Archive

All Change

ALC

‘All Change’ is a collection of oral history audio recordings, still images and research process documents, relating to the coming of the railways and the creation of the railway towns of Wolverton and New Bradwell in Buckinghamshire, during the years 1832-1865. Topics include the Captain Swing riots, disputes with the canal company and the building of ...
Albert French Collection

ALF

Collection of material including transcripts of letters between C/7259 Pte Albert E French and his father and sister covering his service in the Great War from when he enlisted in 1915 to his death on 15th June 1916; official letters and forms relating to his death, will and Victory Medal. There are a number of ...
Andy Mills Collection

AMC

A collection donated to Living Archive by Andy Mills in 2008. It consists of local memorabilia and paperwork found at 4 Station Terrace, Great Linford, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire
Aerial photographs of Milton Keynes and surrounding areas

AMK

A digital archive of aerial photographs of the construction of various housing areas and other buildings in Milton Keynes from 1969 to 1991, together with aerial photos of the surrounding villages.
Bigger Brighter Better

BBB

The ‘Bigger, Brighter, Better’ Bletchley project is a collection of fifty eight oral history audio recordings, and associated still images and documents, relating to the story of the expansion of Bletchley 1944-1966 as told by its original residents and new settlers. Topics include: Bletchley’s post-war development. The founding of the Bletchley and District Gazette and the coining ...
First World War

BCH

Collections of documents and photographs from WW1.
Bletchley Rugby Union Football Club

BLRC

A digital archive of photos and memorabilia from Bletchley Rugby Union Football Club and Bletchley Ladies Rugby team. This collection was deposited as part of the Living Archive’s England Rugby World Cup 2015 Project, funded by the Heritage lottery Fund and Milton Keynes Council. More information about the club can be found on the project ...
The Bryan Mason Collection

BMA

Collection of photographs in and around Bletchley, mainly related to the railway
The Brian Milne Collection

BMC

Brian Milne was an architect employed by the Milton Keynes Development Corporation from 1971 to 1983. He worked in the Infrastructure Design Group who designed children’s play areas and street furniture, such as lamp-posts, benches, etc. The collection of photographic slides were donated by Brian’s son Patrick, for scanning as a digital collection. NOTE: As the ...
Bob Odell Collection

BOD

A hundred and twenty nine postcards, mostly with images of Bletchley & Fenny Stratford, but also of the surrounding areas. They date from the late 1800s to 1946
The Bill Skeats Collection

BSC

This collection of photographs records Wolverton in a time of change and renewal from 1985 to 1992. There are two groups: The photographs of the Wolverton Works focus on the employees as well as the factory itself, in the final years of operation of the complete Railway Works and then during the clearing out and demolition. The ...
Back To The City - The 1980s & 1990s Nightlife Of Central Milton Keynes

BTC

Did you live your best life at Zazoos, Austens 2000, Bar Central, Cafe Moonshine, Directors, Empire, the Rose & Castle, The City Duck and all those other bars, clubs and pubs that are now part of Central MK’s vanished history? Did you party at The Point, get happy at Happy Wednesdays or put your hands ...
Bradwell Windmill Project (2026)

BWP

Milton Keynes City Council is leading on the Bradwell Windmill Project which celebrates the heritage and history of Bradwell Windmill as a key heritage and community attraction for Milton Keynes. Made possible with funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Milton Keynes Museum and the City Council, the project is running for 2 years until ...
Bletchley Youth Centre Collection

BYC

The Bletchley Youth Centre was established in 1968 to provide a venue for the young people of Bletchley. The most unique thing about this collection is the 64 tickets for concerts by bands that would often become world famous, such as Genesis, Status Quo and Black Sabbath. Also included are various documents and photographs of ...
The Daphne Capp Collection

CAP

Daphne Capp was a school teacher in Bletchley in the second half of the 1900s. The collection contains photos of staff and pupils at the schools in Bletchley.
The Colin Brown Collection

CBR

This collection comprises four different groups of items. The largest group contains pages of a local newspaper called the North Bucks Record, dated in 1910. These paint a fascinating picture of life before the Great War. The other three groups have photographs from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s taken in Bletchley, sketches made in the ...
Charles Edward Green Collection

CEG

Collection relating to the life of Charles Edward Green; Ellen Green (nee Axten); Ronald Green and G. Green. This includes material relating to the First World War; his school life and personal documents
The Story of the Original Central Milton Keynes

CMK

A collection of source material for the Living Archive book ‘The Story of the original CMK’ about the development of Central Milton Keynes (CMK). The book was edited by Marion Hill, designed by Dylan Jeavons and published in 2007. The collection comprises oral history audio recordings of interviews with Milton Keynes Development Corporation (MKDC) staff ...
Community Photographic Archive Collection

CPA

A collection of photographs (mostly taken in the 1980s) that were donated by the Milton Keynes Mirror newspaper. They include images of all sorts of people and events from all over Milton Keynes and the surrounding area. The archivists at the Living Archive have sorted them into 29 categories. There are a further 2000 pictures ...
Chris Salmon Collection

CSA

A collection of leaflets and tickets of events in Bletchley, circa 1975-1985.
Caz Tricks Collection

CTC

The collection includes items from about 1980 to 2016 which have been categorised into a number of Groups including: 1) Theatre 2) Music 3) The Blues Collective 4) Miscellaneous
Dorothy Gammage Collection

DGA

A collection of 46 items made by Dorothy Gammage relating to the Bletchley area, dating from 1919 to 1992. The items include programmes for theatrical and operatic shows, souvenir newspapers, various documents and photographs, and some historical research into Bletchley Road (now Queensway) as it was in the 1920s.
Collection of Material relating to Daphne Joy Drew.

DJD

Collection of Photographs and postcards relating to Daphne Joy Drew. These include photographs of airships and Biplanes from the First World War; the Army Manouevers in Wolverton in 1913; various scenes from Stony Stratford; Wolverton Works; and businesses and buildings.
David Kent Collection

DKC

Over thirty scans of Photographs, Postcards and Maps which were associated with the research for and publication of ‘St Andrew’s Remembers’, a book about the history of Great Linford; plus a number of other images of local people and events.
David Lock Associates

DLA

David Lock Associates’ is a collection of 18 oral history audio recordings, relating to the 21 year history of the eponymous firm of town planners and urban designers that was established in Milton Keynes on 1st November 1988. The 55 interviewees were all current (or in one case recently retired) directors and employees of the ...
Days of Pride Collection.

DOP

In 1981 Roger Kitchen and Roy Nevitt wrote a play looking at the impact of World War One on the people of Wolverton and New Bradwell. As part of this they spoke to people alive during this period and recorded their memories. They also gathered photographs, slides and supporting documents. As well ...
Eileen Corden Collection

ECO

A varied collection of items about Bletchley and Fenny Stratford from the whole of the 20th century. Over 200 photographs, plus some postcards, documents and badges. The Corden family owned and ran a chemists shop in Victoria Road, Fenny Stratford from 1922 until 1988.
Eric Mobbs Collection

EMC

A collection of Royal Family Postcards, Wolverton Works and McCorquodales photographs and local miscellaneous leaflets which all belonged to Eric Mobbs
The Essam Postcard Collection

ESS

A digital collection of 143 postcards showing images of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford during the 20th century, collected by the Essam family.
Freeman Memorial Church Collection

FMC

An interesting collection of documents and photographs which illustrate the life and times of the Freeman Memorial Church (of Buckingham Road, Bletchley) throughout the whole of the twentieth century. There are many group meals, drama productions, games, harvest festivals and anniversary celebrations. Many of the photographs have the names of the people recorded. In addition ...
The Folk On The Green Collection

FOG

A collection of interviews with people connected with Stony Stratford’s Folk On The Green. This event takes place on Horsefair Green every year in June, and is one of MK’s greatest (and worst-kept) “best-kept secrets”. You can watch some of the interviews on our YouTube channel here: The Folk On The Green Collection (LAMK 2024-5) – ...
Future Songwriters MK

FUT

Following the recent callout for our Future Songwriters project, we are delighted to announce that we will be working with the following songwriters. All the successful songwriters will attend a documentary songwriting workshop and will have the opportunity to apply for a commission and performance at Living Archive’s 40th Anniversary concert in October 2024.
First World War Collection

FWW

Collection of material gathered by The Living Archive Milton Keynes from a variety of sources as part of their Great War Centenary Project. It includes photographs; letters and postcards; documents and medals. The purpose of this project was to collect the history of those who served and lived in Milton Keynes Borough 1913-1919. A book ...
Great Linford Festival: 1978 to 2008

GLF

A digital archive of photos of activities, events and programmes relating to the annual Great Linford Waterside Festival (GLF) held in June each year. The items cover the period 1978 to 2009.
Graham Smith Collection

GSM

Photographs of Bletchley Railway Station in the middle of the 20th century, with a few photos of the construction of the Bletchley Flyover in 1958-60. The collection also includes eight Ordnance Survey maps of Bletchley dating from 1835 to 1956, and seven aerial photographs of Bletchley dating from 1929 to 1960 by “Aerofilms”. However, these ...
General Strike

GST

‘General Strike’ is a collection of 12 oral history audio recordings relating to the 1926 General Strike and the lives of the interviewees in the years before and after. Topics include the General Strike, Wolverton Works, McCorquodales, World War One and World War Two.
Hawtin's Tales

HAW

Welcome to Hawtin’s Tales. Born in 1896, Bradwell man Hawtin Mundy was a remarkable storyteller. His memories have inspired two books and a documentary play. Here Brad Bradstock retells Hawtin’s memories of growing up in New Bradwell, Great Linford and points beyond…⁠ You can watch them all on our Vimeo channel below.
Holne Chase School Collection

HCS

Photographs of Holne Chase School pupils and staff during the 1960s to 1990s, collected when the school celebrated its 50th anniversary in April 2002.
Harrington Family Collection

HFC

A collection of items about the Harrington Family of Bletchley during the period 1871 to 1997, including documents, photographs, letters and newspaper cuttings. The family were noted for their shop in Victoria Street, Bletchley called HARRINGTONS HANDCRAFTS, which traded for 34 years. The family were active in the Bletchley Amateur Operatic Society in the 1950s ...
MK HipHop

HIP

Living Archive celebrates MK Hip Hop culture Living Archive is running a major new Arts Council-funded project, shining a spotlight on Milton Keynes’s rich Hip Hop scene. In partnership with the OU’s OpenLearn, MÓTUS Dance, MK Council and others, we are celebrating the past, present and future of local Hip Hop, through the voices, moves and creativity ...
The Holdom Collection

HOM

A digital collection of photographs of the Holdoms shops mostly from the 1950s and 1960s, and concert programmes from the 1960s and 1970s, donated by the Holdom family of Bletchley.
Homeworld

HWC

Homeworld was the first of three international housing exhibitions held in Milton Keynes. It was planned by Milton Keynes Development Corporation – the government agency responsible for developing the New City between 1967-92. The exhibition ran for the month of May in 1981 and more than 150,000 people paid to come and “see what’s happening ...
The Inter Action Collection

INT

This Living Archive collection is actually a collection of collections – there is a huge amount of archive material held by Living Archive MK, but only samples are published here in the online catalog. Community arts charity Inter-Action MK has been bringing arts to life in Milton Keynes since 1975. They use the arts to bring ...
Collection of film footage taken by John Hemson

JHA

Collection of film footage shot by John Hemson in his private time documenting the development of Milton Keynes. It includes films of the building of parts of Milton Keynes, interviews and footage of concerts and plays. As of October 2023, only some of the films in this collection have been digitised.
Joan Shean Collection

JSC

A collection donated by Joan Shean which consists mostly of photographs taken in and around Stony Stratford, and which also has some documents and postcards
The Lakes Estate Dinosaur

LED

The Lakes Estate dinosaur, which was created as part of a community art project at Sir Herbert Leon School, has now been removed to make way for the redevelopment of the Lakes Estate area. Warren Park, also known as Dinosaur Park, is needed for Milton Keynes City Council regeneration works next year. The massive statue was ...
Milton Keynes People Collection

MKP

In January 2017, Milton Keynes celebrated its 50th Birthday. The new town was born with an Act of Parliament in 1967 which approved the creation of a Development Corporation to build a new community of 250,000 people covering 21,869 acres of Buckinghamshire farmland and villages. Living Archive MK used this anniversary as a focus to ...
Milton Keynes Rugby Union Football Club (MK RUFC)

MKR

A digital archive of photos, press cuttings and memorabilia that have been collected by Milton Keynes Rugby Union Football Club and are used in annual albums or photographic displays at their clubhouse.
MK Skate

MKS

Milton Keynes has played a key role in the development of UK Skate culture. During the ‘80s and ‘90s it was regarded by many as the skate capital of the UK.It is still regarded as the lead city for street skating. This is a collection of 20 oral history interviews conducted in 2019 with people involved ...
The MK People's Stories - a Museum for a New City Project

MNC

A Museum For A New City is a project intended to help to shape the new permanent exhibition in MK Museum’s New Gallery, telling the story of how Milton Keynes was planned and built. The Museum wanted to know what people who call Milton Keynes home want to see, learn and discover. As the Museum ...
Nellie Smith Collection

NEL

This collection features transcripts of the personal diary of Miss Nellie Smith (later Abbey) together with lively photographs of the many entertainments she directed in costume, programmes of the entertainments and an audio interview with transcriptions, recorded in her retirement years. They tell us about the everyday as well as unusual and moving events ...
Olney Rugby Union Football Club

OLRC

A digital collection of photographs and memorabilia relating to Olney Rugby Union Football Club. This digital archive was created as part of the Living Archive’s England Rugby World Cup 2015 Project, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and Milton Keynes Council. Olney Rugby Club has 137 years of history, said to be without parallel in ...
Read our book Players, Passion and Pitches online here

002

Click below to read our history of football in MK, Players, Passion and Pitches. The book focuses on the personal memories of 40 people. People who have played for, supported or administered teams in local leagues. People who have been committed to football over many years. The text is illustrated with over 60 photographs. Newspaper ...
Philip Cowlishaw Collection

PCO

A collection of photos and letters relating to the Cowlishaw family of Fenny Stratford. They were famous for their shops offering drapery, dressmaking and fashion. They were key members of the Bletchley Chamber of Trade, and also helped to organise events such as the annual dance at Wilton Hall in the years following World War Two. The collection ...
The People's History of Milton Keynes

PMK

The People’s History of Milton Keynes (PMK) was a three year project by the Living Archive aimed at collecting 300 plus recordings of Milton Keynes citizens by the end of January 2003. The collection comprised oral history audio recordings, still images and documents, relevant to the development of the new town of Milton Keynes, the ...
Milton Keynes People's Stories

PSM

In January 2017, Milton Keynes celebrated its 50th Birthday. The new town was born with an Act of Parliament in 1967 which approved the building of a new community of 250,000 people covering 21,869 acres of Buckinghamshire farmland and villages. It has become the largest and most ambitious of the British new towns. Living Archive ...
Pioneer Tales - A New Life In Milton Keynes

PTB

In March of 1985 The People’s Press of Milton Keynes published a book entitled “Pioneer Tales – A New Life In Milton Keynes” by Jane Turner & Bob Jardine. The aim of the book was to record contemporary life in the new city of Milton Keynes, with particular emphasis on the city’s social and cultural ...
Pioneer Tales Revisited

PTR

This project features the stories of 16 individuals who have been pioneers in their own communities or professional lives in Milton Keynes. It celebrates their stories and the work they have done to enhance the lives of others in the city and beyond. This project was inspired by the seminal 1985 project ‘Pioneer Tales’ by Jane ...
Queensway Bletchley Memories

QBM

This collection is part of a project that has been funded by the UK Government, who have provided £22.7 million to deliver 7 regeneration projects in Bletchley & Fenny Stratford. The Town Deals programme aims to regenerate towns and deliver long-term economic and productivity growth through investments in urban regeneration, digital and physical connectivity, skills, ...
Q:alliance Oral History Project 2025

QOH

During 2025 Living Archive worked with Q:alliance to record the stories and memories of people from the LGBTQ+ community in Milton Keynes. This collection of interviews captures the personal journeys, activism, and community contributions of LGBTQ+ individuals in Milton Keynes across several decades. This project was made possible with funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Richard Dunkley Collection

RDY

A collection of slides relating to the Milton Keynes Development Corporation. It includes slides of plans and drawings of the designated area, planting strategies and cross sections of parts of Central Milton Keynes. There are slides of commercial and domestic buildings; the Grand Union Canal and leisure and recreation activities. There are also slides of ...
Milton Keynes Rose 10th Anniversary

ROS

Ten Years after The Milton Keynes Rose opened on 9th November 2013, The Milton Keynes Rose Trust established a Tenth Anniversary Commission. The mission was to capture the story of the Milton Keynes Rose from inception to use of today – it was time to gather the story of how MK’s central commemorative public space ...
Rugby World Cup Collection

RUG

A collection of material relating to Wolverton, Bletchley, Milton Keynes and Buckingham Rugby Union Football Clubs. Including photographs of rugby teams, matches and socials; programmes from matches and events and correspondence. It also includes items of clothing such as shirts and ties and medals and trophies. The aim of this project is to ...
Arthur Grigg Railway Collection

RWS

Arthur Grigg was a railwayman who was not only a train driver and a railway union (NUR) official, but he also published a number of books about the railways in and around Bletchley. This collection of over 400 Photographs and Photographic Slides, dating from the 1840s to the 1970s, were used in those books.
Iain Cawthorne Collection

SC ICC

The first part of the collection is an album containing 199 black and white photographs taken by Iain Cawthorne, while a resident of this area. The photographs were taken during the early 1970s, in and around the designated area of Milton Keynes and the album also includes a contemporary map marking the place where each ...
Sullivan Family Collection

SFC

A collection of items about the Sullivan Family. The main attraction is a wonderful collection of 216 colour photographic slides which form a snapshot of the Milton Keynes area in 1970 before everything changed with the construction of the new city.
The Sylvia Mead Collection

SMC

A large collection of photographs and documents relating to the New Bradwell and Old Bradwell areas of Milton Keynes during the whole of the 20th century, collected by Sylvia Mead (nee Hood). Sylvia organised these items into 15 folders and these have been mirrored by 15 Groups in the Living Archive catalogue: SMC/001 Folder A – New ...
Stony Stratford High Street - Properties & People

SSH

The High Street in Stony Stratford has seen many and varied residents and businesses through the last century. In 2019, one of our volunteers, Helen Aylott, decided to research the past occupants of the buildings along the street. Having spent a good many years in the town, Helen initially drew from her own memories and those ...
Taylor Brown Collection.

TBC

The Taylor Brown collection was presented to the Living Archive Milton Keynes by Bernice Taylor Brown (née Brown) in order to preserve the large number of records and memorabilia which had been collected by both the Taylor and Brown families since the late 19th century. The collection includes items from both World Wars; information relating ...
Tourism MK

TMK

Leaflets and booklets on things to do in Milton Keynes.
That Reminds Me

TRM

That Reminds Me was a weekly column published in the Bletchley Gazette from January 1973 to December 1978. Originally from Yorkshire, Harold (Heppy) Hepworth had worked on The Gazette for twenty years. He preferred to describe himself as a reporter, though his title was officially Leader Writer or Assistant Editor. Later, we believe after his retirement, ...
T Wahlberg Collection

TWC

The T. Wahlberg collection of colour slides. They are believed to have been taken in the 1970s. They include images of Beanhill; Bletchley Leisure Centre; Coffee Hall; Eaglestone; Fishermead; Great Linford; Netherfield; Simpson; Stantonbury; Wavendon and the Open University. They show buildings and roads in various stages of construction and use. There are also shots ...
See our Home Front online exhibition here

VED

Welcome to our online exhibition about life on the Home Front in the local area during World War II. Click on the downloadable PDF to have a look at words and images from local people as they talk about their lives and experiences during this time, as now we celebrate the 75th anniversary of VE ...
Who am I?

WAI

Global Education Milton Keynes ran ‘Who am I?’ a project aimed to encourage primary school children to collect oral evidence about the heritage and traditions of members of the school community. Working with five schools, Southwood School in Conniburrow, Greenleys Junior School, Bow Brickhill Church of England Primary School, Oxley Park Primary School and Summerfield ...
UEFA WEURO 2022 Heritage Project

WEP

As part of an arts and heritage programme for Milton Keynes as a host city for the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022, Living Archive MK interviewed women to capture their stories and memories of playing football. This collection consists of nine interviews with women in Milton Keynes who have a connection to football. It’s an important year ...
Willen Hospice

WHC

In 2021 Willen Hospice celebrated its 40th anniversary. The following interviews were part of a Living Archive oral history project to capture the stories and memories of the people involved with the Hospice over the last 40 years. Thanks to a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we were able to present a film ...
Well House Letters

WHL

This collection comprises a set of about 400 letters written by members of the Jones family who lived at the Well House in Bletchley. They span the years from 1885 to 1900, and paint a fascinating picture of life in the late 19th century. The main authors were the father of the family John Jones (who ...
WHERE THE LINES MEET

WLM

History is not just about events. It’s about people, their experiences, their triumphs, the way they live their lives and how they tell their stories. ‘Where the Lines Meet’ is a collection of still images, documents, and 43 oral history audio recordings collecting the memories of people who have worked on, or used the railway ...
The Wolverton On Film Collection

WOF

A dip into the history of Wolverton, captured on film and video. If you enjoy watching these films please consider clicking on the link below to make a £1 donation and help us make lots more films in the future! https://www.livingarchive.org.uk/content/about-us/make-a-donatio
Images and Documents about the Wolverton Works

WOW

A collection of Images and Documents about the Wolverton Works, Buckinghamshire dating from 1864 to 1995.
Collection of material relating to World War One

WW1

Collection of material relating to the First World War. Consists of newspapers; books and rolls of honour. Please be aware that some of the slides show dead soldiers and that some people may find these disturbing.
Collection of material relating to New Bradwell

XNB

Collection of photographs relating to New Bradwell. Only the parts of this collection that relate to the First World War have been catalogued. This work was carried out as part of the Great War Centenary Project
Collection relating to the villages in Milton Keynes

XVS

Collection relating to the villages in Milton Keynes. Only the parts of this collection that relate to the First World War have been catalogued. This work was carried out as part of the Great War Centenary Project
A collection of slides and photographs from Wolverton

XWN

A collection of slides and photographs from Wolverton. Only the parts of this collection that relate to the First World War have been catalogued. This work was carried out as part of the Great War Centenary Project
The Zerena Files*

ZER

De-classified after 35 years, TOP SECRET files now available and unredacted. *Beware this file will completely rewrite Milton Keynes’ history as you know it. Imagine you are a child at your First School and come in one day to find a spaceship has landed in your school playground. Inside the spaceship is an alien named Zerena. She ...