisoner during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940 and put into Stalag XXI-A, a German Army prisoner-of-war camp located in Ostrzeszów in German-occupied Poland . He spent five years in Poland and East Prussia as POW NO. 1001. He was one of the  many POWs who were forced to march westward from Poland, leaving on 19th February 1945, an event now referred to by many as “The March”. He and his fellow soldiers were liberated by American soldiers on 2nd May 1945 while in Dümmerstück,. He returned to England in a Lancaster bomber on 9th May, 1945.

In these images we  can see:

  • A copy of Clarke’s POW ID card
  • A map of the “long march”
  • Extracts from his manuscript about events that happened on and around VE Day.

Pages from ‘Every day a bonus’, Ken Clarke, 1999 (F22880600 – Buffs collection) ©Ken Clarke

Special Collections and Archives highlights: 2024 edition

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Karen Brayshaw, Special Collections and Archives Manager 

As 2024 draws to a close it is my great pleasure to look back on another busy and exciting year of activity in the University’s Special Collections and Archives. The only change to our Team this year is that we said goodbye our project archivist Daniella in the summer. Daniella worked with us on two funded projects, the David Drummond Pantomime Collection and the collection from the Craigmyle Fundraising Consultants.  The project included sorting, listing, repackaging, and making the two collections accessible and discoverable. You may have seen what she got up to on our social media channels. We wish Daniella well in her new venture. 

Daniella with some Aladdin material from the David Drummond Pantomime Collection.

The whole team have been amazing colleagues throughout the year – especially when I had to step back from work for a few months in order to recover from a health issue – I am very lucky to work with such an awesome team!  Although I’ve missed seeing the work that has taken place in the last three months, I have been able to follow the exciting events through colleagues and social media. One of the many highlights of the year for me was the amazing exhibition celebrating Kent’s rich mining history.  It was a great example of collaborative working with our volunteers and in this case we owe many thanks to Amy. It proved to be a popular attraction, and we had many visitors to the gallery, including external groups. As well as overseeing and co-curating our wonderful exhibitions, Beth has been busy working with the philanthropic community to grow the UK Philanthropy Archive and raising the funds to enable us to catalogue them. I’m looking forward to 2025 when much of this work will take place and the records will be added to our catalogue. Beth also has a loyal group of volunteers who come in regularly to work on the University archive, which will be super helpful next year as we approach the University’s 60th anniversary. Beth has also worked to deliver new and innovative sessions for external groups, and it was a joy to see the pantomime collection being utilised to stimulate the students from Canterbury College exploring ideas for their projects.  

Clair has had an amazing year, working to get more of our collections listed, repackaged, and added to the online catalogue for all to see. A significant amount of this has been made possible through the excellent work Clair does with student work placements and volunteers.  I was especially pleased to see the Holt’s Bairnsfather collection being listed and repackaged – you can read more about it below. Clair has also been busy this year overseeing loans of collection items for external exhibitions, which is another way of sharing our amazing collections with wider audiences.   

Christine has also been busy devising new sessions and introducing new material to the seminar groups, exposing the academics and students to the richness of our collections. In 2023 we were pleased to receive the Louis James collection and Christine has done an amazing job of cataloguing the whole lot! The collection is already proving its value in enriching our teaching offer and Christine is being a brilliant advocate for it. It’s also very satisfying to witness the great work Christine and her volunteers are doing with our theatre programme collection.   

Items from the Louis James Collection

Alex is keeping the Phase One rig busy and producing amazing images from the cartoon and theatre collections. This enables greater access as well as supporting the preservation of the collections. Mandy continues to beaver away making sure our cuttings collection is kept up to date. At the same time, she has been digitising some original art works and sheet music. Sam has been working on digitising and cataloguing collections in the British Cartoon Archive, specifically Lawrie Siggs and Donald Rooum Collections. You can now find the records for Lawrie Siggs on our catalogue. Jacqueline completed cataloguing the Arnold Rood collection, Jack Reading and Colin Rayner’s collection, Charles Lewen’s collection, and books from the David Drummond Pantomime collection. It’s always a joy to see what treasures she brings back from the basement!

Our colleagues from the Curation and Discovery team, Stu, Matthias and Emma have been working with us one day per week and continue to make big strides in dealing with our British Cartoon Library backlog as well as our digital cartoon collection and various book collections, making them available to everyone.   

I never cease to be amazed and humbled by the talented people that come to support us in our work. Our volunteer projects this year have yet again been hugely successful – many thanks to everyone who has helped us in 2024! – and we look forward to working with our current and new teams of volunteers in 2025. 

If you are on campus do drop by the Templeman Gallery, Block A|1. The team are currently installing a wonderful exhibition about pantomime (Oh yes they are!) which I promise will not disappoint you.  The new listening station has some lovely content on it. And do keep an eye on our social media channels for updates on our associated events.  

Sneak preview of our upcoming pantomime exhibition ‘Magnificent! Spectacular!’

Clair (Digital Archivist) 

Once again, the year has gone by super-fast and I feel as if I can only just recall all the amazing things the team has achieved this year, but there are a few stand outs for me.  

Firstly, we are so lucky to have worked with some amazing volunteers and placement students this year.I supervised a group of three students – Lizzie, Harvey and Nirvanna – who worked on packaging and preserving some ceramic objects in the British Cartoon Archive. You can read a blog post about this work here. I’ve also had the pleasure of working with our lovely volunteers, one of whom, Grahame, not only donated a collection of theatre programmes to us last February but also committed to listing them all for us! He’s now finished that work but continues to volunteer with us, working now on our Max Tyler collection. 

Completed packaging of Holt Bairnsfather Collection objects.

 

We’ve received some fabulous material for the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive this year which I’ve had the pleasure of sorting, accessioning and cataloguing, including three fan collections (Laura Grimshaw’s Teenage Obsessions, Richard Gill’s ‘A Rich Comic Life’ Collection, and the Joseph Champniss Collection), the Lakin McCarthy Entertainment Ltd Collection, and a collection of material from Stewart Lee.

Our loan service has been busy again this year, with British Cartoon Archive material going out to the Herne Bay Cartoon Festival and Imperial War Museum, and a continuing loan of a Nick Garland cartoon to the V&A that is part of an international touring exhibition.

Image of the V&A exhibition ’Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser’ installed at the V&A Musuem in South Kensington.

The poster for the ‘Churchill in Cartoons’ exhibtion outside the doors of the IWM.

It’s such a pleasure that we’re able to share our collections to the wider public in this way and I really enjoy being able to make connections with institutions in Britain and abroad through supporting their exhibitions.The exhibition at the IWM (Churchill in Cartoons: Satirising a Statesman) opens from 29 November 2024 to 23 February 2025, so do check this out if you can. We were very lucky to be invited to the Private View of the exhibition, which we very much enjoyed. It’s a fabulous look at Churchill’s political career through satirical cartoons. And I’m delighted to say we already have two exciting loan requests in process for next year, so things aren’t slowing down!

 

Lastly, I was thrilled to organise a Halloween event with my colleagues Beth and Christine this year. Called ‘Ghost Stories’, it was a behind-the-scenes tour of our archival stores with a difference! Attendees were titillated with (battery-powered) candle-lit readings of classic ghost stories. The event was very well received, and we hope to do another event next Halloween, albeit with a new spooOoOOooky theme.

An image of a spectre in our stores, lit only by emergency lights and (battery) tea lights

Beth Astridge (University Archivist)

Exhibitions in the Templeman Gallery

We run a regular programme of exhibitions in the Templeman Gallery and our ‘Mining in Kent’ exhibition was a particular highlight! Using a range of our archive material this exhibition told the story of the history of mining in Kent, from the early days of discovering the Kent coalfield to the impact of the 1984 Miners’ Strike. We were able to showcase material from several collections including the Richard Richardson Mining Collection, the British Cartoon Archive, the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive, and the Labour and Socialist Newspapers. We held several tours of the exhibition as well as a launch event and have been really pleased with the local interest and feedback about exhibition and our events. We are particularly grateful to one of our volunteers, Amy Green, who assisted with research, writing panels and captions, and installing the exhibition.

We also curated a virtual version of this exhibition which you can view on our exhibitions page.

Image of Coal Not Dole leaflet from the Richard Richardson Mining Collection

Another exhibitions highlight this year has been our collaboration with the Brook Rural Museum on an oral history project relating to memories of hopping and hop production in the Brook and Wye area of Kent. This resulted in an exhibition in our Gallery space featuring recordings of the oral history interviews alongside material that described the history and future of hop production in Kent. This exhibition will be on show again in 2025 at the Brook Rural Museum, so make sure you plan a visit!

Page on Picking Hops from Ann and Jane Taylor, Rural Scenes or a peep into the country: For children (1840), a book in our Children’s Literature collection (S 519.T23 TAY CLC

Listening Station

Our Listening Station in action during the exhibition, Local Stories: Memories of Hopping around Brook and Wye, Kent

The oral history exhibition gave us the opportunity to show off our new listening station in the Templeman Gallery. This is a new audio-visual unit that allows us to upload video and audio material for viewers to listen to/watch in the exhibition space. It is hearing aid enabled and has two listening speakers – so please watch out for future opportunities to discover more of our video and audio collections – including material for our next exhibition on the David Drummond Pantomime Collection.

Philanthropy and Fundraising

Page from early records of the National Benevolent Fund showing some of the early donors/subscribers, National Benevolent Fund Archive

The UK Philanthropy Archive continues to thrive and a highlight this year was receiving some important new collections. In July we received the collection of the National Benevolent Fund – a charity established in 1812 which used a subscription model to support ‘distressed gentlewomen’ with pensions and annuities and later supported those experiencing poverty. The collection had been identified as a collection at risk by The National Archives and we were pleased to play a part in saving this fascinating collection and giving it a home.

In September we were delighted to receive the archive collection of the John Ellerman Foundation along with a grant to enable the repackaging and cataloguing of this important collection of a foundation established by Sir John Ellerman, once Britain’s richest man, and the family behind the Ellerman Lines and Wilson Lines shipping business. Look out for more about this in 2025 when we start the cataloguing process.

And finally, also in September, we received the Jack Petchey Foundation archive. Sir Jack Petchey was a businessman and philanthropist who started a taxi business, a second-hand car business and later a property business, generating the wealth that he dedicated to charitable work and philanthropy focussed on young people through his Foundation. The full catalogue for this collection will appear on our website soon.

This year we have also made great strides towards cataloguing the Craigmyle Fundraising Consultants collection – a project that will be completed in 2025! The partial catalogue is available now to view on our website.

University Archive

In the University Archive we are gearing up to the University’s 60th anniversary celebrations later in 2025. One aspect of this will focus on music and live music performances on campus, and I have enjoying communicating with alumni who have memories and sometimes photo evidence of fantastic bands and gigs they attended. Volunteers Peter Stanfield and more recently David Blair have been doing an amazing job researching and logging the gigs and bands who played at the University since we opened in 1965. We are looking forward to making this complete list available for researchers and former students highlighting what it was like to work, study and enjoy live music on campus throughout its history!

Cataloguing the David Drummond Pantomime Collection

The Archives Revealed funded cataloguing project was almost(!) finished this year by our brilliant Project Archivist Daniella Gonzalez.

Students from EKC Canterbury College studying the David Drummond Pantomime Collection – image courtesy of Amanda Sefton-Hogg, Canterbury Festival.

We are using Daniella’s work to inform the final exhibition of the year – Magnificent! Spectacular! – which will showcase this fantastic collection and tell the story of the history of pantomime from the early days of the Commedia dell’Arte to the modern extravaganza we know today!

A panto project highlight was working in collaboration with the Canterbury Festival and  EKC Canterbury College to bring more than 100 students onto campus to use the David Drummond Pantomime Collection as inspiration for coursework across subjects such as fine art, textiles, graphics, and photography. You will be able to see a couple of the students creations in our exhibition, and we were super pleased that this highlight was featured in The National Archives publication, A Year in Archives.

Christine Davies (Special Collections and Archives Coordinator)

I had the great pleasure this year of cataloguing the collection of literature gifted to us by a former professor of Victorian and modern literature at Kent, Louis James. The Louis James Collection primarily comprises literature of the Caribbean and African diasporas, but there are also important theoretical and historical works on race, colonialism and slavery too. Many of us have heard of Olaudah Equiano, the famous abolitionist, but Mary Prince is less well known – born into slavery in Bermuda, her dictated memoirs were published in London in 1831 and reprinted twice in the same year. Further highlights in the collection, for me, include an unpublished typescript of Derek Walcott’s play Franklin; diverse artisanal, cloth-bound books published by the Writers Workshop (a small printing press established in Calcutta); the plethora of Caribbean poetry which details the migrant experience in Britain with irony, sometimes anger, always charisma, and which – on the page and in performance – was completely innovative. Kamau Brathwaite created the ‘Sycorax video style’ by combining customized typefaces with irregular page layouts; others’ are marked by their rhythmic similarity to reggae (dub) and/or their fusion of dialects. Amongst the African literature, there are works that reflect on Apartheid, delve into Anasi lore, and diverse anthologies that celebrate the continent’s diversity (from works of magical realism to social justice, from Nobel prize winners to Onitsha market literature); one of the most powerful works, for me, is Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s Devil on the cross, the manuscript of which was written in secret, from gaol, on toilet paper. The collection amounts to more than 1000 items and is fully accessible on Library Search.

Examples of Writers Workshop publications in the Louis James Collection, as displayed for our South Asian History Month Archives tour

I’ve also had good fun this year devising new material and seminars for Kent’s School of English, which gives students the opportunity to handle rare books and consider the intricate cultural and socio-political contexts of their period of study. The explosion of print in the eighteenth century gave rise to numerous newspapers and periodicals, the latter typically published monthly. These new arenas of print were not only used to disseminate information but also direct public taste and opinion and even shape literary developments. Fiction could be serialised in these monthly publications and biographies and gossip columns fuelled an emerging celebrity culture, giving voice to more obscure figures since forgotten – how many of you have heard of the blind poet and early disability advocate, Thomas Blacklock (1721-1791)? Did you know that The Lady’s Magazine (1770-1847) provided inspiration for both Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters?

Volunteer Amelia Bocskei working on photographs found in Terry O’Brien’s programme collection

As Beth and Clair have both mentioned, we couldn’t do all we do without the invaluable support of our volunteers, and this year has marked a significant leap forward in the management of our theatre programme collections.

Through the collected efforts of Ladaya Berrier, Amelia Bocskei, Stefana Ivanova, Rhea Nurice Lempert and Jessica Mulroy, thousands of programmes have been organised, re-packaged, and listed on spreadsheets, and this will be used to create and enrich catalogue records next year. This work has already enabled us to consolidate our existing holdings of theatre programmes and refine our collecting priorities; it has also enhanced our engagement work by filling gaps in performance history. Our volunteers have also found the experience greatly beneficial, stating how much a privilege it has been “to preserve a voice from the past” and “interact with original historical documents.”

Alex Triggs (Digitisation Administrator)

The high-resolution digitisation of the British Cartoon Archive collections continued throughout 2024 utilising the Phase One photographic rig. This year the focus has been on the original cartoon artwork of Mac (Stanley McMurtry), cartoonist with the Daily Mail. Mac’s career with the Daily Mail began in 1971 and lasted for almost five decades. As a result, this collection contains circa 5000 items of which approximately 80% have been digitised during the year. In addition, a selection of playbills from the David Drummond Pantomime Collection have also been digitised over the past 12 months. Many of these date back to the 1850s and require careful handling as they are extremely delicate.

Left: Our ‘digital kitchen’; Right: a playbill from the David Drummond Pantomime Collection.

On the audio-visual side, I have continued the digitisation the University of Kent Archive collection of vulnerable analogue magnetic audio cassette tape recordings. Moving forward, I am now beginning to address the significant number of at-risk VHS video cassette recordings contained within a several of the Special Collections, perhaps most significantly the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive.

Mandy (Special Collections & Archives Assistant)

I always enjoy scanning our Carl Giles collection every year for the Giles Annual, they are always fun. I have scanned 6,000 cartoons in our Hector Breeze collection, which is so interesting to do. I’m now working on another cartoon collection – the Alan Ralph Collection – which is now being digitised. The song sheets in the Max Tyler Music Hall Collection have also been so lovely to scan as some of them are so vintage and very delicate. Overall, it has been a busy and interesting time for 2024!

Hector Breeze cartoon (HB0012)

Jacqueline Spencer (Project Curation and Discovery Administrator)

I began the year cataloguing Arnold Rood’s collection of books on theatre. He collected widely around a strong nucleus of works by and about the extraordinary theatre designer (and son of Ellen Terry) Edward Gordon Craig. Next, I catalogued the extensive set of 20th century theatre periodicals in the Reading Rayner collection, then I added books from David Drummond Pantomime Collection to the library catalogue supporting the project to catalogue his archive. He collected books related to pantomime including both scholarly works on the origins of the genre such as ‘The reminiscences of Thomas Dibdin at the Theatres Royal, Drury Lane ..’ of 1824, and some lovely, illustrated children’s books such as ‘Naughty Cinderella’ from 1936.  Charles Lewsen’s books on theatre arts enhance our collection scope in this area, his collection contains more 19th century material. This delicate personification of ‘La Comedie’ with mask and barely visible sprites over her shoulders is the frontispiece from his copy of ‘Masques et bouffons (Comedie Italienne) with text and drawings by Maurice Sand, Paris 1862.

‘La Comedie’, Masques et bouffons (Comedie Italienne) with text and drawings by Maurice Sand, Paris 1862

The Holt Bairnsfather books came next, with a bottom-up view from the trenches of the 1914-18 World War. As this year ends, I have started cataloguing the Muggeridge Book Collection. Focusing on windmills in the U.K. and the Netherlands, William Burrell Muggeridge and Donald Muggeridge were also interested in industrial archaeology and country life and work and sought out locally published pamphlets which can be hard to find as well as substantial scholarly works on mills. Their books are now to be found in our ‘Wind and Watermills Collection’.

Matthias Werner (Curation and Discovery Administrator)

This year I have been focused on cataloguing books and cartoons for the British Cartoon Archive (BCA). I’ve catalogued the remaining books from the Eric Linfield Collection. I am currently working on the John Jensen Collection. John Jensen passed away in 2018, and the Special Collections Team has collaborated with his widow, Pat, and sons, Hal and Sean, to incorporate material from his estate into the existing collection at Kent. The books that have been passed on to us are from various eras and countries and primarily focus on caricature, cartoons, and comics.

Das grosse Trier-Buch, Walter Trier (1972)

My personal highlight, however, has been working on a book from our general BCA collection: Cataloguing a book on Walter Trier, a renowned German artist and illustrator, best known for his work on Erich Kästner’s children’s books. Seeing illustrations like the one below brought back some fond memories from my own childhood.

Additionally, I continue to catalogue Steve Bell’s cartoons for the BCA catalogue. Steve has been sending us his works published in The Guardian, ensuring they are preserved in the national cartoon archive. Looking through pieces like the one below takes me back to the surreal and bewildering times of the COVID pandemic.

[No caption], Steve Bell, 04 Mar 2020 (4470-040320 CONVID19)

Emma Solway (Curation and Discovery Administrator)

Ella Baron- Political Cartoonist

The British Cartoon Archive, housed in Special Collections and Archives, is a unique and ever-expanding collection. I have recently started cataloguing cartoons published in the summer of 2024, from a range of newspapers and cartoonists. This is challenging as each artists’ signature caricatures, styles and motifs must be learned and recognised over time. In addition, describing the events satirised within each cartoon involves developing a good knowledge of current domestic and world politics and the significant public figures of the day.  This is an interesting and stimulating part of my job, even more so when a cartoonist new to you grabs your attention.

[No caption], Ella Baron, 05 Jul 2024 (115193)

It is still quite rare to see political editorial cartoons drawn by women in my work, so she interested me immediately. The “boys’ club” is a common complaint of women working as cartoonists. As most editorial cartoonists stay in their jobs for life and are historically all men, this leaves women with little opportunity. However, it was great to see Ella’s biography, as she is having a flourishing career working regularly for the Times and the Guardian amongst others, after winning the British Cartoon Associations Young Cartoonist of the Year in 2017. As she once commented she enjoyed making a living from drawing Trump all day, I’ve included one of her cartoons featuring him from the Times in August this year. To learn more about Ella visit Ella Baron Cartoons.

Phoebe Barnes – Special Collections and Archives: Preserving the Past and Shaping the Future

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What follows is a blog post written by Phoebe Barnes, a Kent student who completed a week-long internship with Special Collections and Archives in November 2024 as part of her research for her dissertation. 

My Week at the University of Kent’s Special Collections and Archives: Preserving the Past and Shaping the Future

[In November 2024] I had the opportunity to intern at the University of Kent’s Special Collections and Archives, immersing myself in the captivating world of historical preservation. During my time there, I gained invaluable hands-on experience in archival preservation techniques, delved into Canterbury’s rich history, and engaged in insightful conversations with the archivists whose work upholds these collections. My week spent alongside this dedicated team not only deepened my appreciation for the significance of archives but also illuminated their evolving role as stewards of community memory and culture in the digital age.

Photograph taken at the corner of Burgate and Buttermarket c.1950s, Crampton Canterbury Photograph Collection (LH/CANT/PHO/12/102)

Rediscovering Canterbury in the 1940s Through Historical Photographs

One of my initial tasks involved rehousing a collection of photographs from the 1940s—a delicate process that allowed me to interact directly with images from a bygone Canterbury. As I transferred these photographs into archival-quality storage, I was struck by the scenes captured on film: familiar landmarks in their original, often unexpected settings. The photos challenged my assumptions about the city’s past—Canterbury’s streets were not as cobbled as they are now! This work underscored for me the power of visual history, highlighting the importance of preserving such images for future generations to appreciate and learn from.

Assisting with Seminars and Learning Preservation Techniques

Throughout the week I assisted in preparing for student seminars, which introduced students to historical materials in an engaging, hands-on environment. Observing the students’ interactions with these primary sources offered an inspiring perspective on how archives can bring history to life, sparking interest in research, history, and archival studies. Witnessing their reactions to these authentic materials reinforced my understanding of archives as vibrant educational resources.

In addition to seminar preparation, I took on a variety of preservation tasks, from meticulously cleaning fire-damaged sketchbooks with specialised brushes and smoke sponges, to creating custom protective covers for books dating back to the 1800s. These activities required patience and precision. Each task reminded me of the care and dedication that preservation work demands to ensure that these historical treasures endure for future generations.

Touring the Stronghold and Discovering Preventive Preservation Practices

One of the highlights of my internship was a tour of the archive’s stronghold, where the most sensitive and rare materials are housed. In this climate-controlled environment, I observed the extensive preventive measures employed to preserve delicate items, from temperature and humidity control to collaborative conservation efforts with experts, including those from Canterbury Cathedral. I was struck by the proactive nature of preservation work – it’s not solely about repairing items but involves safeguarding them from deterioration in the first place.

Special Collections and Archives store

Visiting Canterbury Cathedral’s Libraries and Discussing the Role of Modern Archives

Mid-week, I had the chance to visit the archives, reading room, and libraries at Canterbury Cathedral, where I continued to explore primary sources and connect with experienced archivists and conservationists. Our conversations with the collections team were particularly thought-provoking, as we discussed the evolving role of archives in today’s world. Archives are no longer static repositories of old documents; they are dynamic spaces that foster a sense of community and historical awareness. The team shared insights into how archives support cultural identity, encourage historical understanding, and promote collective memory.

The Reading Room at Canterbury Cathedral Archives and Library

A significant aspect of this work involves digitisation, which enables archival materials to reach a wider audience and facilitates access regardless of geographic limitations. By digitising fragile items, archives allow individuals around the world to engage with history, explore primary sources, and take part in the shared experience of discovering our collective past. This commitment to accessibility and outreach emphasises how archives are adapting to the demands of the modern world, making history available to all.

Reflections on a Transformative Experience

Reflecting on my week at the University of Kent’s Special Collections and Archives, I am incredibly grateful for the experience. While I entered this internship with a sociological view of the archival space, I left with a newfound respect for the archival practice and a deeper appreciation of the vital role archives play within the community. From handling historical photographs and learning preservation techniques to discussing the importance of archives in community building, each day provided fresh insights into this meaningful work.

I extend my heartfelt thanks to Christine, Beth, Clair, and the entire team for their guidance and mentorship. This internship revealed to me that archives are far more than mere collections of historical documents; they are dynamic, accessible resources that promote education, community engagement, and a shared appreciation of our past. This experience has inspired me to consider the many ways we can support and interact with archives to ensure these invaluable collections remain accessible and preserved for generations to come.