160 boring postcards of the British Isles, reproduced as they have been found, actual size, from the collection of the great iconoclast of British photography, Martin Parr. This is a serious art book, a depiction of a tragic Britain with tragic taste, and a photographic entertainment which a large audience will enjoy. 160 postcards are reproduced as they have been found, in their actual size, with all the character of their original reproduction, amateur retouching, crinkly edges and bent corners. Treated as art objects with a classic white border surround, each are captioned with their original description as printed on the front or the reverse - for example: 'T&G,W,U Recuperation Centre, Littleport'; 'View from the Berry Court Holiday Flatlets, Brixham, South Devon'; 'A40 Traffic'; 'The M1 Service Area at Newport Pagnall'; 'Market Precinct, Scunthorpe'; 'A Bend on Porlock Hill' etc. All the postcards featured will depict places in the British Isles; most stem from a period of optimism in Britain as new civic centres, motorways, airports, and power stations were built and launched; souvenirs of 60s and 70s achievements we now question.



For a postcard to qualify as sufficiently 'boring', either its composition, or its content, or the characters featured, must be arguably boring; or the photograph must be absent of anything which might conventionally be described as interesting. Of course the postcards finally are not boring at all, but powerful, interesting and loaded statements about time and place and the aesthetic of Britain.

Review

I was gripped by it immediately! Even having lived through the 1970s, the decade often called the one taste forgot, I couldn't believe the range of subjects photographed. Who on earth wanted to buy photographs showing traffic on the A40, or indeed to celebrate Carlton Court Shopping Centre. Would people be so proud now of Preston Bus Station as they were then? And would anyone really be keen to buy pictures of Butlins' Reception and Dining Halls.

In creating this book, Martin Parr has reminded readers of a now bygone era, when the now hideous was considered magnificent. The title of this book is very misleading, because the postcards are far from boring. They provide a fascinating insight into the architecture, cars and clothing of the 1950s and 1960s, with motorways, shopping centres, suburbia, factories, holiday camps, chalets, caravans and much else. I suspect that quite of a bit of what was then regarded as the best of modern architecture has since been demolished, so there are indispensable historical records here too. Nor are the postcards boring on the technical side: the picture of Budleigh Salterton, with its foreground and background, diagonal lines and a wealth of detail, is a brilliantly composed photograph. The picture of the nuclear reactor at Dounreay is like a piece of modern abstract art, with its blocks, cylinders and sphere. Many of the others are also excellent photographs, which is not surprising, as they must have been taken by professionals. This book is stuffed with art and history, and there is not one boring postcard in the whole collection.

If you're 30+ or into architecture, this book is a must-have. As it is if you're a keen photographer, or just want an easy read to make you laugh.