©Cian Oba-Smith – Portrait of Britain Shortlisted Image
Portrait of Britain returns with a shortlist of 200 photographs celebrating the country’s unique heritage and diversity
When Ben Hickling came across Peter on the beach in Margate, Kent, he tried to discreetly take a candid picture of him, celebrating the Spring Bank Holiday after dancing to reggae at the Harbour Arms pub. But Peter caught the photographer and responded with anger to his lens. The two managed to smooth things over, Hickling sharing his passion for photography, and Peter agreeing to pose for an image in which he stood on the shore “as his luscious locks blew in the wind,” Hickling tells BJP.
This image is one of 200 shortlisted for the Portrait of Britain 2024, the seventh edition of the nationwide competition, from which 100 winning images – announced on 06 January 2025 – will be displayed on digital advertising screens in high streets, shopping centres and transport hubs across the country. The 200 shortlisted images will make up the Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 book, which is sponsored by JCDecaux and is the second published in collaboration with Bluecoat Press – recent publishers of Kirsty Mackay’s The Magic Money Tree and ONE YEAR! Photographs From the Miners’ Strike 1984–85.
©Hannah Mittelstaedt – Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 Shortlist
©Charlie Clift – Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 Shortlist
Portrait of Britain captures a country which has a clearly-identifiable culture and yet is constantly evolving, characterised by migrations new and old as well as longer-established communities. The images highlight the UK’s rich heritage, from ancient industries which shaped the nation, such as fishing and mining, to more modern British social justice movements, such as those for LGBTQIA+, Black Lives Matter, and Women’s Rights.
In one image, Fork, 19, is pictured with their partner Sebastian, both of them proudly trans. “I count myself incredibly grateful that the only hate I have gotten for being trans was receiving dirty looks in bathrooms, but I even got them pre-transition,” says Fork. “At least now I can pull off a moustache too.” Despite their dry humour they feel threatened by anti-trans policies, and express hope for a future in which trans people are welcomed into British society.
This portrait is part of Hannah Mittelstaedt’s series showing trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people in natural settings, intimate images inviting the viewer to connect to the subjects and push back at the culture that denigrates them. Mittelstaedt notes that trans people are one of the most marginalised groups in society – and that some politicians are trying to win points by vilifying them – and believes this is a pivotal moment in British history for trans rights.
Volume 7 shows Britain feeling echoes of the COVID-19 pandemic, experiencing problems with our national health care, and seeing vulnerable people seeking refuge on our coasts. Though the UK can be a complicated nation, understanding more of our often-problematic past and present can help us move our culture and heritage forward; the recent far-right riots give us even more reason to celebrate strength in diversity.
This year’s shortlist also sees photographers capturing protests for peace in Gaza, via demonstrations and awareness-raising initiatives. In doing so it demonstrates the overwhelming number of Britons who celebrate their nation because it is multicultural and multifaceted, fighting for a nation presenting the best version of itself.
Simon King photographs a group of Haredi Jewish Rabbis at a Palestine protest, for example, dressed in traditional simple black shoes, plain high socks, long black coats, and shtreimel. Theo McInnes and Thomas Ralph photograph Raymond, an asylum-seeker from Uganda, at Portland Bill, Dorset. Raymond was one of the men being housed on the Bibby Stockholm barge.
©Finlay Apps – Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 Shortlist
©Dan Dennison – Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 Shortlist
©Tom Pilston – Portrait of Britain Vol. 7 Shortlist
Many photographs highlight communities facing hardship, impacted by hardened fiscal policies and the decline of certain industries. In Greater Manchester, Dan Dennison captures Nathan (whose name has been changed), after meeting while Nathan was between games of five-a-side football. Nathan, along with his brother and sister, is from one of the one-in-422,000 British households impacted by the two-child benefit policy, under which a family with a third child born after April 2017, and claiming Universal Credit or Child Tax Credit, no longer receives additional support for this individual. One in 10 children are impacted by the policy, which is considered a key driver of poverty in the UK, according to leading children’s charities including Child Poverty Action Group, Barnardo’s and Save the Children.
In Cornwall, Finlay Apps paints a picture of a rich mining heritage in the landscape. His image is otherworldly and slightly apocalyptic, with beautiful and murky water transitioning from pink, to purple, to orange before reaching the grey muddy land, topped with a figure in a green hazmat suit and mask. Despite its past innovations and international contributions, Cornwall faced economic decline after global competition and falling metal prices, and is now one of England’s poorest areas. The discovery of significant lithium concentrations and the rise in tin prices are now promising renewal, but this resurgence prompts questions about potential environmental impact, the future of tourism, and the broader consequences of a second mining age.
The work that comes together to make Portrait of Britain never fails to surprise
Mick Moore – Portrait of Britain Vol.7 judge. CEO – British Journal of Photography
These are key issues, but Volume 7 also includes moments of the joy and playfulness which are at the heart of many British communities. There are two wingwalkers based in Cirencester, for example, as seen through the lens of Casey Steffens; Kirsten and Emma smile earnestly, the former a full-time wing-walker for six years who has brought her childhood best friend onboard. They are part of the only formation-display wingwalking team in the world.
“The work that comes together to make Portrait of Britain never fails to surprise,” says Mick Moore, CEO of BJP and one of the judges. This year he was joined on the judging panel by Siân Davey, Deirdre Robb, Ashleigh Kane, Caroline Hunter, Jermaine Francis, Tom Booth-Woodger, and Louise Pearson. Moore continues; “This year’s crop of images continues this tradition. Maybe it’s the simplicity of the format, because what is on the surface a simple set of straightforward portraits, comes together to paint a rich, nuanced picture of the complexity of life in Britain today.”
You can order the Portrait of Britain Vol.7 book here
