Liquid crystals are widely employed as stimuli-responsive materials. Liquid crystallinity can be retained in polymeric form. Photoinduced mechanical effects in liquid crystalline polymer networks and elastomers have been a topic of considerable recent research. This review details the historical underpinnings and recent advances in the synthesis and the corresponding photomechanical response of these materials. In nearly all cases, the conversion of light into mechanical work has employed azobenzene as either a guest additive or covalently attached to the network. (c) 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2018, 56, 695-705