This is the first book to tell the story of British photography as a coherent whole, from the pioneers of the early 19th century to photographers today who display their images on websites, on computer screenseven iPods. The authors have traveled the length and breadth of the UK, researching both well-known and forgotten bodies of work. Many famous names are here: Henry Fox Talbot, Lewis Carroll, Julia Margaret Cameron, Bill Brandt, Madame Yeronde, Angus McBean, Susan Lipper, and Tom Hunter are just a few. Among the works shown are postcards, family albums, photographic illustrations in books, medical photographs, wartime propaganda, and social documents. Through their exhaustive research the authors demonstrate the extraordinary range and diversity of roles that photography has played in British cultural life over the past 150 years.