With the scars of the Second World War still visible across Great Britain, in 1948 the eyes of the world turned to the country who were set to host the fourteenth Olympiad. Would Britain be able to manage, just three years after the end of the crippling conflict that still saw rationing in place, and bomb sites across its towns and cities?The 14th Olympiad opens at London | Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News | 11 August 1948In this special blog, using our newspapers,…

The first Paralympics took place in Rome in 1960. But this was not the beginning of competitive sport for people with disabilities; indeed, the origins of the Paralympics can partly be traced to the aftermath of the Second World War and the work undertaken at Stoke Mandeville Hospital.Archers at Stoke Mandeville Hospital | The Sphere | 21 August 1948And nor was it the culmination of such work; the Paralympics in Rome were only open to those with mobility or physical disabilities, who made…

This week has been a buzzing one at The Archive, as we have an incredible nine brand new titles available to search, with specialist trade union publication the Bee-Hive joining us, as well as new titles from across England, Scotland and Wales. We’ve added 108,440 new pages over the last seven days, whilst we have also been busy updating 35 of our existing titles.So read on to discover more about our new titles from Teignmouth to Kilmarnock, and also to find…

This week at The Archive we have added a total of 75,958 brand new pages to our collection, and we are delighted to announce the addition of two brand new titles, covering the headlines between 1805 and 1961.So read on to discover more about our two new titles of the week, from an early Sunday newspaper to a Reading newspaper with a variety of political alliances. We will also be looking at the FA Cup Final 120 years ago, when Sheffield United took…

This week at The Archive we’re excited to welcome a very special new sporting title to our collection, as well as a long run of a new regional title. We’ve added 120,212 brand new pages in all over the past seven days – as the presses don’t stop whirring here at the BNA!Read on to discover more about this week’s brand new titles, as well as the additions we have made to our existing titles (including updates to one of our…

As we continue to celebrate Black History Month at The Archive, in this special blog we will take a look at six pioneering Black British sporting heroes and their amazing stories.Using pages taken from the British Newspaper Archive, we will take the opportunity to tell the inspiring stories of these Black British sportsmen, whilst attempting to understand the prejudice they faced and overcame in pursuing their different sports.From left to right: J.E. London, Arthur Wharton, Len Johnson and…

On 20 March 1966, an audacious robbery was orchestrated at Westminster Central Hall. On show were rare stamps with a total value of £3 million; but these were not the target of the very literal daylight robbery, undertaken under the noses of no less than six security guards. For also on display was the Jules Rimet Trophy, the solid gold prize presented to the winners of the football World Cup, which was to be held in England that summer.Sunday Mirror | 2 January 1966It…

This week we have a lot to celebrate here at The Archive. Not only is it our 8th birthday (The Archive was launched on 29th November 2011) – we have also reached the remarkable milestone of 35 million pages – all now available to search.We have added 128,362 new pages to our collection this week, with one brand new title – the Sporting Gazette – joining us. We also have updates to six of our existing titles, with extensive updates to Scottish title the Elgin Courant,…

Performing a search for cricket in our oldest British Newspaper Archive publications (the Archive’s earliest pages run from 1699) it is possible to discover the fascinating history of the enduringly popular sport. In this special blog we will look at cricket’s early association with royalty, its emergence as a gambling sport, and its inevitable explosion in popularity.Kentish Gazette | 23 June 1773An early and passionate advocate for the sport was Prince Frederick of Wales, father of George III, who was popularly thought…

The first recorded mention of women’s cricket was in 1745, in Surrey. We searched our Archive for early mentions of women’s cricket, and we came across a treasure trove of articles describing the early history of the sport.Harrow versus Pinner | Graphic | 18 August 1888One of these comes from the Sherborne Mercury, published in August 1849. It describes a match between ‘nine married ladies’ and ‘nine single ladies’ played at Picket Post, in the New Forest. The single ladies were defeated by one…