Last night this powerful film had its UK premiere, hosted by @bodleian.ox.ac.uk, with courageous librarians like @librarianjones.com there too. Alongside we awarded @richove.bsky.social the @rsliterature.bsky.social Benson Medal. What a privilege to share the stage with them. See it if you can.

Congratulations to the winner of the inaugural RSL Pioneer Prize, Maureen Duffy 🎉 Duffy received news of her award earlier this month when Evaristo visited her at home. Watch the full video here: youtu.be/9ZB_AHdm4ts?...

This is a wonderful story! Bernardine Evaristo is SUCH a force for good, not only writing brilliant books & teaching students of writing but also uplifting other writers all over the place. And Maureen Duffy is a great choice to receive this prize. 📚📚📚

And to say once again: Maureen is co-responsible for the existence of both PLR & ALCS, so every writer in the UK & Ireland should give her 💐💐💐. And read her books!

The incredible Bernardine Evaristo has used her @womensprize.bsky.social Outstanding Contribution Award to create a new @rsliterature.bsky.social Prize. For the next decade, we will be celebrating pioneering women writers, starting with Maureen Duffy www.theguardian.com/books/2025/s...

A very special day today, when my lovely former colleagues @theul.bsky.social have digitised the founding documents of @rsliterature.bsky.social to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the signing of our Royal Charter. My favourite line: "We have become a People of Readers"

Please spread the word: Are you working on your first commissioned work of non-fiction for a general readership? (You can have previously published for an academic audience). We’ve extended the deadline of the wonderful Giles St Aubyn Awards, three prizes £2.5k-£10k rsliterature.org/rsl-giles-st...

The incredible @jonathanwatkins.bsky.social has directed a glorious, witty, sad and hopeful adaptation of Christopher Isherwood’s novel A Single Man into a contemporary ballet. I loved it. It’s been sold out but they seem to have just released Saturday matinee tickets www.rbo.org.uk/tickets-and-...

A little slice of Somerset House and the Inua Ellams / Fuel Theatre exhibition The 419. Playful, moving, told in sonnets and photographs, and it’s free and only on until Sunday. www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/the...

It must be the end of summer, because the kids have been breaking in their new school shoes as they walk to the library to finish the @readingagency.bsky.social Summer Reading Challenge

CFP: Thinking of the Children: Book Bans, Censorship and Literature for Young People An online conference hosted by the University of Münster 11-12 February 2026 Abstracts due 11:59pm on 31 August! Full CFP and to submit: indico.uni-muenster.de/event/3505/ Please share!

Please spread the word: Are you working on your first commissioned work of non-fiction for a general readership? (You can have previously published for an academic audience). We’ve extended the deadline of the wonderful Giles St Aubyn Awards, three prizes £2.5k-£10k rsliterature.org/rsl-giles-st...

First week @rsliterature.bsky.social. London has been looking glorious from my commute!

I took a small fairy and wizard to Rough Magic at The Globe today (no humans allowed!). It’s hilarious and so engaging. On for another week www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/rou...

Because as we know, women very rarely have pockets 😢@theulspeccoll.bsky.social 1928.6 178 and 1928.6.179.

Recharging in the Kent countryside. (Proper camping plus onsite pizza chef…)

We are hosting the UK premiere of the powerful documentary, ‘The Librarians’, directed by Kim A. Snyder. Come and join us @bodleian.ox.ac.uk for the screening, a panel discussion, and drinks! Co-organised with @rsliterature.bsky.social visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/event/sep25/...

End of an era @theul.bsky.social @jessicagardner.bsky.social I will miss you all so much. Also here commemorating the single time my desk has looked like this in 11 years.

After 11 years at the UL, @lauragreenfield.bsky.social, Director of Services and Engagement, leaves today to become Director of the @rsliterature.bsky.social. We'll dearly miss Laura's rare combination of vision, leadership, humour and compassion, but can't wait to see what she does next!

What a joy to finish my five years of facilitating @theul.bsky.social Really Popular Book Club discussing Terry Pratchett’s ‘Guards! Guards!’ with @unamccormack.bsky.social. I’ve only got two days left at the UL…

This will be my last event for Cambridge University Library! So looking forward to talking to Una about whether Terry Pratchett was “guilty of literature”, orangutang librarians, and dragons

First day of the school summer holidays

This article, by Oxford's @richove.bsky.social, may be the most important article you read about NARA, IMLS, LC, ...all of it. observer.co.uk/news/interna...

What an absolute joy to be at the @rsliterature.bsky.social Summer Party this evening, to see these incredible people inducted as Fellows and Honorary Fellows rsliterature.org/announcement... I was lucky enough to see the list before hand, and have had a lovely time reading my way through their work

This really is the hire of the decade. Well done, Mellon. “For generations, libraries, archives, and cultural institutions have been the guardians of knowledge and the catalysts for human progress,” said Dr. Hayden. www.mellon.org/news/mellon-...

Mellon Foundation announces appointment of Dr. Carla Hayden as Mellon Senior Fellow 📚📜 librarytechnology.org/pr/31511

A National Year of Reading will take place in 2026 aimed at curtailing the reading crisis among children and young people. The initiative was launched by education secretary, Bridget Phillipson ahead of a reception to be held at 10 Downing Street 👇 #BookSky

@kwilsonlee.bsky.social How are you, Kelcey? I’ve read your bio. What is ‘monumental brass’? Is it it a brass band playing something epic? I hope so, but I suspect it is architectural

I get to step in and do one last @theul.bsky.social Book Club, chatting about Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett with @unamccormack.bsky.social! And so I will end a decade of working in research libraries discussing the orangutang Librarian of the Unseen University www.lib.cam.ac.uk/whats/really...

One month left of the view from my office. Flags flying at Clare College and Great St Mary’s (in the distance) to celebrate graduation, and Kings Chapel peeking over the trees

This amazing installation is opening at the Wellcome Collection next week, co-curated by the wonderful @cathymager.bsky.social wellcomecollection.org/exhibitions/.... Bringing together sign language performance with historic films and illustrations of finger spelling alphabets from the 17th century

Almost midsummer, and almost twilight in the Dye Garden @theul.bsky.social #CULconservation #CambridgeUniversityLibrary #LibraryGardens #Midsummer #DyePlants #PracticeBasedResearch

Our Library Late is this Thursday. What a scorcher. But there will be themed cocktails and shady courtyards!

The @literacy-trust.bsky.social annual survey of children’s reading has been published: www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

Admittedly I don’t start at the Royal Society of Literature until August, so a lot of the change is still to come, but so far the main difference is that I used to read one book at a time, and I now I read 20 books at a time

If you are in London this week or Oxford next week, this collaboration between Creation Theatre, @rsliterature.bsky.social and @thelondonlibrary.bsky.social looks so good. I can’t go and am trying to convince myself reading the book is sufficient compensation

Two weeks until I facilitate my last Really Popular Book Club before I head off to my new role @rsliterature.bsky.social, on Min Jin Lee’s epic Pachinko www.lib.cam.ac.uk/whats/really.... In addition to the official ‘thinking points’ (see link) I’ll be asking ‘is this the best opening line ever?!’

This is going to be brilliant. We had sold out all 250 tickets, but a little bird has told me we’ve been able to do a small second release. Book now!

After almost 11 years at @theul.bsky.social, I am thrilled to have been appointed Director of @rsliterature.bsky.social. I will miss the UL’s lovely people (and collection!), but I can’t wait to get to know all the wonderful writers and my new colleagues at the RSL rsliterature.org/rsl-announce...

Tonight my colleagues will be hosting a #curiouscures themed Really Popular Book Club. And for anyone who wants a bigger fix of medieval health, our exhibition is still running… www.lib.cam.ac.uk/exhibitioncu...

A White House push to seize control of the Library of Congress has run temporarily aground due to quiet but firm resistance from Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, according to three people granted anonymity to describe the sensitive situation.

Over the weekend, the Library of Congress posted this video message Dr. Carla Hayden, whom Donald Trump unjustifiably dismissed as Librarian of Congress, that makes clear how much the nation has lost. Props to whoever put it up. I hope everyone watches it.

NEW: ALA salutes Dr Carla Hayden for her exceptional service to the nation as the Librarian of Congress. We are deeply disappointed in Dr Hayden's abrupt & unjust dismissal last night, an insult to the scope & breadth of her work. Read ALA Pres. Cindy Hohl's statement: www.ala.org/news/2025/05...

Library Late is back at the UL! Join us for an evening dedicated to our latest exhibition, Curious Cures. ⏰THURS 19 JUNE 2025, 7.30PM TO 10PM 🎟️More details and to book your ticket: loom.ly/aXzD1H4 £8 for adults / Free for those 17 and under. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult.

Just launched! New framework for measuring social & cultural infrastructure to ensure assets that are vital to the social fabric of communities are accounted for in policy & planning by government, funders, civic organisations, & the private sector. www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/blog/value-o...

Great essay here by @drdaveobrien.bsky.social about the change - or not - in publishing since Common People in 2019. Please share :)

May is for ‘MAYING’ – the celebration of May Day and the coming of summer, usually with some flower garlands and general merriment! This is a detail from a 14th-century Book of Hours (CUL MS Dd.4.17). Explore it in full in the Cambridge Digital Library: cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-DD-0...

📣 New Blog! Read the 'Black British Voices' blog of project @theul.bsky.social funded by CCC that led to a major Heritage Fund! So PROUD and EXCITED! 👏 #ChrisBurgess and team! #GLAM www.ccc.cam.ac.uk/blog/black-b...

This is a delight www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...

The Postal Museum is a fantastic example of museum storytelling - fantastic collection, brilliant interpretation, really interesting and fun to visit, very well targeted activities for kids. There’s a really important exhibition on for the rest of this year: www.postalmuseum.org/event/voices...