This online exhibition, designed by King's College London Archives and Corporate Record Services, explores the rivalry between two of London's leading higher education institutions, rivalry that spilled out onto the streets of London in the form of the student rag. Colourful, subversive, sometimes dangerous for both participant and bystander, the rag reached a height between the two World Wars. The exhibition explains the basis of the rivalry and illustrates both the light-hearted side of running campaigns to capture each side's mascots and the sometimes dangerous outcomes such as the fate of visiting American temperance evangelist, 'Pussyfoot' Johnson who lost an eye in a battle with King's students in 1919. It also shows how attitudes to student high spirits gradually changed and running battles were finally brought to an end by College authorities.

Several pictures have been reproduced with the kind permission of University College London
© All images shown are copyright and should not be reproduced without permission.
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