Photographing a Modern World: Britain 1900-75 is a fascinating visual chronicle of Britain’s social history, featuring nearly 500 striking news photographs, each paired with insightful captions. Sourced from the Daily Mail’s historical archive, these images weave a powerful narrative of the highs and lows of 20th-century life.
From shifts in work and housing to changes in leisure, the photographs reveal how everyday life evolved, while also capturing the profound impact of key historical moments, such as World War II and the Space Race. Showcasing the work of pioneering news photographers, including Frank Rust and Herbert Mason, the book is divided into themed sections, each introduced with contextual commentary exploring the social and historical forces behind the imagery. The book opens with an extensive essay by Dominic Sandbrook, renowned social historian and co-host of The Rest is History podcast.
Publication:
November 2025
Illustrations:
483
Dimensions:
260 x 260 mm
Format:
Hardback
ISBN:
978-1-911736-23-3
No. of pages:
552
Dominic Sandbrook is a British historian, author, columnist and television presenter. Educated at Oxford, St Andrews and Cambridge, he was an academic at the University of Sheffield before becoming a full-time writer. He is best known for his histories of Britain since the 1950s, including Who Dares Wins (2019), White Heat (2009) and State of Emergency (2010). He has also presented numerous documentaries on BBC Two and Radio 4 and is a columnist for The Times and a book critic for The Sunday Times. Sandbrook co-hosts The Rest is History podcast with fellow historian and author Tom Holland, which receives 11 million downloads per month, 1.2 million monthly YouTube views and has over 45,000 paying subscribers.