Eckersley studied at Salford School of Art (1930– 34), where he met Eric Lombers. They co-operated in London till the outbreak of the war. They were acknowledged as two of the foremost poster designers in Britain, working for the BBC and the Post Offi ce, Frank Pick of London Transport and Jack Beddington at Shell-Mex and BP. Tom was visiting lecturer at Westminster School of Art (1937–39). During the war he worked as a cartographer for the RAF, also designing many posters for the GPO and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents. He was given an OBE, elected RDI in 1963, and awarded the CSD medal in 1990. After 1945 he continued his design practice and his involvement in education. In 1970 he was visiting lecturer at Yale University. In 1958–76 he was head of the design department of the London School of Printing; the Eckersley archive is now held by this college. His work is represented in many museums: the V&A, Imperial War Museum, NY MoMA and Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.