TopFoto is one of the world's great independent photographic archives.

The story so far
Founded in 1927 by influential English freelance photographer John Topham, working from 1927-1975 and published in Illustrated, Daily Mirror, PicturePost, Life magazine, Farmers Weekly, TopFoto (originally Topham Picture Library) has been built up by two generations of the Smith family into what it is today: an expanding, independent picture agency of fascinating range and depth so you can license great images.

The heart of the TopFoto archive is made up of millions of original negatives and hardcopy prints from a number of thriving 20th Century historic British press agencies from the glory days of Fleet Street (c.1905-1969), collected and acquired by the Smiths during the 1970s and 1980s, together with original engravings from the early 1800s and glass plate negatives from the early 1900s.

We own some uniquely important photographer collections including over 3,000 negatives and prints taken by the late filmmaker Ken Russell (1950s), and the archive of key Illustrated and PicturePost photographer George Douglas known as “Speedy George” (1940s-1950s) and definitive English documentary photographer John Topham (1927-1975).

TopFoto has been involved in  4 EU part-funded projects primarily as a content partner to Europeana, and in 2020/2021 was awarded a grant by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, from the Cultural Recovery Fund, to support the internationally signficant archive.

In 2021, as part of our Lottery funded project, we appointed our inaugural Writer-in-Residence, Rommi Smith to work with historic photographs of inspiration from the archive.

Worldwide 
Based in the UK, we work with over 50 global partners, representing some of the finest photography collections in the world.

We were founder members of BAPLA which is the UK trade association for picture libraries and agencies and are represented at CEPIC , the Coordination of European Picture Agencies Stock, Press and Heritage which attracts the world's picture industry at the annual CEPIC congress. We are also a proud founder member of PhotoConsortium , a network of photographic archives, including public institutions and private agencies, collectors and private content holders from all over Europe.

Exhibition organisers, fashion houses, book publishers, TV producers, filmmakers, infrastructure project managers, museums, news organisations, magazines…. every day, worldwide, busy account holders download and license what they need, or send our research team to fast-search the archive.

From cruise ships to the space programme, there is virtually no kind of project or customer we haven’t supplied since that original expansion in the 1970s when the Smiths heard, over the phone line, a joyful news editor calling out: “hold the press, Topham have got it”.

Alice Ostapjuk’s ethereal brand of sophisticated pop will intrigue your ears and leave shivers running down your spine. Though often feisty and tinged with frustration, her carefully crafted songs reveal an endearing honesty and beautiful fragility. Alice’s distinctive voice draws comparisons to Kate Bush and Cyndi Lauper, as she possesses the power to haunt and thrill, lull or lure. Boasting an undeniable talent for singing combined with a knack for evocative melodies, Alice is a truly unforgettable act, and ever more so since the addition of her backing band, who complement her songwriting with powerful bass lines, precise drumming and howling guitar parts. Let them captivate you.

Thrift-shop folk-rock. Well within reasonable doubt.

Hello! 

Here are a few of my tunes. I write them, sing them, produce them. 

Drop me a line if you like. Especially if you have something nice to say.

LeeSun 
xx

I'll have a Chronic Fatigue Sandwich please! With a portion of Fibro-chips why not! THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. Have a lovely time now thank you. GO TO MY BANDCAMP PAGE FOR FREEPEES UND WOTNOT.

Update: I've had to prune a lot of my old album snips / montages on here. I suggest going to my Bandcamp page to listen to album tracks. I shall keep free / unreleased tracks etc. here. Thanks !

Pete Kelly AKA Igneous Flame, is a singular artist who walks his own path. He strives to create ethereal, subtle yet powerful ambient music without pandering to trend or overt influence.

Since 2003, he has created a body of work containing 12 solo and collaborative releases. His catalogue contains polar opposites of ethereal, sonorous work as well as more difficult, unsettling material. His work has been played on New Age radio stations as well as having being reviewed in Industrial music magazines. He endeavours to create a sonic canvas containing a wide range of colour and texture, not being limited to any particular sub-genre.

He worked for a long time on his ambient material prior to releasing his first album,'Tolmon' in 2003 and has achieved significant critical acclaim and radio airplay since then. Characteristically, his albums have an esoteric and a spatial element. The former arising from his hyper-sensitivity and the latter from his interest in surround- sound techniques.

His considerable musical background and experience makes him highly discriminating, releasing albums that have seen a considerable amount of 'self-editing'. He enjoys collaborative projects, particularly relishing the role of Producer.

Igneous Flame is influenced by the natural world, mystery, beauty, dreams and silence.

Alisia Casper is following