British Newspaper Archive

In partnership with The British Library, home to the largest online collection of British and Irish historical newspapers.

The British Newspaper Archive is only available in the library. To view pages from the archive, you'll need to register (for free) and be signed in to the service.

The British Library's collection of historical newspapers is one of the wonders of the world. It contains newspapers from the 1600s to the present day, from Britain, Ireland and further afield. Millions of pages or newspapers have been scanned and are searchable. Millions of pages of historical newspapers have been scanned and available online for the first time ever.

Getting Started

To view pages from the archive, you'll need to register (for free) and be signed in to the service.

All the articles you view will be kept in your Saved area – it’s your personal area in which to store and organise your favourite articles. Here you can create folders for different articles and categorise them however you like – the beauty of "Saved" is that you can make it whatever you want. You can also add notes to any of your articles to record your thoughts and track your progress.

What can I search?

News Articles - read about national events, as well as issues of local and regional importance. News articles are your window into daily life in historical Britain.

Family Notices - search for your family's birth, marriage and death notices plus related announcements including engagements, anniversaries, birthdays and congratulations.

Letters - read letters to the editor written by the newspaper's readers, including illuminating contemporary debates, aspirations and anxieties.

Obituaries - view a wealth of contemporary information on the lives of notable individuals and ancestors.

Advertisements - these include classifieds, shipping notices and appointments..Illustrations - see photographs, engravings, graphics, maps and editorial cartoons.