Oct 26, 2026 | Brands, Stories
For a few decades in post‑war Britain, one sound could send women to the front door faster than the milkman or the postman: “Ding dong — Avon calling!”. Avon’s long‑running TV campaign (1954–67) turned the Avon Lady into a minor celebrity — a neatly dressed emissary...
Aug 30, 2026 | Advertising and media, Politics and government policy, Stories
“The first thing, perhaps, is that appointing a Drought Minister is crucial…” The 1976 drought was one of the most severe Britain had ever faced. Reservoirs collapsed, rivers shrank, and by late August the National Water Council judged the situation so serious that it...
Aug 11, 2026 | Social history, Stories
How Britain coped with the 1976 potato shortage In the summer of 1976, Britain discovered the limits of its national stoicism. The drought scorched fields, potato yields collapsed, and chip shops quietly began to reduce portions or close early. It wasn’t official...
Jul 13, 2026 | Politics and government policy, Stories
Andy Burnham’s victory in the Makerfield by-election, expected to be swiftly followed by his unopposed elevation to leadership of the Labour party and thus Prime Minister, prompts an examination of past polling results to see how his stock has risen. Andy Burnham’s...
Jul 2, 2026 | Advertising and media, Stories
Penelope Keith: an AMSR tribute There is a Penelope Keith for every age. To Boomers, she’s Margot Ledbetter, horrified to be living next-door to Tom and Barbara’s garden smallholding in Surbiton. To Gen X, she’s Audrey fforbes-Hamilton in To the Manor Born. And to...
