Liverpool and Merseyside

1980s-90s

Photographs by Rob Bremner

Rob Bremner’s photographs vividly capture the spirit of Liverpool during the turbulent Thatcher years. His portraits and street scenes document a city undergoing social and economic upheaval, yet full of warmth, humour, and pride. Through colourful and casual fashions, local characters, and everyday moments, Bremner presents an honest and uplifting portrait of working-class life in Merseyside during the 1980s and early 1990s.

Rob Bremner’s photography has been part of the British Culture Archive Collections since 2018. A selection of his work also features in the BCA’s touring exhibitions, The People’s City and A Celebration of Life in the North, 1980s–90s, which showcases the strength and community spirit of Northern life during a time of change.

"It was tough times, but I found everyone to be warm and friendly. On rainy days, they would invite me in for tea. One night, I left my college Bronica in a pub after some dockers invited me for a drink. I returned the next day, and they had left it behind the bar for me. I wish I could say I was a socially aware photographer, campaigning against Thatcher’s Britain, but I just felt comfortable taking photos there and liked the people."

- Rob Bremner

“I know how to take portraits in the sense that I’ll look for a background and people, but basically I just asked people if I can take their photo. Obviously, you’re hanging around the same area, so you get to know people.”

- Rob Bremner

Laura Losh (nee Paolini) was a resistance fighter during the Second World War. One day, she encountered three British soldiers, including one from Anfield, Liverpool, who had escaped from a POW camp and were freezing and starving in a snow-covered field in Italy. Risking her life, she hid them from Nazi soldiers in an underground storage bunker until the end of the war. After the war, she married the soldier from Anfield, Harry, and lived out the rest of her life in Liverpool until passing away on Remembrance Sunday in 2013 aged 96.

READ OUR FULL FEATURE WITH ROB BREMNER