Our collections are a rich resource for understanding British life from the post-War period to the present day. They span the range of published formats, as well as manuscripts, archives and sound recordings.

Collection guides

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Help

Reading Room Paul Grundy

St Pancras Reading Rooms

At St Pancras we have 11 Reading Rooms, each specialising in a different subject area or type of material and with different opening hours. In our Reading Rooms you can:

  • Consult books, journals and other items from our collections
  • Access a wide range of electronic resources and electronic journals
  • Consult subject guides, bibliographies and other research aids

If you need help, please ask our Reference Specialists at the enquiry desks or contact the Reference Service.

We offer a range of free Reader sessions and 1-2-1 consultations to help you make the best use of the Library's collections.

You’ll need a Reader Pass

Opening hours for all Reading Rooms

Case studies

More Case studies
Alexandra Bulat picture
…There were three types of migration in the EU referendum collections: ‘the brightest and the best’, us – and the rest.…

Researching the EU referendum through web archive and ephemera collections

English VoiceBank
…The benefit to our personal and professional development has been great … having the space to explore our own capabilities outside of a strictly academic environment.…

Developing access to the Evolving English collection.

Neema Begum
…The UK Web Archive is a fantastic resource for researchers…

Neema used the UK Web Archive to explore how ethnic minorities voted in the EU Referendum.

Image of Alastair Horne recipient of British Library Mobile Fiction CDP
…Working with the British Library has enabled me to get my research out there beyond academia.…

How smartphones are changing storytelling: Alastair Horne, PhD student.

Dvora Liberman
…To create an archive which will be part of the Library is really a privilege…

Dvora is a collaborative PhD student exploring the social world of Crown Court clerks from the 1970s onwards.

Emmeline Ledgerwood British Library
…I never really thought I’d do a PhD … but this particular collaborative arrangement was too good to miss!…

Exploring the privatisation of government science through life histories

Library experts

Jerry Jenkins British Library

Jeremy Jenkins

Curator, Emerging Media, Contemporary British Publications

Jonnie Robinson picture

Jonnie Robinson

Lead Curator, Spoken English

Photograph of Mary Stewart stood in front of the King's Library

Mary Stewart

Lead Curator, Oral History, and Director of National Life Stories

Image of Stephen Cleary

Stephen Cleary

Lead Curator, Literary and Creative Recordings

More staff members

Blog posts

Animals: Art, Science and Sound

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Animals: Art, Science and Sound is the first major exhibition to explore the many different ways in which animals have been written about, visualised and recorded over time. Focusing on the British Library’s extensive natural history collections, the exhibition brings...

Animals and feminism: readings on the intersection of oppression

Monday, May 22, 2023

Complementing the display on animal rights in the Library's Treasures Gallery from 7 March – 9 July 2023 entitled ‘From the Margins to the Mainstream: Animal Rights in Britain’, guest writer Kim Stallwood highlights books on the intersection between animal rights and feminism.

Animals and the climate emergency: readings on the global impact of industrial animal agriculture

Monday, May 22, 2023

Complementing a display in the British Library Treasures Gallery on animal rights in Britain, guest writer Kim Stallwood highlights books held at the British Library that have helped shape his views on animal rights and climate change and the global impact of animal agriculture.

Andrew Salkey Archive – Mapping the Caribbean Diaspora through Letters

Friday, May 19, 2023

Natalie Lucy talks about their project mapping the Caribbean Diaspora through the letters of Andrew Salkey. I am a PhD student at UCL. I started a part-time placement at the British Library in September which finished at the end of...

More blog posts

Projects

A hand holding a phone

Emerging Formats

This project builds our ability to collect publications designed for mobile devices that respond to reader interaction or are structured as databases.

Edison Concert Cylinder in the British Library sound archive, containing aboriginal language recording made in Stevenson Creek, South Australia, by Baldwin Spencer, 1901. Photo by Clare Kendall.

Save our Sounds

Save our Sounds is our programme to preserve the nation’s sound heritage.

03 June The Hidden Surprises of Poetry Pamphlets

Michael Marks Awards for Poetry Pamphlets

The Michael Marks Awards support innovation in UK poetry.

Know Your Place tool screengrab

Know Your Place - West of England

A crowd-sourcing digital mapping project funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund

All projects