The Illustrated Police News cost just a penny, providing an affordable illustrated roundup of ‘all the startling events of the week’ from its first issue published on 20th February 1864. Promising to educate the people with fantastic features such as ‘BURGLARIES OF THE WEEK’ and its bountiful, often outlandish, illustrations, the paper was also a – perhaps unexpected – champion of social change. With crime historian Linda Stratmann as guide, the articles and special reports of the newspaper provide a fascinating view into the reading tastes and daily lives of its readership throughout the decades.

Led by the newspaper’s bombastic imagery sourced from the Library’s extensive archive, this new book revels in the infamy and social significance behind the exuberant headlines of this extraordinary periodical.

Author: Linda Stratmann

Brand: British Library Publishing

Number of pages: 272 pages, with 100+ illustrations

Binding: Hardback

Dimensions: 210 x 149 mm