UK LITERARY HERITAGE WORKING GROUP
Collecting Modern Literary Archives
Latest News
June 2010
The archive of J G Ballard, one of the most visionary British writers of the twentieth century, has been acquired by the nation through the Acceptance in Lieu (AIL) scheme and allocated to the British Library. The 15 large storage boxes which currently house the archive contain manuscripts, notebooks, letters, photographs and ephemera, spanning 50 years and covers the full range of Ballard’s output from The Drowned World (1962) to Miracles of Life (2008).
Read the full press release.
Introduction
Manuscripts and archives of modern and contemporary UK writers continue to be sold to institutions abroad, despite the efforts of publicly-funded collections in the UK.
The UK Literary Heritage Working Group was established in March 2005 to explore the issues surrounding their dispersal and to take forward a national strategy through
- raising awareness of the richness of literary archives, their tremendous creative, educational, research value and diverse uses across a range of audiences. See our press coverage and recent acquisitions
- pressing for implementation of tax incentives to benefit living authors and UK collections
- providing guidance on independent sources of information for pre-eminent authors wishing to sell their archives or seeking advice on the care of electronic archives
- collaboration between collection institutions, particularly through GLAM, the Group for Literary Archives and Manuscripts
Concern about the dispersal of UK literary heritage was first expressed in the 1950s, when Philip Larkin led the campaign, and the issues were raised again by Sir Nicholas Goodison as part of his review to HM Treasury, published in January 2004. In September 2004 the Working Group was established under the Chairmanship of Lord Smith of Finsbury, who stepped down in December 2006.
A 2-day conference was held 19-20 October 2006 to address the issues.
Contact us at campaign@literary.org.uk.
Current Members
Chair of the Working Group is Rt Hon Lord Howarth of Newport, Minister for Higher Education 1990-92 and Minister for the Arts 1998-2001. Lord Howarth is a Trustee of the Poetry Archive and Chair of the Trustees of the Royal Pavilion and Museums Foundation. He is also Vice President of the All Party Parliamentary Arts and Heritage Group and Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Archives Group.
- Jamie Andrews British Library
- Richard Charkin Bloomsbury Publishing plc
- Lord Egremont DL FRS
- Dr Chris Fletcher Bodleian Library
- Professor Warwick Gould FRSL FRSA FEA Institute of English Studies (University of London
- Nick Kingsley The National Archives
- Scot McKendrick British Library
- Professor Andrew Motion
- Ferdinand Mount
- Cate Newton National Library of Scotland
- Dr Chris Sheppard Brotherton Library, University of Leeds
- Dr David Sutton Reading University Library
- Joan Winterkorn Bernard Quaritch Ltd
Other News
April 2010
The British Library has acquired the archive of the writer and artist, Mervyn Peake, best known as the author of Gormenghast, for which he won the Heinemann Prize for Literature in 1951. Peake's archive has been acquired with support from independent charity The Art Fund, Friends of the British Library, Friends of the National Libraries and individual donors. The archive will be catalogued and made accessible to researchers early in 2011.
Further information regarding the acquisition, including details of the archive's highlights, can be found on the BL website.
Recent UK acquisitions
Peter Nichols. Early notes for The National Health (originally called The End Beds), first performed by the National Theatre Company at the Old Vic, London, on 16 October 1969. Reproduced by kind permission of Peter Nichols.
Additional SourcesA vital and comprehensive source of information about the holdings of literary manuscripts in the British Isles, including recent acquisitions, is the location register of 20th century English literary manuscripts and letters, developed by Dr David Sutton.
Access to Archives, although not limited to either modern or literary archives, is a searchable online database of archives catalogues in England and Wales, covering material from the 8th century to the present day.
Archival sound recordings of writers:
Celebrating modern poets and bringing their work to a wider audience is the Poetry Archive, which provides free online access to sound recordings of poets reading their own works.
The Theatre Archive includes transcripts of oral historical interviews with leading names from the theatre over the last 50 years and finding lists for the British Library’s theatre archives.
The First World War Poetry Digital Archive, funded by the Joint Information Systems Committee, makes available digital resources relating to the literature of the First World War, both primary sources and contextual information.
From March to May 2008, it invites submission of digital copies of relevant items from the general public at www.thegreatwararchive.org.
Guidance for Authors
Advice and guidance for authors is available from the Society of Authors, with whom the Working Group has close links through General Secretary Mark Le Fanu. An article by Chris Fletcher published in the Society's journal, The Author, in 2005 discusses e-manuscripts.The Royal Society of Literature campaigns on behalf of good writing to 'reward literary merit and excite literary talent'.
Tax incentives exist for the transfer of literary archives to public collections. The Acceptance in Lieu Scheme, administered by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) does not benefit living authors but may enable owners of pre-eminent works, including modern manuscripts and archives, to transfer them to public ownership in lieu of inheritance tax.
Similarly, Private Treaty Sales allow exemption from inheritance tax.
To enable living authors to benefit from tax relief, the Working Group has made two Proposals to HM Treasury.
Minutes
Minutes of the UK Literary Heritage Working Group meetings are available to download here in PDF format:
Minutes of the 19th Meeting
March 2010
PDF Link
Minutes of the 18th Meeting
November 2009
PDF Link
Minutes of the 17th Meeting
July 2009
PDF Link
Minutes of the 16th Meeting
March 2009
PDF Link
Minutes of the 15th Meeting
November 2008
PDF Link
Minutes of the 14th meeting
July 2008
PDF Link
Minutes of the 13th Meeting
February 2008
PDF Link
Minutes of the 12th Meeting
October 2007
PDF Link
Minutes of the 11th Meeting
June 2007
PDF Link
Minutes of the 10th Meeting
March 2007
PDF Link
Minutes of the 9th Meeting
December 2006
PDF Link
Minutes of the 8th Meeting
October 2006
PDF Link
Minutes of the 7th Meeting
June 2006
PDF Link
Minutes of the 6th Meeting
April 2006
PDF Link
Minutes of the 5th Meeting
February 2006
PDF Link
Minutes of the 4th Meeting
December 2005
PDF Link
Minutes of the 3rd Meeting
October 2005
PDF Link
Minutes of the 2nd Meeting
June 2005
PDF Link
Minutes of the 1st Meeting
May 2005
PDF Link