British general elections through the years - in pictures

  • A mother casting her vote in the British general election as her baby looks on, at a polling station in Dulwich, south London, in 1923. All photos: Getty Images
    A mother casting her vote in the British general election as her baby looks on, at a polling station in Dulwich, south London, in 1923. All photos: Getty Images
  • Ballot boxes arrive at Caxton Hall in Westminster during the general election of 1935
    Ballot boxes arrive at Caxton Hall in Westminster during the general election of 1935
  • Officials prepare ballot boxes to be distributed to polling booths in London in 1950
    Officials prepare ballot boxes to be distributed to polling booths in London in 1950
  • Workmen bring out polling booth partitions to be transported to voting stations in London in 1951
    Workmen bring out polling booth partitions to be transported to voting stations in London in 1951
  • A large crowd gathers in Piccadilly Circus for the 1951 general election result
    A large crowd gathers in Piccadilly Circus for the 1951 general election result
  • People watch the results coming in and listen to a live band at a general election party at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1955
    People watch the results coming in and listen to a live band at a general election party at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1955
  • Ballot boxes are emptied for counting at St Pancras Town Hall in London in 1959
    Ballot boxes are emptied for counting at St Pancras Town Hall in London in 1959
  • ITN and ITV broadcasters prepare for a dummy run of the networked news coverage of the 1959 general election at Television House in London
    ITN and ITV broadcasters prepare for a dummy run of the networked news coverage of the 1959 general election at Television House in London
  • Hardy bathers celebrating the results of the 1966 general election in one of Trafalgar Square's fountains in London
    Hardy bathers celebrating the results of the 1966 general election in one of Trafalgar Square's fountains in London
  • BBC commentators at London Television Centre preparing for the 1966 general election broadcast
    BBC commentators at London Television Centre preparing for the 1966 general election broadcast
  • A 1970 general election scoreboard at the Dorchester Hotel in London
    A 1970 general election scoreboard at the Dorchester Hotel in London
  • Election workers updating a general election chart at Labour Party headquarters in London in 1970
    Election workers updating a general election chart at Labour Party headquarters in London in 1970
  • Three nuns from the Franciscan Mission of Mercy entering a polling station in Kensington to vote in the 1974 general election
    Three nuns from the Franciscan Mission of Mercy entering a polling station in Kensington to vote in the 1974 general election
  • A Conservative Party campaign poster designed by the Saatchi & Saatchi advertising agency for the 1979 general election
    A Conservative Party campaign poster designed by the Saatchi & Saatchi advertising agency for the 1979 general election
  • Supporters outside the Conservative Party's headquarters in London on election night in 1987
    Supporters outside the Conservative Party's headquarters in London on election night in 1987
  • The Conservative Party election campaign bus in London in 1997
    The Conservative Party election campaign bus in London in 1997
  • An exit poll conducted by the BBC is projected on to Big Ben in London at the moment voting finished in 2010
    An exit poll conducted by the BBC is projected on to Big Ben in London at the moment voting finished in 2010
  • Police officers restrain a demonstrator during a protest at Parliament Square on election day in 2015
    Police officers restrain a demonstrator during a protest at Parliament Square on election day in 2015
  • A woman rests as she waits for ballot papers to arrive at the Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland count in 2015 in Redcar
    A woman rests as she waits for ballot papers to arrive at the Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland count in 2015 in Redcar
  • A polling station inside a launderette in Oxford in 2015
    A polling station inside a launderette in Oxford in 2015
  • Guia the Labrador waits outside a polling station in Stalybridge, north-west England, in 2017
    Guia the Labrador waits outside a polling station in Stalybridge, north-west England, in 2017