Are you wondering how long it takes the archive to prep digital material? Going through a decade of a magazine for articles about a subject, extracting those (along with front covers to show where they are from), compiling these into a single PDF, optimising from our high quality scans... 4 hours.
A long last week before the Spring Break for the archive - so we have some time to start to tackle some of the backlog of digital requests we have after a super busy 2025 (and sorry to the researchers who have been waiting!). If you think we might have forgotten you, please do get in touch.
The last few days to get an abstract in for our conference on the 12th of June, run in collaboration with CST's SAFE team. Emotion, Nationalism and Extremism - Contexts and Responses. In person at Northampton, deadline for abstracts 15th March. www.northampton.ac.uk/research-blo...
The exciting news is that we will be moving this summer to a new home at the University of Northampton. We are just finalising the process internally ready for a move late in the Summer. For users this means that we are likely to close in August, and aim to re-open as soon as we can in October.
At today's Holocaust Memorial Event held at the @uninorthampton.bsky.social we remembered Gerry Gable, who spent his life fighting hard against the far right and trying to put meaning to the words 'Never Again'. A fantastic set of talks, including a thought provoking keynote from Dr Manny Barot.
Gerry Gable, long-time editor of Searchlight, sadly died last weekend. The work of Gerry and his comrades forms our Searchlight Collection, the heart of the Searchlight Archive, and we are honoured to continue his legacy in some small way. Rest well, Gerry. www.northampton.ac.uk/news/remembe...
This is our last week before the winter break - so we are bedding down the archive for its winter snooze. Checking the climate control is working, sorting out those little items on the list. When we are back in January we will be into move prep, and shelf organisation. Gulp!
(We do have a new 4800 dpi scanner - just have to get it set up. The Archive to do list is a never ending thing)
That does look snazzy - are you using a DLR setup for overhead images? Our reliable ScanSnap SV600 is sadly starting to look a bit dated!
I thought we were safe to do our annual statistical work the other week - surely we are at the end of the year, and fully booked, so I would be safe.
Then we got asked to open an extra day. Time to re-open the spread sheets! (Adding to our record visitor-number year!)
We don't have many items from the old 43 Group, but one we do have is this membership application booklet. Glossy and high quality, you could almost believe it was modern rather than heading towards 80 years old.
Really delighted that the initiative we are running with the University Archives under @uninorthampton.bsky.social Centre for Historical Studies to bring together and support local groups working with or around archives and collections got featured in This Year In Archives! Find us in the Midlands!
The front cover of Searchlight issue number 52 from 1979, with a cover price of 35p. On the front is a black and white picture of John Tyndall in paramilitary uniform, with the banner text across it saying 'Exclusive: Internal NF Documents Reveal Bitter Feud'. The bottom of the page asks 'Is Col. 88 Manoeuvring to Oust Tyndall?'.
What are we up to in the archive this week? The archivist is away, so it has been a lot of digital work - beginning to look at how we might create subject guides for undergraduate and other users who want to study a particular topic/group and where to start. A lot of Searchlight digitals reading!
This week's image is from a newer collection that has come to us from a kind depositor. This collection we are hoping to get onto the catalogues next year, and is focused around neo-Nazi music - including merchandise, paper material and music like this CD from Razors Edge.
An image from the Archive. A picture of Spearhead on maneuvers, with Brendan Wilmer, Dennis Pirie, John Tyndall and Colin Jordan. Spearhead emerged within John Bean's BNP, a paramilitary force that would go on to form their own party under Jordan - the National Socialist Movement.
OTD in 2024, the Royal Historical Society (@royalhistsoc.org) held 'The Value of History' briefing.
In this piece from the archive, RHS president Lucy Noakes reflects on how the crisis in UK higher education is impacting history and historians, and how the RHS can advocate for our discipline.
We just did our update of the stats for the archive we do every 6 months. This year we have had over 125 visits already to the archive - our busiest year yet. When you consider we normally have less than 90 days of opening for users a year....
Men and women marching along the street, holding up placards reading 'Common Market No!' and 'Say "No" to Common Market' and also holding up union banners such as the National Union of Railwaymen Brighton branch.
We are going to be using the Bluesky account here to share some of the exciting facts from the archive, and some of the items we have found. Below is an image of an anti-Common Market campaign in London, with the National Front and unions marching, taken from our film collection.
A little story from the @searchlightarchive.bsky.social - with a huge thank you to Jen and the press team at @uninorthampton.bsky.social. A letter from Otto Frank to Maurice Ludmer, then editor of @searchlightmag.bsky.social. www.northampton.ac.uk/news/a-fathe...
Fancy a last minute trip to Northampton on Friday to discuss combatting the extreme right? We've got a couple of travel bursaries left - if this would help you attend do get in touch, we'd love to have you here.
Just a week until this event organised by @pnjackson.bsky.social @menysnoweballes.bsky.social and myself. Still a few tickets left, and time to alter the catering, so do get in touch. We also have a couple of £75 travel bursaries left if it helps people attend.
GREAT news - we have a slight budget surplus on this event so we are able to offer 4 x £75 travel bursaries to PGRs/ECRs/other precariously employed researchers: so if you'd like to join us in Northampton for the day, contact @narson.bsky.social on daniel.jones@northampton.ac.uk.
We have 4x£75 travel bursaries available for PGRs, ECRs and precarious researchers for this event. Just drop an email to daniel.jones@northampton.ac.uk if you would like more information. And you can book until early next week, but we are getting low on tickets! Link in original post.
Along with the University Archive we will be hosting the Northamptonshire Archives and Collections meetup on the 31st of July at 2pm - every 6 months we meet up, have cake and tea, and discuss what is going on with our local heritage groups and how we can support them.
Cup of tea held in front of a university courtyard with trees and bushes
Day 1 done in the archives for my British Academy project today with @siobhanhyland.bsky.social who is my RA and @narson.bsky.social the @searchlightarchive.bsky.social archivist! I can’t show you any of the archive material here as it’s horrible extremist stuff, so here is my archive tea break.
Now has its own online shop for the free tickets! - shop.northampton.ac.uk/product-cata...
It now has an online shop: shop.northampton.ac.uk/product-cata...
A poster for the event, in blue with a picture of a burning police van on the right. The main text reads: Extreme Right Aware 23 May 2025 10am to 3.30pm Waterside Campus Sunley Hotel The extreme right space is fast-changing and complex. What risks does it pose? What draws people to such extremism? How does it cultivate violence and even terrorism? What can be done to tackle it? Updated for 2025, this Extreme Right Aware CPD workshop will explore the history of the extreme right, help you identify extreme-right groups and messaging, and explore how they organise and campaign – including in the online space. The day-long CPD workshop offers an important introduction to those new to this area, will deepen knowledge, and acts as a refresher for those already experienced working on the extreme right. Lunch and refreshments are provided, and parking is available. Tickets are £20, and free tickets are available for charities and educational groups, or as incentives for group bookings. Please contact Dr Daniel Jones at: Daniel.jones@northampton.ac.uk
The Extreme Right Research Network (@errnetwork.bsky.social) has updated its Extreme Right Aware CPD training for 2025. Thanks to funding, tickets are only £20 and we have free tickets we can make available for charities, community groups etc. Led by @pnjackson.bsky.social, on 23rd May 2025.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Miners' Strike (1984-5).
Laura King (@lauracking.bsky.social) traces a story of solidarity and friendship in the archives of art collective Jubilee Arts, and the archives of her family.
www.historyworkshop....
We are slowly creating our Bluesky presence, given the environment on other sites caused us to cease engagement. We are really looking forward to sharing our content, and hopefully engaging more people with study of antifascism and the extreme right - sadly as necessary as ever.