How Political Adverts Have Changed Over The Years (PHOTOS)

The Art Of Elections: How Political Adverts Have Changed Over The Years (PHOTOS)

From the striking 'Labour Isn't Working' posters of the 1970s to a demonic Tony Blair, political adverts have always impacted on the public.

Now a new book, Dole Queues and Demons, chronicles the evolution of Conservative party advertising over the years and allows an insight into how the issues of the day have changed - and with it, the social attitudes of Brits.

In a forward to the book, advertising guru Maurice Saatchi says posters are to politics "what poetry is to literature: the only possible words in the only possible order. They should instantly convey the core message in a memorable way. This requires a handful of words, each of which is perfectly chosen, married to an image which reinforces them. When this happens posters can be the single defining medium of a campaign."

See below for a selection of images taken from the book.

Photography © Conservative Party Archive Trust, 2011

Taken from ‘Dole Queues and Demons: British Election Posters from the Conservative Party Archive’, Bodleian Library Publishing, Publication 16 November 2011

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