SPECIAL SOUVENIR EDITIONS OF
THE ILLUSTRATED LONDON NEWS 1873-1981
by Robin S. Hunt
PART FOUR 1951-1989
For over a Century the Illustrated London News has issued
special souvenir editions for special events. In this, the fourth and
final article we record these publications which make a fascinating
catalogue of British and Foreign history.
Reacting against shortage and austerity, one of the largest bombed and
derelict sites in the centre of London, the South Bank of the Thames,
was filled by a deliberate gesture of faith in a brighter future, the
Festival of Britain. Officially a commemoration of the Great Exhibition
of 1851, to demonstrate British achievements in arts, sciences and design,
Herbert Morrison, the Minister in charge, announced the plan as ‘the
people giving themselves a pat on the back. ‘ The Dome of Discovery,
the Skylon and the Funfair of Battersea proved an immense success. Over
eight million people came to admire this new concept of an environment
where everything was intended to lift the spirits.
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