Libraries in the UK
Public Libraries & Academic Libraries in Britain
Britain is home to some of the oldest and finest public libraries and academic libraries in the world.
Most towns in the United Kingdom will have at least one library. Though reading and book-borrowing is under pressure from both TV and the internet, libraries in Britain remain an essential resource for information, pleasure as well as study and self-improvement.
See a listing of some the UK's best libraries.
British Library, London
The British Library is one of the largest libraries in the world and the national library of the UK. Located in King's Cross, near King's Cross Station and St Pancras Station in London it has a collection of between 170-200 million items.
As well as high-speed Wifi and an excellent cafe, its scholarly attractions include the Magna Carta, Shakespeare's first Folio and drawings by Leonardo Da Vinci. And the best thing about all this knowledge? It's all completely free.
Before 1973, the Library was part of the British Museum. The British Library Act of 1972 created the new, separate institution which moved to its new home in 1998.
Before the new building opened the collection was dispersed in various buildings around London including the Indian Collection in Orbit House on Blackfriars Road, the newspaper library at Colindale in north-west London and other premises in Bayswater and Holborn.
Library of Birmingham
Housed in a striking, modern building, the Library of Birmingham in Birmingham is not just the largest public library in Europe, but also a center for learning, information and culture. Designed by the Dutch architectural firm Mecanoo who also redesigned the adjacent Repertory Theater, the library opened in 2013 and welcomes around 10,000 visitors a day. The 31,000 square feet of floor space is housed in a building shaped somewhat like a floating ziggurat or square wedding cake.
There is of course a massive lending library for books to be taken out, but the building also has large areas with tables, desks, and comfortable chairs to sit and study.
There is also a large Children's Library as well as a well-stocked Music Library. Researchers visit the various archives and the many collections of books that have been donated to the library that include numerous rare and ancient volumes.
Manchester Central Library
Manchester Central Library near St. Peter's Square in Manchester is a familiar landmark in the city.
It is a round, domed building with a columned portico somewhat reminiscent of the Pantheon in classical Rome. It is the second-largest public library in England after the Library of Birmingham.
It was built in the 1930's and designed by E. Vincent Harris (1876-1971). Harris was a prolific architect, responsible for many civic buildings in Britain.
These include the Ministry of Defence Building in Whitehall, Kensington Central Library, both in London, as well as Leeds Civic Hall and Nottingham County Hall.
The library was built at the same time as an extension to Manchester Town Hall, also designed by Harris. When the building was opened in 1934 it was favorably viewed by critics.
Manchester was the first municipality in England to begin a public lending and reference library in 1852. Charles Dickens, no less, attended the opening of Manchester's first library back then.
John Rylands Library
The John Rylands Library on Deansgate in Manchester is one of Britain's best libraries.
The Neo-Gothic library is now part of Manchester University and is located near the renovated Spinningfields district and the River Irwell.
The building is a tribute and memorial to John Rylands by his wife Enriqueta Augustina Rylands. It opened as a public library in 1900 after ten years in construction. It was one of the first buildings in the city to be lit by electricity and cost around 60 million pounds in today's money to build.
John Rylands (1801-1888) was a local businessman, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was indeed the city's first multi-millionaire by modern standards, something of a Bill Gates of his day who supported numerous charities after his retirement.
Chetham's Library
Chetham's Library was founded in 1653 thus making it the oldest public library in Britain. It is part of a former manor house that also houses Chetham's School of Music close to Manchester Cathedral. A meeting place of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in the 1840s, the library contains over 100,000 volumes with 60,000 published before 1851. These include books, broadsides, and other rare manuscripts.
Portico Library
The Portico Library on Mosley Street in Manchester is a private library built between 1802 and 1806. Designed in the Greek Revival style, the library was financed by subscriptions from local business people.
The library holds a collection of mainly 19th-century literature as well as illustrations, plates, journals, and quarterlies. The institution also awards the annual Portico Prize for Literature.
Famous members have included John Dalton, Sir Robert Peel, the Reverend William Gaskell, and also the Manchester United footballer Eric Cantona.
The sandstone library is a Grade II listed building. The architect was Thomas Harrison from nearby Chester and was constructed between 1802 and 1806.
Harrison was also the architect of the Lyceum in Liverpool - the country's first subscription library and newsroom.
The project was inspired by a visit of local Manchester businessmen to the Athenaeum in Liverpool.
It was intended as a source of books, newspapers, journals and pamphlets to allow the local business community to keep up to date on news as well as recent scientific and commercial developments.
They also, no doubt, did not want to fall behind their rivals and business competitors in Liverpool.
The Portico awards a number of prizes including the biennial Portico Prize to "the book that best evokes the spirit of the North of England." Previous winners include Jessica Andrews (2020), Ben Myers (2014) and Sarah Hall (2010).
Radcliffe Camera
The Radcliffe Camera is a building in Oxford. The Radcliffe Camera was designed by James Gibbs in the English Palladian style and built between 1737-1749 to house the Radcliffe Science Library.
The Radcliffe Camera is the earliest example in England of a circular library. Other famous buildings designed by the Scottish architect Gibbs include St Martin-in-the-Fields and St Bartholomew's Hospital both in London.
It serves now as additional reading rooms for the Bodleian Library.
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library, one of the world's largest libraries, was founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley. Having agreed to receive a copy of every book registered with Stationers' Hall in 1610, the library now houses more than 7 million volumes, including 50,000 precious manuscripts, on almost 120 miles of shelving, much of it underground.
National Library of Wales
The National Library of Wales (Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru) in Aberystwyth was established in 1907 and is the biggest library in Wales.
The complete collection has over 6.5 million books and periodicals in addition to photographs, drawings and maps. These include the Black Book of Carmarthen - the oldest text in Welsh dating from the 12th century on display in the Hengwrt Room.
National Library of Scotland
The National Library of Scotland (Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba) in Edinburgh holds over 24 million items including annotated manuscripts, books, first-drafts, newspapers, photographs, and postcards. Highlights include a First Folio of Shakespeare, a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and the last letter written by Mary Queen of Scots. The library has the world's largest collection of works in Scottish Gaelic.
Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library
The Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library opened in 2001. It is housed in The Forum, a large community building in Norwich. The popular library's collection includes tens of thousands of books, computer games and DVDs as well as music sets.
Blackness Community Library
Blackness Community Library on Perth Road in Dundee in Scotland is a Category B listed building. The library offers free Wi-Fi and PC use.
Exeter Library
Exeter Library just off the High Street in Exeter in Devon is the city's main public library. Altogether, the library has over 60,000 books as well as free WiFi and PCs with printing and copying facilities. Also within the building are seperate children's and teen areas plus the Owl and the Pussycat Cafe.
Stockport Central Library
The Stockport Central Library in Stockport, Greater Manchester, is a large red brick and Portland stone building on the A6 (Wellington Road South), close to the center of the town. The building dates from 1913. It was built with money donated by businessman Andrew Carnegie. 660 libraries in total in Britain owe their existence to money received from the Scottish-American steel magnate.
Related
Hotels in London
Book Hotels in London - Booking.com
Find Luxury Hotels in London - Booking.com
Budget Hotels in London - Booking.com
Find Hotels in England - Booking.com