The Observer Archive

Being able to look at a copy of the Observer from the date you were born or the date you got married is what makes our newspaper gifts memorable keepsakes. You can select the date of whatever special occasion you want and be able to look back at the headlines from that date throughout history.

Search our archive of original old newspapers

Let our archivist don their specs and rifle through the stacks, to retrieve the exact newspaper you’re after.

Day

Month

Year

FROM £19.99

The Observer Newspaper

Historic Newspapers offer excellent birthday newspapers and anniversary newspaper gifts, like our archive of headlines from the Observer newspaper. You can go beyond the customised date and personalise the gift to include the recipient’s name and a loving message.

Historic Newspapers holds an extensive collection of newspapers, with the UK’s largest Observer archive. Your newspaper will even come with a Certificate of Authenticity, which guarantees that your copy of the Observer is an authentic original newspaper.

To have a look at the range of newspaper editions that we have in our archive for your special day, choose the date in the drop down boxes.

Our passion for history shows

3 million old newspapers in the archive.

100s of newspaper titles.

Authentic, original papers. Not copies.

History in your hands

Ships within days of ordering

Add a presentation gift box or bottle of alcohol

A gift they won’t be expecting

Forget flowers. Sidestep the sock aisle. An original newspaper to commemorate a date from your recipient’s past is a memory that’ll last.

EXPERTLY PRESENTED

CHOOSE between a classic or deluxe gift box to protect this incredible gift for years to come.

ADD THEIR DRINK OF CHOICE

Toast the past. Add a bottle of the recipient’s preferred drink – like a vintage Bordeaux or a 12-year-old malt whiskey.

Original newspaper UX test - Historic Newspapers

PRESERVED IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST PRIVATE ARCHIVE

Your newspaper will come from the echoing halls of the Historic Newspapers archive in Western Scotland, overseen by our team of ten archivists.

SELECTED AND RESTORED BY HAND

After you make your order, an archivist examines your paper, page by page. The paper is pressed flat and any flaws are rectified with archival repair tape.

PERSONALISED, PRESENTED AND DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

Choose a gift box, and if you wish, add a bottle of the recipient’s favourite drink. However you choose to personalise your gift, it’ll be delivered within five days.

insights from our archivist

These aren’t replicas. They’re the actual newspapers that sat on newsstands up to 125 years ago. The one you buy could be the last copy in existence.

Prices can vary for several reasons, like popularity of a specific day, whether the paper is local or national, the paper’s age, and the number of copies left.

Missing papers give us a window into history. If a paper isn’t available for the date you’re after, it could be because that newspaper was on strike during the period.

FLYING OFF THE NEWSSTANDS

Bestsellers leave public ‘clamouring for copies’, reports suggest.