Welcome to The British Printing Society
What is it about printing? There are some people, who for all normal purposes seem rational, become weak at the knees at the thought of applying inked letters or images on to paper. What ever the psychology, there is a significant number of people, who find printing incredibly attractive: such people usually do not join the Printing Industry but carry it out on a small scale in their own homes. There are also people who started as hobby printers, but liked it so much that they established small print shops. Part of the attraction is the pleasure of meeting like-minded people to discuss techniques, suppliers of materials etc. The British Printing Society is the spiritual home for such dedicated people.
The Society was founded in 1944 by a Bristol printer, William R. Brace, originally as the Amateur Printers' Association. In 1948 it was 
renamed the International Small Printers' Association, a name it held until 1965. The present name was adopted at the twenty-first anniversary Convention in April 1965. By this time it had become a successful, and still growing, society.
William Brace visualised an organisation which would enable printers to exchange views and experiences, pass on hints and tips, and generally promote a spirit of craftsmanship and friendliness. Although the British Printing Society (BPS) is now bigger than in those early years, its activities show that those ideals have not been forgotten.
Many members continue to use the traditional way of printing which is based upon using movable lead type (Letterpress). However modern commercial printers now mainly use computer based images which are printed using digital or analogue technologies and these techniques have been adopted by many members, often alongside Letterpress. Digital technology is particularly suitable for short-run publications like Newsletters and Society Magazines.
Description of Website
(The Pages listed here may be accessed from the blue horizontal menu near the top of the page)
. This page
Membership; what the BPS does and how.
The Local Branches and the Publishing Group (PG).
Society Conventions and Annual General Meetings.
From Gutenberg to the future.
The traditional method of printing using moveable metal type.
Today digital printing is used for most jobs: preparing, copying and printing the digital image, Desktop publishing etc.
This section Includes New Guidelines on Digital Typography and Style, and on Newsletters and Magazines .
Bibliography of books and internet links useful for the printer.
Last Updated:
January 26th 2010
Arthur Baker (Webmaster)
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