Bert Hardy, born in London, worked his way up from a lab assistant to become a photographer. His talent flourished as a staff photographer on Picture Post, joining the illustrated magazine during the Second World War. As well as traveling with the armed forces, his images of the Blitz are amongst the finest and closest to the action taken.
Below is a selection of 22 stunning pictures from Hardy’s private collection. “Stored for decades at his home, these rare black and white photos were kept as keepsakes from his legendary career and are now on display for the very first time.”
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| Piccadilly, 1953 |
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| Pool of London 1949 |
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| Piccadilly, 1953 |
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| Sugar Ray Robinson, 1951 |
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| Life of an East End Parson, 1940 |
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| Is There a Colour Bar, Cable St, London, 1949 |
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| Firefighters, London, 1941 |
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| Teacher and pupils, 1956 |
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| Ken Joy breaks the London to Brighton cycling record, 1949 |
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| Life of an East End, London, Parson, Nov 23rd, 1940 |
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| Royal Wedding, King George VI with the bride, Princess Elizabeth, 1947 |
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| Cockney Life at Elephant and Castle, London, January 9th 1949 |
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| The Pool of London, 1949 |
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| London, 1949 |
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| Teenagers at the dance, 1957 |
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| Elephant & Castle, 1949, My Goodness Guinness |
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| A woman waves her handkerchief goodbye at the station in 'Wartime Terminus, Paddington Station', 1942 |
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| Men and women sit on the steps of a fountain at Picadilly Circus, London, 1953 |
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| Is there a British Colour Bar? 1949 |
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| The Truth about Teenagers, The ones who live only for Tonight, 1957 |
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| Grand Hotel. The Imperial, Torquay, 1947 |
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| Wartime Terminus, Paddington Station, 1942 |