Quoting from the Website of HARMAN technology Limited, trading as ILFORD PHOTO:
"ILFORD PHOTO has experienced a tumultuous history since its origins in 1879, with ownership of the company changing hands several times. The latest development was the acquisition in February 2005 of its black-and-white photographic business, premises and the ILFORD PHOTO name, from the receivers of the previous ILFORD Imaging group by HARMAN technology Limited, a company created by former managers of the company and named after the founder of the ILFORD business, Alfred Harman."

"Since that time, ILFORD PHOTO has ..... led the worldwide resurgence of black-and-white photography."

The current ILFORD Photo factory is situated at Town Lane, Mobberley, Knutsford, Cheshire, WA16 7JL, England. An aerial view of the ILFORD Photo factory, taken during the summer of 2023 by Thomas Nugent and posted onto the Geograph.org website, can be viewed here.

ILFORD photo occupies part of the old Rajar factory site at Mobberley which became the sole film and paper manufacturing premises for Ilford (then Ilford Anitec) in 1996. The Mobberley site has been the home of a photographic company since around 1901, originally under the name of the Brooks-Watson Daylight Camera Company Ltd who had their main premises in Great Homer Street, Liverpool. They seemingly wished to move into the production of light sensitive materials and viewed the cleaner air of rural Cheshire as a better home for such an activity than Liverpool. In 1907, Brooks Watson formed a subsidiary company which they called Rajar (1907) Ltd and around that time the name on the front of the Mobberley factory building was changed from Brooks Watson to Rajar.

Members of the Mobberley Village Society have contributed various images and information regarding the early times of Rajar Ltd and the Mobberley site. The factory is believed to have been acquired by Ilford, Limited, in 1928.

The original Rajar factory buildings, which retained the Rajar name long after Ilford acquired the premises, were mostly demolished in 2004 and the land sold to Barratt Homes for the construction of around 90 houses, some of which were occupied by March 2007. Ilford retained its newer buildings at the rear of the site and they are still in use (2016). The imposing 1903 entrance building to the Rajar factory has been retained and now serves as a village community facility. This building was preserved, renovated & presented to Mobberley as part of an agreement with Ilford in exchange for the Parish Council supporting Ilford's planning application for housing on the site

Tony Usher's website shows some views of the original Ilford buildings at Mobberley and the site's demolition phase. Tony worked for Ilford for 40 years, the last 18 years before retiring being in "Quality Services", the largest of Ilford's quality control facilities. This facility tested film and paper for Production and R&D departments using a huge range of equipment and techniques. Tony was the Technical Manager of QS and he ensured that all the data generated during testing was consistently accurate. His website is well worth a look - scroll down to see the old buildings. The original Rajar Ltd stone plaque can be seen. The preservation of this plaque was also part of the deal with Ilford. Barratts were appraised of the situation at a meeting when they bought the site and Ken Trotman, with Councillor Frank Williamson, ensured the stone was removed to a safe location. Barratts were then badgered to ensure the stone was re-placed.

To move straight to my chronology listing, click here.
Otherwise, read below some further introductory information on the formation of Ilford, Limited (now ILFORD Photo) and scroll down further to view some of the early trade-mark images etc.

Mr Alfred Hugh Harmann (born 1841) lived and had a photographic studio at 2 Ewell Road in Surbiton, Surrey, from 1867-1879. Four of his children were born there, adding to the three born at Peckham where he first set up business as a photographer. While at Surbiton he suddenly left his wife and family, went off with another lady and started manufacturing photographic plates from a house in Ilford. (Ref: AP magazine 29th Sept 1990, from reader Sam Welford, FRPS).

Thus, the photographic company that was to become Ilford Ltd, started in 1879 in Ilford, Essex, north east London, UK. Alfred Harman set up a business in the basement of his house, 'Elmhurst', on the corner of Cranbrook Road and Park Avenue. The house was demolished in the 1930s to make way for a cinema which was never built; after the second world war the Cranbrook pub was built on the plot. In April 2013 the plot was occupied by a building called the London Dartbar and by October 2014 this same building was named 'The Cranbrook Banqueting Suite' a possible wedding reception venue.
Click here to see several pictures of the locality in October 2014, as provided by Ravinder Sembi.

Wikipedia says:
"Their (Ilford's) headquarters were based in Roden Street but these were demolished during the early 1980's to make way for a new one-way traffic system to help with the town's traffic problem. A Sainsbury's supermarket now stands on the former site".
The Technical Service Department building, managed by Jack H Coote (see 1952, below), used to be situated in the space which is now Sainsbury's car park (see the Chronology 1976 entry).

A different version, but thoroughly well researched (with copious references) of Alfred Harman's earliest times is related by Nicholas Middleton, who says "Most histories of Ilford Limited describe the company moving to Roden Street (a site now occupied by Sainsbury's supermarket) after its beginnings on Cranbrook Road. Although the company's address was 29-37 Roden Street by the time it closed, this is misleading: Alfred Harman initially rented a cottage on the Clyde Estate, followed soon after by the purchase of houses in nearby Grove Terrace (later Uphall Rd), which were converted into a plate coating department and warehouses. As the business expanded, the Britannia Works Company quickly acquired the parcel of land bounded on two sides by Clyde Cottages and Grove Terrace and built a factory (1883). A wood engraving of the Britannia Works Company factory was used in an advertisement for Ilford Plates in 1888. It shows the factory bounded by a private road on the north-western side: this runs parallel to Back Street, called Roding Street on the OS map of 1896, and then Roden Street by 1919.

By the 1970s, Ilford's administrative address was 29-37 Roden Street, Ilford IG1 2AB; Tel. 01 478 3000; Telegrams PLATESILFORD. The lower Left Hand corner of this map shows Roden St, and what is presumably the Sainsbury's Super Store. The Park Avenue intersection with Cranbrook Road can be seen towards the upper Left Hand corner of the same map.

The Ilford Recorder newspaper, on Thursday Feruary 28th 2002, published a two page article looking briefly at the history and chronology of Ilford Ltd.
John Alexander has kindly sent me a copy, and it can be seen here.

The British Journal of Photography did an historical account of Ilford Ltd at the time of Ilford's Centenary in 1979. The summary reads:
"The company which was to become known as Ilford, Limited was founded by Alfred Hugh Harman 1841-1913. Three years after his first marriage, now aged 22, he was in business as a photographic printer in Peckham, in a partnership - Dages & Harman. The next year he was advertising in the BJ Almanac on his own behalf and his 1866 advert announced an extension of his premises, promising a week's turnround from receipt of negatives. Later he advertised as working the collodion transfer process, Autotype and oil paint coloured enlargements. He designed a developing tent which was made and advertised in the 1870 Almanac by J.Garland of Pentonville Hill, London. He was doubtless experimenting with emulsion making during the 1870's and in 1879 gave up printing and concentrated on making dry plates. Clean air being advisable, he set up the Britannia Works in Ilford, Essex. This comprised the cellar and ground floor of his house 'Elmhurst' where with two men and three boys he made dry plates, delivering them daily to London in a horse and trap. He expanded by buying other houses and in 1883 a special factory was built for plate manufacture. In 1885 he quarrelled with his agent, Marion's of Soho Square, and lost a law suit to prevent them using the name 'Britannia'. As a result he announced that after February 1886, 'Britannia' plates would henceforth be known as Ilford' plates. A box of one dozen 4 x 5in extra rapid cost 10p (2s). In 1891 the firm became a limited company and Harman slowly withdrew from activity in the business until in 1898 the company was disposed of for £380,000, Harman thereafter acting as an occasional consultant. He died in 1913, aged 72, leaving £266,000. Not a great deal is known about him personally but he was obviously a man of great determination and, although he does not appear to have been scientifically trained, he must have been a good practical experimenter and researcher".
This article, with its many illustrations, can downloaded as a pdf file by clicking here.

Richard W Holzman has traced the original formal application for registration of this paddle steamer trade mark as it appeared in the 'Trade Mark's Journal'. The application is dated 6th October 1897. This date conflicts with the date reported above (1886), though its quite possible the paddle steamer drawing was in use on Alfred Harman's products for some years before he applied for his drawing to become his expanding company's formal trade mark.

The application was reported in 'The Photographic Dealer' magazine for January 1898. To see the full page image from that magazine, click here.

Alongside is the specific text, extracted and enhanced by Richard.

Selo film dispenser
South Kensington Science Museum (perhaps now at the Bradford Media Museum?).

Dates from a time when size 20 ie 120 film, cost 1/- per roll, probably early 1930s.

The vending machine below was seen at the 3-Counties Show Ground 'Flea Fair' at Malvern on Sunday 15th September 2019. It was manufactured by National Automatic Machines Ltd. who were a leading maker of small chewing gum, match, cigarette and chocolate etc. vending machines. Their factory was at 99, Cobbold Road, London NW10. The company also had an address at Progress House, Kingston Road, London, SW20. Unlike the wall mounted 120 size roll film DISPENSERS above (film price 1/- =12d old pence =5p new pence), the machine shown below was seemingly intended to receIve EXPOSED films for subsequent developing and printing (not in the machine, of course). The coin entry slots state that the user must pay by inserting a half crown coin (=2s/6d =30d =12.5p) plus two sixpenny pieces (=2 x 6d =12d =5p). So the total to be inserted was 3s/6d (= 42d = 17.5p). If this price covered all the developing and printing costs, then it seems low, even if the customer only reeceived small 'contact' sized prints. To make any sense of this price it was thought the machine dated to the late 1940s, maybe up to 1950.

But this simple explanation of a machine designed to receive exposed films and later provide to the owner his negatives and finished prints, raises questions of operating logistics, principally:
1) How did the machine arrange to dispense the correct finished print wallet to the rightful owner?
2) Some films will have been used in cameras producing 8 negatives, but other cameras will have produced 12 or even 16 negatives, all requiring to be printed, so costs can't have been a fixed 3s/6d.

Gavin Ritchie, who has his own collection of film vending machines, has suggested that perhaps this machine was originally based upon one for vending 4 different film sizes e.g: 120, 620, 127 and 116. The price of 3s/6d was intended to cover the price of the most expensive, with coin change attached to each less costly film. This might date the machine to the mid-1950s.

The small round holes near the bottom letter box sized opening may have acted as 'peep' holes to enable the machine owner (or a user) to speedily check whether films were still available within the machine. Alternatively, perhaps they originally held the mechanism by which the film purchaser selected the size of film he wanted.

The lack of a 4th such hole (left hand side) suggests this machine was specified as only to be for vending three film sizes. The 4th film internal vending 'channel' was omitted and in its place was constructed an exposed film depository. The machine would have been located on the outside wall of a photographic dealers (most likely a chemist shop) and would have enabled 3 sizes of fresh film to be purchased and, somewhat unusually, exposed films to be left for developing and printing, even when the shop was closed.

The owner of the exposed film would have collected his prints from the shop a few days later and would have paid for them across the counter, at a price that took account of the number of negatives on his film and the number of failures not printed.

Gavin has suggested that the film vending facilities of the original design may have been blanked off when the price of films rose such that 3s/6d no longer covered their cost, but the shop owner wanted to continue to offer a facility to receive exposed film when his shop was closed. While this sounds a credible explanation, it doesn't explain why the coin entry slots were not then similarly blanked, as they would no longer serve a purpose, apart from confusing the customer.

An Ilford 'Selo Soldiers' film advert probably dating from around 1953.

See another copy here.

Alongside, and below, are scans of various Ilford print wallets (envelopes), provided to customers from chemists shops after the shop (or its agent) had developed and printed the customer's roll film (spool).

The print wallet to the left appears to be the earliest shown here. It has come from Colin Frankland, and perhaps dates from the early 1930's. Notice how each print cost a mere 2d (an old penny = not quite 1p) as the order seems to be for 2 prints from each of 8 negatives, so 16 prints in all, costing 2s 8d = 32d (old pence).

Film developing cost 6d (6 old pence = 2.5p).

Christine Ellis (ex-Sussex, now living in Sydney, Australia) has sent the above views of an Ilford print envelope. As Christine points out, strangely enough it is from a Margate d&p chemist, as is the previous Selo envelope from Anthony Smout. This envelope is believed to date to about 1952 as Christine's husband's family had moved to Ramsgate in 1948 and then migrated to Australia in 1953 after her husband's father "did a recce in 1952". Hence, the hand-written capital letter notation on the back cover, reading "Australian snaps" is probably correct.

The three films illustrated are Selochrome ortho, HP3 and FP3, all in 120 roll film format.

The above print envelope images are more provided by Nita Fenton. Since the inside cover mentions the very fast emulsion Ilford HPS, the envelope most likely dates to the mid or late 1950s. Interestingly, the term 'en-print' is first appearing and is explained thus:
"When you take a roll or cassette of exposed film to your photographic dealer or your chemist, ask him to give you en-prints. (En-print or enprint is an abbreviation of enlarged print.) These en-prints are markedly larger than the standard 'contact' print you normally have. So ask for en-prints - they're your best buy !"

The print enevelope below looks more modern, probably belonging to the colour era of the 1960s. For more print envelopes, see: Ilford/Print_Envelope.html

This wonderful and well preserved enamel advertising sign (left) is owned by James Lobley.

He says that he found the sign "in the loft of one of my father's chemist shops. I was probably no more than 14 years old when I came across it clearing out that roof space which had been untouched for decades. I've always been quite a strong athletic person, even as a child, so my dad always found good use for my energy and enthusiasm by giving me the tough dirty jobs nobody else wanted! It's now been in my possession for 20 years. He sold his chain almost a decade ago and it's really the only thing I have to remind me of the shops, so sentimental value is quite high".

"You may add it to your site. After spending so many years hidden away under soot and cobwebs I think it deserves it" !

The age of the sign is uncertain, but likely dates to the 1930s. Selo film was being marketed by Ilford from at least September 1930 (see below) and possibly earlier. By 1935 a range of Selo films was being marketed and its possibly significant that the sign refers to the plural 'Selo Films'.

Recently (March 2014) a lady named Saru has sent me a picture of a near identical sign, in apparently perfect condition.

A glass fronted shop cabinet advertising Selochrome Film, British Made by Ilford Limited, Ilford, England.

An image sent to me by Chris Eccles who lives in Canada.

Another Selo display cabinet, sent by a gentleman named Andrew Squibb, who (like Chris Eccles, above) also lives in Canada.

It says "Buy British; SELO FILMS".

At first sight it looks somewhat crudely made, maybe by the shop keeper himself. But the lettering is of good quality.

Two 1930s Selo film advertising methods, both images sent by Fredrik Naumann in Norway. Fredrik says the aircraft picture belongs to a friend but its known that the 'plane flew in Norway in the 1930s.

archive: www.felixfeatures.com
portfolio: https://naumann.photoshelter.com

Frederik is a photographer based in Oslo, Norway. He is represented by Panos Pictures (UK) and runs the Felix Features picture agency with his partner Marianne Alfsen.
He began taking photographs for the local newspaper while still in secondary school and continued through his time in military service, serving as a photographer in the Norwegian Air Force. He has gone on to cover stories ranging from extreme sports and environmental issues to reportage and conflict.

A neon illuminated Selo film advertising sign. The image is by courtesy of Doug McKee. Doug says the side with the neon is actually yellow with red letters but the neon light (colour temperature) affects the result.

I've tried to 'tweak' the colours in the result shown here (left), in line with Doug's description.

Two more "Ilford Films" illuminated signs, one owned by Carl Garner in the UK and the other owned by Nicholas Hoferichter in South Africa. Nicholas believes his came from inside a local pharmacy.

This sign clearly post-dates the illuminated neon sign (above, left) advertising Ilford SC (Selochrome) Roll Film, which perhaps dates to the 1940s. This later one might date to the 1960s.

Both owners intend to keep their signs and Carl thinks he'll be mounting his on the outside of his darkroom !

Carl also reports that the dimensions are 24x10x6 inches (610x255x152mm).

Another Ilford sign owned by Carl Garner. This one is not illuminated and would seemingly have been hung inside a chemists shop, in the area where films were purchased or left for developing and printing.

Carl says it measures approximately 20inches (500mm) by 8 inches (200mm).

It probably dates from the 1950s.

An illuminated Ilford advertising sign for a chemist shop of, probably, the 1950s. At that time, before High St photographic stores became commonplace, chemists shops were the natural 'home' of anything to do with chemicals, and this included all things photographic. The actual D&P would almost certainly have been done off the premises, probably by a local business providing a 'pick up and return' service to a number of chemist shops in the area.

This sign is shown by courtesy of Heather Carey who says "It was manufactured by Burnham (Onyx) Ltd, probably in the 1950s, from aluminium & glass".

A 'grab' shot taken by Eleanor Taylor, of an Ilford Films sign, with central clock. The sign was in a shop, surounded by other bric-a-brac. The reversed Coca-Cola sign to the lower left is a projection from an overhead light and nothing to do with the Ilford sign. Similarly, the blue frame, to lower right, is just another item leaning against the Ilford sign.

It maybe dates to the 1950s or 1960s.

The picture below was sent by Neil Sampson. The left hand side leaflet dates from July 1957. The texts read:
ILFORD Colour Transparencies:
With correct exposure your Ilford colour film will give you twenty excellent pictures from each cassette. Careful examination of any unsatisfactory frames will help you to avoid failures in future.
With reversal film, increased exposure gives a lighter transparency and reduced exposure a darker transparency. Thus dark or black frames have received too little or no exposure and light or transparent frames hve been over-exposed or completely fogged. Yellow areas or streaks may be caused by light fog through the back of the film. Loading the camera in bright sunshine may cause this.
Pictures which show a slight overall yellow or red tinge can be caused by exposing in the early morning or late evening or in winter sunshine. On Ilford Colour Film 'F', exposure to photoflood lamps without an Ilford Filter No.362 will also give warmer colour balance.When the correction filter is used, old lamps or discoloured reflectors can also give a picture which is too yellow.
Pictures which show a slight overall blue tinge are commonly the result of the lighting at the time they were taken. Pictures taken in the shade under a blue sky or in light that contains a high proportion of ultra-violet light, at high altitudes for example, will often appear too blue. Use of an ultra-violet absorbing filter will help in these situations, but such filters should be used with caution.

Care and Storage of Transparencies:
Colour transparencies should be stored in a cool dry place place and prolonged exposure to strong light or heat should be avoided. Mounting between glass provides good protection from dust and finger marks and holds the film flat for projection. This can be done by binding the transparency between 2 inches square cover glasses or, more quickly, by using Ilford metal transparency holders.

Liability:
Transparencies are accepted for printing and duplicating on the basis that their value does not exceed the current retail cost of the unexposed material. Our liability in the case of loss or damage from any cause is limited to the cost of replacement by equivalent new material. Our employees have no authority to make any other arrangement with our customers.
As is usually the case with colour materials, the colours in the prints and transparencies are not guaranteed against deterioration or change.

The right hand side dates from August 1957. The texts read:
Ilford Miniature Slide Transit Box:
A wooden box for miniature transparencies which is slightly less bulky than the cabinet described previously, and therefore more suitable when transport must be considered. It holds 65 transparencies mounted in metal holders, and the inside is divided into five compartments. The felt-lined lid is completely detachable, being held in position by nickel-plated instrument case catches at either end. The inside is of smoothed natural wood, and the outside is finished in golden varnish. Price: 20s. 0d (£1).

Ilford Cover Glasses:
For those who prefer to bind their own transparencies we can supply cover glasses 2x2ins, in two thicknesses of glass, Standard and Thin. Prices: Standard Glass 2s. 9d (14p) per 2 doz; Thin Glass 5s. 0d (25p) per 3 doz.

Binding Tape:
For miniature transparencies we recommend the use of our black gummed paper in rolls 100 foot long by ½ inch wide. Price: 2s. 6d (12.5p) per roll.

Ilford Transparency Viewer:
This viewer can be carried comfortably in your pocket and will enable you to show your results at anytime, anywhere. The metal casing holds four EverReady U8 or Drydex T10 single-cell, or two EverReady No.8 double-cell midget batteries-and a bulb which illuminates a diffusing screen. Insertion of the transparency, in either a cardboard or a metal holder, into the frame on the top of the casing automatically switches on the light. Finished in black crackle cellulose enamel. Price: 7s. 6d (37.5p).

The picture alongside, of a lorry operated by Ilford Limited, was sent to me by John Smailes. The vehicle has the registration plate, F.697, which helps to date the vehicle.

Wikipedia informs us that before 1932, the letter indicated the local authority in whose area the vehicle was registered. In 2008, the registration plate F 1 was sold by Essex County Council, who had held the plate since it was first issued in 1904, when the County became a licensing authority. This conveniently fits with Ilford's ownership of F 697, since Ilford (the town and original base of Ilford Limited) is in the County of Essex, UK.

According to the Essex Record Office, F 697 was registered between 1904 and 1906. The lorry is steam driven; the two men would have been the driver and the fireman. In front of them is the boiler with what appears to be a steam pressure gauge in front of the smoke stack.

Doug McKee has noticed this (but not quite the same) picture appears in the book 'Silver by the Ton' (see the top of my Ilford Chronology web page), where it is said to be the earliest vehicle used by the Company, but is identified as a Foden steam wagon. David Parfitt has e-mailed (Feb 2021) to say "It’s definitely a Thornycroft". He especially identifies it by the oval maker’s plate on the front. He says "Foden never made a steam wagon that looked anything like this".

There seems no acknowledged derivation of the word 'Selo', originally coined in 1920 and which Ilford retained in their 'popular' amateur film 'Selochrome' until c1968. One theory, based upon a phrase within a 1930s book 'How It Is Made', which includes a chapter on film making, is that 'Selo' is an abbreviation for 'Sensitised Celluloid', though a simpler suggestion has been made that it is merely an abbreviation / corruption of the word Celluloid.

Of course, 'Selo' means (postal) stamp in Portugese. Could this be of any significance ? The picture alongside is of a postage stamp dispenser, outside the main Post Office in Lagos, Algarve, Portugal.

'FP' was originally an abbreviation for Fine (grain) Panchromatic (film) and 'HP' for Hypersensitive Panchromatic (film). Hence, strictly grammatically, these film names should be abbreviated to F.P. and H.P., as in the film carton of H.P.2 shown immediately below. As this film carton is dated September 1942, it must be from some of the last batches of H.P.2 film produced (carton images from Charlie Kamerman). Interestingly, this 127 size roll film carton was original intended for Selo Ortho(chromatic) Film and has a sticker relabelling the carton as Hypersensitive Panchromatic film.

In Amateur Photographer magazine for November 1946 there is an Ilford advertisement which refers to Ilford Selo H.P.3 (note the full stops after the H and P, confirming the intention of name abbreviations). By the 29th October 1947 edition, the word Selo has been dropped, but the film is still H.P.3. Then, in a January 1951 AP, the advertisement is for HP3 (no full stops), i.e Ilford have decided to make HP3 a name, not an abbreviation.

To view some early ILFORD plate (and process plate) packaging, click here.
To view packaging from companies that merged with Ilford during 1920-1930. Paget (click), Wellington & Ward (click), Thomas Illingworth & Co.Ltd (click), The Imperial Dry Plate Co Ltd (click).
To view some FP3 & FP4 packaging, click here.
To view some HP2, HP3, HP4 and HPS film and plate packaging, click here.
To view some ILFORD Bromide, P.O.P. and Gaslight printing paper packaging, click here. A page dedicated to Intona P.O.P. can be viewed here.
To view the earliest announcements about SELO film, click here and to view pictures of Selochrome film packaging, earliest (1930) and latest (1968), click here.
To view pictures of the SELO factory construction, its location and some personnel, click here. Many other Selo references occur throughout the chronology, below.
To read about Dufaycolor film, click here.
Historical and processing information relating to Cibachrome, for direct printing of colour transparencies, click here.
To read about Stabilisation Processing, click here.

ILFORD Photo's own chronology can be viewed here.

At several points in the chronology (below) reference is made to black & white film speeds changing (doubling) in 1960. This arose when American Standard PH2.5-1960 made a change to the previous American Standards Association (ASA) method of speed rating black & white film emulsions by removing an exposure safety factor that had previously been applied. The result was an apparent doubling of film speeds.

With the greater use, by 1960, of colour films that needed accurate exposure measurement, and therefore greater use of accurate exposure metering systems, the ASA decided there was no longer need for black & white emulsions to retain their previous exposure safety margin.

This link gives access to a short article entitled "The Jump in Film Speeds", by Andrew Matheson. It is extracted from 'PhotoGuide Magazine', Vol.11, No.8, August 1960, pages 662-665.

The American (ASA) speed change, leading to a doubling of black & white film speeds (no change to the actual emulsions) was anticipated would eventually apply in the UK also, and indeed new, increased, film speeds appeared on film packaging during 1960, leading to confusion for some amateurs. One such amateur, Mr Geoffrey Perry, requested clarification about the apparent doubling of black & white film speeds in the 'Readers Write ~ Mailbag' within the December 1960 issue of "35mm and Sub-Miniature Photography" magazine. The magazine enquired of Ilford Ltd, who gave a Technical Services Note reply, which can be read here. However, the new British Standard that would formally ratify this doubling of film speed was said to still be "expected almost daily" in Amateur Photographer magazine's editorial paragraphs (page 943) as late as 21st June 1961. In fact, AP may have had to wait longer than they anticipated, since the relevant BS 1380 didn't finally arrive until 1963.

Flash exposures were advised to best still be based on the lower (old) film speed rating (ref: Amateur Photographer 'Readers Ask', 11th Jan.1961). Also, the change did NOT apply to colour films, neither negative nor transparency (reversal) films, where no exposure safety margin had ever been incorporated into their speed rating. Colour film always give best results when exposed accurately to the true emulsion speed.