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The Railway Poster in Britain

London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS)

The London Midland and Scottish Railway suffered from a lack of unity as well as the difficulties of bringing together a vast and diverse system. It had inherited some good poster advertising practices from constituent companies, like the LNWR, that had employed Norman Wilkinson, but its early products were mainly the result of carrying on the policies of the earlier companies.

However, the LMS did begin to develop a new policy for poster advertising. It commissioned three posters from Norman Wilkinson and asked for his views on how its advertising could be improved. Wilkinson proposed that, in order to raise standards, members of the Royal Academy should be asked to design a series of posters for the company. Eighteen artists were approached and, with the exception of one, all accepted. The subjects were chosen and allocated by Wilkinson but the artists were then left to carry out the design in their own way. 

The Permanent Way poster

London Midland and Scottish Railway
The Permanent Way, Relaying by Stanhope Alexander Forbes,1924
© National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library

The first of these posters appeared on the hoardings early in 1924. They were intended to illustrate the life and work of the LMS as well as the areas it served. Three posters depicted industries served by the LMS. This was new ground for the railway poster. Previous posters had advertised the docks and other facilities that they offered to industry but had not shown the industries themselves. The scheme generated an enormous amount of favourable publicity for the LMS and helped to set new standards in design quality for the company.

The Night Mail poster

London Midland and Scottish Railway
The Night Mail, The Enginemen by Sir William Orpen, 1924
© National Railway Museum / Science & Society Picture Library