The Postcard has over 140 years of history and has changed with the needs and fashions of people over this time. It is a part of communication, social and art history. In 1870 the British Post Office introduced plain cards with a pre-printed postage mark, the address was written on one side and the message on the other. By 1894 the Post Office accepted privately printed cards with a design alongside the message space. At this time postcards from European resorts were already attracting collectors, this influenced the images appearing on cards here. The Golden Age of the postcard is generally considered to be between 1902 and 1920. At the start of the twentieth century regulations changed allowing the whole front of the card to be occupied by a picture design. This led to a rapid proliferation of postcards of diverse styles and kinds. The use of the postcard was most popular before the widespread ownership and access to telephones. At its peak there was a labour intensive postal service with as many as six daily collections and deliveries. The postcard was quick, simple and cheap for everyday communication. It freed people of the formal conventions of letter writing.
By World War II the postcard lost some of its popularity at home due to the increased use of the telephone but was still sent overseas to relatives fighting in the war. Fewer types were published and firms stopped trading or changed their production in order to help the war effort. By the 1970s the medium started to gain credentials as advertising and an art item. Today they have a high profile as a cheap and simple advertising tool for high street shops, bars, cafes and entertainment venues.