Picture Postcard Show 2000
by David Moore

It was way back in the October issue that Ken kindly thanked me for the display that I mounted on behalf of the Circle at the Picture Postcard Show in London last August. Just recently my wife took the final few shots on her camera and there amongst the results were the shots I took of our display. I thought the members might like to see the display I mounted.

First, may I thank those members who responded to my request for postcards to include in the display. Each year in addition to a general display of postcards there is a theme, and last year it was transport, hence the request from the show organiser for us to mount a display.

I chose to enter four boards, the first had a map of the canal system with a brief history and a small piece about the Circle and round the outside of the board were postcards depicting the varied types of boats which used our inland waterways. I found postcards of Humber keels, Norfolk wherries, Thames spritsail barges, an Arun chalk barge, Mersey flats and, of course, narrowboats. Sadly, I failed to locate a postcard of a Severn trow, presumably these had all demised before the advent of photography.

There was one board devoted to the narrowboat and a second to wide beam barges, whilst the final board used the set of 16 cards produced by Waterways World in their Colors of the Cut Series. In all I used about 66 cards, some modern, but mostly oldies.

The show takes place every year at the Royal Horticultural Hall, Westminster, London, usually the last weekend in August. It is well worth a visit. There are lots of dealers there, but be warned there are lots of collectors too. Be early and if you see a card you like, buy it, it is very frustrating to pass it over thinking I'll come back later when I have seen what else is on offer, only to find someone else has snapped it up.

I have not been contacted about entering a display for this year, but hopefully I will hear, as last year, just before Cardmeet.