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ljmu-sca.bsky.social
LJMU Special Collections & Archives
@ljmu-sca.bsky.social
1.6K followers 790 following 120 posts
Home to: LJMU's history; punk & pop culture; visual arts; music; women & girls' comics (Femorabilia); Stafford Beer; Liverpool theatre; 19th Century periodicals; & more! ✏📰
https://linktr.ee/ljmu_sca
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ljmu-sca.bsky.social
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Where Artists and Texts Meet
Are you a book artist or take inspiration from literature? Submit for an upcoming exhibit, deadline 4 Jan 2026. All details via: www.curatorspace.com/opportunitie...
#books #literature #library #art #bookart #exhibit #libraries #bookartist #archive
Text imposed on background print artwork for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Text reads: CALL FOR ARTISTS: Where Artists and Texts Meet. Are you a book artist, or take inspiration from literature? LJMU and Liverpool Book Art are collaborating on this call for submissions for exhibition of new or pre-existing works of: Art inspired by existing literature or poetry; Artists books; Collaborations between artists and writers; New bindings or settings of texts. Deadline 4 Jan 2026 - more details at the link.
December 5, 2025 at 9:52 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Our April Ashley First Look event went SO well - THANK YOU to everyone who attended!
If you couldn't make it - we still want to hear from YOU as to what you'd like to see from the collection: forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...
#archive #history #lgbthistory #transhistory #lgbthm #liverpoolhistory #art
November 21, 2025 at 4:07 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Really happy to have supported two contributions to EX LIBRIS: a Graphic Design & Illustration @ljmuofficial.bsky.social staff exhibition with two sets of reproductions from our Special Collections.
Curated by Seel Garside
John Lennon Art & Design Building
#art #arthistory #books #libraries #ljmu
October 31, 2025 at 11:10 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
We're all set up for our big exhibition launch tonight and can't wait to see you!
Back to the Drawing Board: 200 Years of Art Education
Runs 16 Oct - 19 Dec 2025
Mount Pleasant Campus Library, 29 Maryland St, L1 9DE
#art #exhibit #arthistory #liverpool #history #archives #ljmu #liverpoolhistory
October 16, 2025 at 3:42 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
A LEGACY IN MOTION celebrates 125 years of women's sports education in #Liverpool, from the Liverpool Gymnasium in 1900 to the long-lasting impact of I M Marsh College.
LG & G Floors of Aldham Robarts Library
29 Maryland St, L1 9DE
Mon-Fri 08:45-17:00
#womenshistory #sportshistory #history #archives
Poster for A Legacy in Motion: Women's Physical Education 1900-2025. The poster displays an open locker, with the exhibition title on the open locker door with the dates 12 May - 2 September 2025 as well as the address, and inside the locker is another panel of text reading: 'Curated by Christopher Olive, LJMU Special Collections & Archives Designed by Paola Dore, [affiliation] With many thanks to LJMU Special Collections & Archives The Association of Past Students of I M Marsh College of Physical Education Apogee Corporation Ltd. LJMU School of Art and Creative Industries Department for Graphic Design & Illustration With special thanks to: Rebecca Davies, Jas Kaur, Dorna Mahmid, and Sally Marquiss.' The design also features some cut out pictures of women doing sports from original photographs in the archive along various geometric shapes. A photo of two exhibition cases. The closest has blue transparent vinyls down the front to split the case into three 'lockers.' On one side is a hanging swimming costume, some books, and some interpretation panels with photos and text, and on the other side is a hockey stick, a hockey cap, some shin pads, a small red book, and some hanging socks with a field sports interpretation panel at the back. In the background you can also see another tall exhibition case featuring a headless mannequin wearing an I M Marsh uniform scarf and blazer. In between the two cases is a bench to sit on, and the header poster for the exhibit. A close up photo of a flat exhibition case, behind which is a window with a vinyl compilation image of women from the archive doing sports on geometric shapes. The case itself has a timeline of 1919-1938 printed on it. Items inside the case include a photo album, a loose page from a photo album, a uniform scarf, a plaque, a green dress, a uniform belt, some emblem badges, and some photographs, as well as the interpretation label text.
May 22, 2025 at 9:26 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
#ArchivePlan chests are so-called so b/c they usually store architectural plans & maps.
B/c we specialise in #counterculture & #theatre however, ours are mostly posters & oversize photos!
View every Everyman Theatre poster here: everyman-theatre-pos.ljmuexhibitions.online/sets
#Archive30 #archives
A plan chest with one draw half open and another fully open, showing various large counterculture posters, including ‘FREE PUSSY RIOT’ and a photograph of Poly Styrene.
April 8, 2025 at 11:34 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Programme for Stupid Cupid, c.1993, with some wonderful adverts at the back!
#theatrehistory #history #archive #lgbthistory #theatre #lgbtq+ #lgbt #gayhistory #archives
Front cover of programme for Stupid Cupid by Phil Willmott. Presented by Gay Sweatshop Theatre Company, with tagline 'The Sin-steeped story of today's "bent" generation."' It features a butch in a short sleeved button up with an arm tattoo smoking a cigarette while holding a woman with blonde Marilyn style hair and a red evening dress, and two men sat at a bar in the background. Advert page featuring adverts for Spark Ceresa Design Consultants; Evan Butler Wade Solicitors 'Whether you are sin-steeped or stain-free we are here to advise you'; the new-look Everywoman magazine; Gay Men Fighting AIDS (GMFA) 'We give a fuck: write for more information to join us.'; 'No need to be lonely: MAKE NEW FRIENDS: Join Kenric: The Nationwide Group for Lesbians'; I am a Bee theatre performance by Pascal Brannan; and the world premier tour of Twilight Shift by Jackie Kay: 'In a small Scottish mining town, two men are in love. One cuts coat, the other cuts hair. Two men fall in love with each other.' Advert for HOM: Men in Hom Underwear hold their Cocks with Pride. The image features a man in boxer briefs holding a chicken. The bottom reads 'Free Male Order Catalogue' with the contact details.
April 4, 2025 at 11:07 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Excited to welcome our new intern Caitlin Cooper, who will be finalising the four year project to catalogue the Elder Dempster Captain Morgan (EDCM) collection 🥳🚢
Read more: ljmuarchives.blog/2025/04/02/e...
#archives #archive #maritimehistory #liverpool #history #students #elderdempster
A white female student sits at a desk looking at a screen with an Excel catalogue up. She is wearing glasses on her top of her head, and has a brown ponytail. Behind her is our Reading Room, and shelves of 19th Century periodicals. Plate from childrens' service, with image of bear riding a bicycle on the front. It reads 'Elder Dempster Lines Childrens Service.'
April 2, 2025 at 10:51 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
As if you needed more reasons to visit our #exhibitions, they're always well stocked with badges to take away 😍
This time repros from Kate Greenaway's Alphabet for the children's #books exhibit Once Upon a Page: ljmuarchives.blog/2025/02/10/o...
#exhibit #museum #library #childrensbooks #libraries
A stand with a red cloth on top displaying: badges to take away with archive reproductions on them, predominantly showing alphabet designs from Kate Greenaway's Alphabet; a magazine stand with several children's books for browsing; a leaflet advertising the exhibit Once Upon a Page; and the LJMU Special Collections & Archives resource guides for All Collections A-Z, LGBTQ+ History, and Liverpool Theatre and Writing.
March 19, 2025 at 1:14 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
The NEW student-led Liverpool School of Art & Creative Industries (LSACI) Journal is accepting submissions!
To publish written or artistic work in a school-wide Journal to celebrate 200 years of #art education in #Liverpool, get in touch via LSACIjournal@outlook.com
@ljmuofficial.bsky.social
Advert for contributions to the LSACI Journal, with an image of students life drawing a male model in the 1930s on top, and text on bottom. The text reads: Contribute to the *NEW* LSACI Journal: Celebrating 200 Years of Art Education. Publish your work: Open call for ANY pre-existing art, papers essays, designs, and photography. All courses encouraged. Send your work to our email. Submit by April 1st 2025. Wishing to submit something we haven't listed? All enquiries welcome via our email. LSACIjournal@outlook.com
March 11, 2025 at 2:48 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Phyllis Hyman, 1979. Digitised today for an enquirer and thought it too beautiful not to share 🖤

📸 TP/3/3/484 from our Ted Polhemus collection: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/TreeBrowse.a...
#archive #phyllishyman #Blackhistory #pophistory #culture #pop #archives #history #americanhistory
Black and white photo print of Phyllis Hyman, a Black American singer and Broadway performer. Her skin is glowing and she is wearing a skin-tight v-neck vest top, with dark eye make up and contouring.
March 5, 2025 at 5:46 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
"It’s very powerful to know at least some of our known and unknown histories are being collected and stored and used. I will definitely be back!"

Thank you to everyone who attended one of our #LGBTQ+HM #archive workshops ❤️🏳️‍🌈
#lgbt #history #lgbthistory #lgbthm #lgbtq+ #gayhistory #transhistory
Three people sat in our Reading Room happily looking at archive material, with a display of Femorabilia (women and girls) magazines in the background. A table full of archive material and special collections publications, including photograph albums from I M Marsh College, a satirical book cutting mocking dandies, two scrapbooks of 19th century period women's costume, The Family Doctor, some of Peter Farrer's publications, & etc. A full table of archive material with a close up of The Wolverine: Gay Voices of Hostility publication. In the background is the Two Cowboys design pillowcase t-shirt, made by Malcolm McClaren using Jim French's illustration. A full table of archive material and special collections publications showing small run community publications and erotic zines from predominantly the 1970s, as well as catalogues in the background and 1980s-1990s club flyers.
February 28, 2025 at 10:56 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
The Adventures of a Girl For a Week: Or is it Forever?
"Don't Cry... You don't have to go back dressing as a boy. I love you as my sister."

From our Peter Farrer collection: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/Record.aspx?...
#lgbthm #lgbtq+ #lgbthistory #archive #history #trans #transhistory #transgender #lgbt
Scan of the cover and reverse of The Adventures of a Girl for a Week: Or is it Forever? Featuring an illustration of two girls sat at a table on the cover, with a hairbrush and lamp. One of the girls is crying, with her hands on her chin. The other is wearing an apron and comforting her. The reverse cover reads "Your dream come true.. "I just love dressing in your clothes, Sally." ...Paul; I mean Paula, you look nice as a girl. You can be my Sister and Girl Friend!" with an illustration of two girls in a bedroom. One is wearing a black dress with puffy sleeves, possibly a night dress, with curled black hair and her knees tucked under the covers of the bed. The other is wearing a mid-length evening skirt and belted jacket with fur cuffs, and a hat with cropped hair.
February 21, 2025 at 3:11 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
#Didyouknow we specialise in records related to #LGBTQ+ histories and experiences?
Check out our LGBTQ+ History Resource Guide to learn more about this #archive material!
www.ljmu.ac.uk/library/spec...
#lgbthm #lgbt #lgbtplushm #history #archives #archivist #queer #gay #transgender #transhistory
Front page of the LGBTQ+ History LJMU SCA Resource Guide, featuring a circular image from the Gary Everett collection showing ephemera from Homotopia, Tom of Finland Foundation, and other lgbtq+ events. Screenshot of the first page of the inside of the LGBTQ+ History Resource guide. Full readable text is available to download as a pdf via the website linked within this post.
February 18, 2025 at 3:07 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
We actually prefer the electric sponge as our cure-all of choice! 🧽🔌
Photo of an advert in the 1880s periodical The Family Doctor, showing 'Randal Cresswell's Electric Sponge, for the Bath and Toilet.'
February 14, 2025 at 2:39 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Valentine magazine for St Valentine's Day 🥰 From our Femorabilia collection of women and girls' magazines.
📸 FEM/110/1/8; 10; and 20
Browse the collection: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/TreeBrowse.a...
#magazines #girlsmags #mags #comics #valentine #valentinesday #archives #history #1950s #1960s #archive
Valentine magazine front cover Valentine magazine front cover Valentine magazine front cover
February 14, 2025 at 10:57 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
International Day of Women & Girls in Science was on Tues, but it's always a good day to show off #GirlsinSTEM in the #archive!
📸 LJMUH/FLC/10/3/12/5-6;8 - F L Calder College students investigating hardness of water; anodising aluminium; & properties of nylon.
#womeninscience #history #womenshistory
Black and white Photo of Students Doing Science, Testing the Hardness of Water. Three students, one white, one possibly South Asian, and one possibly East Asian, stand at a lab bench with beakers and other lab equipment, making notes. Black and white photo of one white female student sat at a lab bench in a lab coat is investigating The Anodising of Aluminium. She is looking at a beaker filled with a clear liquid with a wire leading to a device with an old-fashioned dial, which she is turning. Black and white photo of three white women in lab coats investigating the properties of nylon. One is weighing something on a balanced weighing scale, while another is pulling up a thread of melted presumed-nylon. Behind them is a blackboard with chemical formulas written in chalk.
February 13, 2025 at 3:14 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
🧵5/6 All of the photograph albums from this collection have been fully digitised and are available to download as PDFs from our online catalogue: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/Overview.asp...
📸 LJMUH/IMM/4/6/4/8
Four photographs pasted into a photograph album page. The first shows Henderson in the sea, hoisting up her skirt, with one terrier dog. The second shows Marsh on a sandy bank near some large rocks, gesturing to Demon the terrier dog who has climbed up onto a ledge. The third shows Henderson sat down in the dunes with a union jack pillow, with all three terrier dogs Dodger, Demon, and Dock. The fourth is a photo of some cliff ledges on the sandy bank, taken from above.
February 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Many staff members & students were known to have had relationships w/in the women's College. In the absence of textural records evidencing this, oral testaments & photograph albums demonstrate the love, friendship, & life that was shared across the College community 🧵 4/6
#lgbt #lgbthm #history
Four images pasted into a photograph album. The first shows a landscape of water and some trees, with a figure crouching down in the foreground. The second shows two women, Marsh, and another person, crouching near a shed with a terrier dog. The third shows Henderson sat with three dogs on the floor. The fourth shows Marsh sat on some rocks with three terrier dogs. She is wearing a sunhat and smiling broadly.
February 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Marsh & Henderson were known for wearing costumes, including dressing up as 'two old ladies' to observe outdoor sports classes at a distance w/out making students too nervous to assess properly, & hosting fancy dress swimming galas every other Saturday! 🧵3/6
📸 LJMUH/IMM/4/1/4/1/1
Three photos in a photograph album page. The photos are originally sepia but have been manually coloured in by hand. The first image shows three women, two in female fancy dress with wigs, and the third in the centre holding the others' hands dressed in male formal fancy dress, coloured in green. It is captioned 'Eleanor, Greene, Aynsley.' The second photograph is captioned 'Senior's Dance' and is a distant group shot of lots of women in female fancy dress. The third image shows three women dressed in male formal attire, including top hats, with one sat between the other two's shoulders. It is captioned 'Pennycuicr, Sherridan, Townshend.' Three photos in a photograph album page. The photos are originally sepia but have been manually coloured in by hand. The first shows two women in swimming costumes and caps, with one holding the others' shoulders and the other holding the first's waist. It is captioned '"Hell's Bells" being pushed in by Jean.' The second shows several figures around the swimming pool, captioned 'Betty Free
February 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
'The Shanty' became a community hub for the two women and their students, who were regarded as members of a large 'family' & often visited. Marsh was always referred to as 'Mums' & Henderson as 'Auntie Kathleen.' 🧵2/6
Download the photo album: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/Record.aspx?...
📸 LJMUH/IMM/4/6/4/8
Photograph album page with sepia photos pasted in showing various women, staff members and students of I M Marsh College including Principal Marsh and Vice Principal Henderson, in casual clothes and sports clothes sat having tea, sat with dogs, and sat outside the wooden house known as The Shanty.
February 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Combining #EYALove w/ #LGBTQ+ History Month to share 'life companions' Kathleen Henderson & Irené Mabel Marsh, the Vice Principal & Principal of I M Marsh College, w/ dogs Demon, Dodger, & Dock at their Abersoch holiday cottage, c.1920s 🧵1/6
#lgbthm #lgbtq #gayhistory #archives #history #queer #lgbt
LJMUH/IMM/4/6/4/8, sepia photograph album photo c.1900s-1930s p.9, showing life ‘companions’ Kathleen M Henderson (left) with Irené Mabel Marsh (right) and their small terrier dogs Demon, Dodger, and Dock sat on their laps at their holiday cottage ‘The Shanty’ in Abersoch, Wales.
February 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
One of the records we provided digital repros of for a BBC Songs of Praise episode on @barbaradickson.bsky.social was this album cover for John, Paul, George, Ringo... & Bert, originally performed at the Everyman @liveveryplay.bsky.social
You can watch the episode at: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...
WR/6/1/8 Vinyl record sleeve for the RSO Records original cast recording of John, Paul, George, Ringo... & Bert by Willy Russell, directed by Alan Dosser. The album is a warm yellow with a red semi-circle behind a staircase with stars drawn on it. Stood on the staircase is caricatures of the Beatles with the addition of Bert. WR/6/1/8 Vinyl record sleeve reverse for the RSO Records original cast recording of John, Paul, George, Ringo... & Bert by Willy Russell, directed by Alan Dosser. The background is a warm yellow and features a detailed credits list, in addition to photographs of Barbara Dickson; Leroy Lover as Bert; Tiny Tina; cast members as the Beatles.
February 10, 2025 at 11:44 AM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
The scrapbooks were collated by Liddell Hart, a military historian with a lesser-known love of women's period fashion, and friend of aforementioned Peter Farrer. 🧵5/6
Although most of his papers were donated to King's College London, we hold his costuming papers: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/Record.aspx?...
Coloured book plate from La Gazette Rose, dated 1 November 1873. It features two women gazing longingly at one another, gently touching hands. In the background is a red plush chair with a heart-shaped back, and the shape of their tall hair and hat respectively also mimic the heart shapes in the image.
February 6, 2025 at 12:50 PM
ljmu-sca.bsky.social
Men in Petticoats is an edited volume by Peter Farrer (whose papers we hold) of articles written about & by crossdressers of different periods.
The cover illustration is taken from a special periodical on the 1870 sensationalised arrest 🧵4/6
View the collection: archives.ljmu.ac.uk/Record.aspx?...
Cover of Men in Petticoats: A Selection of Letters from Victorian Newspapers, edited by Peter Farrer. Includes an illustration of two couples who present as heterosexual in formal dress, with a police officer looming in the shadows waiting to arrest them.
February 6, 2025 at 12:50 PM