When planning our March newsletter, we thought an introductory image that conveyed the promise of spring would be an appropriate choice, but in the light of recent weather (still cold, but now with added wind and rain), we've changed our minds. Thanks then to artist Wilton Williams for his breezy 1920s ladies from The Tatler, featured here instead.

Postcards rather dominate this month's newsletter, of various styles and from different periods, but there is also news of a stamp marking an iconic name from the age of steam, a handy tip for grabbing comp images, more photographic fabulousness from the queen of street photography, Shirley Baker, and a chance to put your name in the frame. Read on for more.

Stamp of Approval - Flying Scotsman

The philatelists among you will no doubt already be aware of the latest Royal Mail stamp issue, which celebrates the centenary of the legendary Flying Scotsman, and is the last to feature the head of the late Queen Elizabeth II. We were pleased to be a small part of this historic set by supplying an LNER advertisement by famed silhouette artist, Harry Lawrence Oakley (1882-1960), which features on one of the stamps.

Oakley worked on a number of designs for the rail line during the 1920s, which seems particularly appropriate as he hailed from Poppleton on the outskirts of York. His famous 'Think' recruitment posters were also prominent in the station during the Great War. What is intriguing is that his Flying Scotsman image was already being used on LNER timetables in 1923, sometime before the train was officially given the name the following year.

Click here for more information on Royal Mail's Flying Scotsman centenary stamps.

P is for Preview

A top tip for anyone using our website. To download watermarked preview images, simply click the 'P' underneath the image in the picture record and it will automatically download. We have spoken to a couple of you recently who weren't aware of this feature, so thought it was definitely time for a reminder. Please note you must be registered and logged in to use this facility and your login must also be linked to a client account.

Just drop us a line at pictures@maryevans.com if you need help getting that set up.

Postcard perfection - The J. Salmon Archive

We've recently added several hundred images from the J. Salmon archive by the artist Alfred Robert Quinton (1853-1934) depicting a charming series of landmarks and scenic views around the British Isles done in the early 1900s.

J Salmon Ltd., was founded in 1880 by Joseph Salmon, a London bookseller running a stationer's shop and general printing business in Sevenoaks, Kent. His son, also Joseph, took over the business and became interested in the potential of printing and publishing pictorial postcards, initially depicting local views.

Around 1912, Joseph Salmon started to publish postcards featuring the work of Quinton, a famous association that was to last until the artist's death in 1934. In late 2017, the company took the decision to cease printing production, finally withdrawing from publishing in the early part of 2018.

We are delighted that the Salmon family have chosen Mary Evans Picture Library to aid them in licensing imagery from their vast artwork archive. Alongside the superb work by A R Quinton, other highlights include the paintings of aircraft and ships by A. F. D. Bannister, the attractive Fairyland illustrations by Flora White, the humorous postcard illustrations of Reg Carter and a delightful set of seaside scenes by Cicely Mary Barker. We had great fun looking through Alfred Quinton's pictures. Although they present an idyllic view of bygone Britain, it's actually surprising how little some places have changed. Take a look and see how many you can tick off as having visited.

John Hinde Update

More postcards now, but from another era and this time the views are photographic. As St. Patrick's Day approaches, it seems appropriate that the latest batch of images to be added to our website from the John Hinde Collection are of various views of the fair city of Dublin. With this and other sets from the archive of this postcard publisher, we have scanned both the complete postcard and the original colour transparency, giving you the choice of presentation for each retro view.

What's in a name?

We absolutely love these large letter name postcards dating back to the early twentieth century, cheerfully filled with photographs of decorative Edwardian lovelies. We now have fourteen of them and with many old-fashioned names popular again, if you are, or know, a Harry, a Bessie, Ada, Eva or Tom, then we have the ideal personalised picture for you. These images are available on our print site, in case you can't resist putting your name in the frame!

Shirley Baker

More treasures keep being unearthed in the archive of the North West's finest street photographer Shirley Baker, and this latest set includes some real gems, including canoodling couples from the early 1970s and some colourful characters of Greater Manchester from the mid-1980s.

As always with her work, they reveal Shirley's knack for finding the humour and humanity in the everyday. Whether it's a rag-tag band of kids playing out, or the queue for an ice cream van in 1964, it's impossible not to smile and be charmed by her sharply observed images.

Art & Hue - final call for London Life & Tatler prints

It's the last chance to purchase a selection of Tatler and London Life covers from the ILN archive, given a stylish pop art remix courtesy of Art & Hue. The prints only remain on sale until 26th March so move quickly if you'd like some cool vintage wall candy for your home.