Award-winning poet, Raymond Antrobus, was first diagnosed as deaf at the age of six. He discovered he had missing sounds – bird calls, whistles, kettles, alarms. Teachers thought he was slow and disruptive, some didn’t believe he was deaf at all. 

In his first work of prose, The Quiet Ear, Antrobus considers his own experience of growing up in East London to an English mother and Jamaican father and his education in both mainstream and deaf schooling systems, to explore the intersection of race and disability, the shame of miscommunication, the joy of finding community and the decline of deaf education in Britain. Woven throughout - and drawing on his extensive research within The London Library - are the stories of other D/deaf cultural figures – from painters to silent film stars, poets to performers – the inspiring models of D/deaf creativity Antrobus did not have growing up. 

In conversation with broadcaster and critic, Bidisha, Antrobus discusses his essential and groundbreaking exploration of deafness. 

This event will be BSL interpreted by Pettra St Hilaire.

The Quiet Ear and other books by both speakers will be available to buy at the event and online from our partner bookshop Hatchards. 

Raymond Antrobus is the author of three poetry titles: The Perseverance, All The Names Given and Signs, Music; two children’s books: Can Bears Ski? and Terrible Horses; and The Quiet Ear: An Investigation of Missing Sound is his first work of prose. His work has won the Ted Hughes Award, the Somerset Maugham Award and the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award and his poems have been added to GCSE syllabi. In 2019 Raymond became the first ever poet to be awarded the Rathbones Folio Prize for best work of literature in any genre. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2020, appointed an MBE in 2021 and he is an Ambassador of The London Library. 

Bidisha is a broadcaster, critic, journalist and lens-based artist. Currently a critic and columnist for The Observer and the Guardian, she also presents and commentates for BBC TV and radio, ITN, CNN, Channel 5 and Sky News. Her fifth book, Asylum and Exile: Hidden Voices of London, is based on her outreach work in UK prisons, refugee charities and detention centres, and her most recent publication is the essay The Future of Serious Art. Her first short film, An Impossible Poison (2017) has been highly acclaimed, widely screened and selected for multiple international film festivals. Her latest film series, Aurora, ran from 2020-2023 and stars Alessia Patregnani.

NB This event will take place in person at The London Library. Doors (and the bar) will open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. Please see our Event Access Guidelines before you arrive. 

London Library events are subject to Terms & Conditions

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The Royal Horticultural Society’s world-leading collections span the past 500 years of gardening history and science. 

Containing over 2,500 rare books and a wealth of archive material, they shine a light on the people and plants that have shaped garden design, the food we eat and the green spaces around us.

Located in the handsome Edwardian headquarters of the RHS near London Victoria, the Lindley Library hosts many of these treasures.

In the private research rooms and with the guidance of RHS staff, we will explore a specially curated selection of highlights from the collection. The tour will be followed by refreshments in the fine surroundings of the RHS Committee Room.

Image credit: RHS Lindley Collections

This is a London Library Founders’ Circle event. If you would like to become a Patron, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Poet and playwright Inua Ellams brings his exhilarating live literature phenomenon, the RAP Party, back to The London Library for a nostalgic, no-clutter, no-fuss, evening of music and words in partnership with the RSL. This time, we’ll be celebrating the genre-defining new poetry anthology Nature Matters, a vital array of nature poetry in all its many forms, as written by global majority poets, past and present, and edited by Mona Arshi and Karen McCarthy Woolf. Reading their contributions to the anthology, alongside favourite tunes to get you on your feet, our stellar line-up includes: Mona Arshi, Inua Ellams, Sarah Howe, Ian Humphreys, Zaffar Kunial, Karen McCarthy Woolf, Oluwaseun Olayiwola, Roger Robinson, Seni Seneviratne and Jennifer Wong, plus music from DJ Sid Mercutio. 

Ten writers + a DJ = the best night out you’ll ever have in a library – or anywhere, for that matter. 

'A truly fluid literary event not just mingling poetry and music together seamlessly, but also bringing different tribes of poets: ages, races, gender, styles together. You will be moved in your heart and in your head.’— Roger Robinson 

Mona Arshi worked as a human rights lawyer at Liberty before she started writing. She has published three collections of poetry: Small Hands, which won the Forward Prize for best first collection in 2015, Dear Big Gods (2019) and most recently Mouth(2025). Her debut novel Somebody Loves You (2021) was shortlisted for the Goldsmith and Jhalak Prizes. 

Inua Ellams is a Nigerian-born, UK-based poet, playwright and performer who has written for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre and the BBC. His latest play was an adaptation of Chekhov’s Three Sisters set in Nigeria, staged at the National Theatre. The Actual, his fifth poetry release and first full collection, was published in 2020 by Penned in the Margins. He is an Ambassador of The London Library. 

Sarah Howe is a Hong Kong-born poet and editor. Her first book, Loop of Jade (Chatto & Windus, 2015), won the TS Eliot Prize and The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award and a new collection is forthcoming in 2025. She is an Honorary Visiting Professor at the University of Liverpool and the Poetry Editor at Chatto & Windus. 

Ian Humphreys won the Northern Writers’ Award for Poetry in 2025. His latest collection, Tormentil won a Royal Society of Literature ‘Literature Matters’ Award and his debut, Zebra was nominated for The Portico Prize. He is the editor of Why I Write Poetry, and the producer and co-editor of After Sylvia: Poems and Essays in Celebration of Sylvia Plath. He was Writer in Residence at the Brontë Parsonage Museum (2023/24).

Zaffar Kunial was born in Birmingham and now lives in West Yorkshire. He published a pamphlet in the Faber New Poets series in 2014 before publishing his debut collection, Us, which was shortlisted for a number of prizes, including the TS Eliot Prize. England’s Green, his latest collection, has been shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize, the Rathbones Folio Prize and the Ondaatje Prize. 

Karen McCarthy Woolf is the author of two poetry collections An Aviary of Small Birds and Seasonal Disturbances, winner of the inaugural Laurel Prize for ecological poetry, and a verse novel, Top Doll.  She is the editor of seven previous literary anthologies and she has written for radio, been a Fulbright Scholar, co-presented R4’s Poetry Please and collaborated with techno music producers for events across London. 

Oluwaseun (Seun) Olayiwola is a poet, critic, choreographer and performer based in London. His poems and poetry reviews have featured in publications including the Guardian, the Telegraph, The Poetry Review, TATE, TLS, Magma and Queerlings. His poetry has been commissioned by the RSL and Spread the Word. His debut poetry collection is forthcoming from Granta (UK) and Soft Skull Press (US). 

Roger Robinson is a writer and educator who has taught and performed worldwide. His collection, A Portable Paradise, won the TS Eliot Prize in 2019 and the RSL Ondaatje Prize in 2020. His most recent book, Home is Not a Place, with photographer Johny Pitts, was shortlisted for the 2022 British Book Awards. He was chosen by Decibel as one of 50 writers who have influenced the black-British writing canon. 

Seni Seneviratne, is a writer of English and Sri Lankan heritage published by Peepal Tree Press: Wild Cinnamon and Winter Skin (2007), The Heart of It (2012), Unknown Soldier (2019), The Go-Away Bird (2023). Her poem ‘A Wider View’ is included on the AQA GCSE poetry syllabus. She co-edited Out of Sri Lanka – an anthology of Tamil, Sinhala and English poetry (Bloodaxe, June 2023) with Vidyan Ravinthiran and Shash Trevett.

Jennifer Wong is the author of poetry publications including Diary of a Miu Miu Salesgirl, Letters Home, Time Difference and her next collection, Light Year, is forthcoming. Her short stories have appeared in Under the Radar and Sinetheta. She has a PhD in creative writing and is the author of Identity, Home and Writing Elsewhere and a co-editor of Where Else: An International Hong Kong Poetry Anthology.

Sid Mercutio is a London-born DJ and producer whose sound spans house, garage, hip-hop, R&B, 90s-inspired grooves and nostalgic chart topping hits from the 70s, 80s and beyond, all seamlessly blended into contemporary rhythms. Having spent part of his youth in Nigeria, his music carries a diverse range of influences, combining deep grooves, rhythmic intensity and melodic textures into a signature musical journey.

The Royal Society for Literature, founded in 1820, is the UK’s charity for the advancement of literature, acting as a voice for the value of literature, engaging people in appreciating literature, and encouraging and honouring writers. 

Nature Matters and books by the speakers will be available to buy at the event and online from our partner bookshop Hatchards.

NB This event will take place in person at The London Library. Please see our Event Access Guidelines before you arrive. Doors (and the bar) open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. This is a standing event but there will be some chairs available in the room.

London Library events are subject to Terms & Conditions

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Dine with fellow Patrons and literary figures at our annual Supporters’ Lunch, returning by popular demand to the eclectic surroundings of this members-only Soho institution.

We are are delighted to be joined by Library Ambassador John O’Farrell and Emerging Writers Programme alumnii Olga Braga and Amy Powell Yeates. Together they will discuss their past, present and future work and the impact of their shared connection to the Library.

Image credit: Lyndsey Goddard

This is a London Library Founders’ Circle event. If you would like to become a Patron, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Join Write & Shine bright and early, live from The London Library for a 90-minute virtual writing workshop exploring literary London. 

Former London Library members AS Byatt and Angela Carter creatively intertwined myths and fairy tales with a vivid London backdrop in their writing. In this workshop, we’ll blend the real and the fantastical in our own writing to infuse the city with a sense of mystery and wonder. 

This workshop is the fourth of our series of morning writing sessions, led by author Gemma Seltzer, exploring writing from and about the city. Inspired by the London Library’s rich literary heritage, we’ll look at city writers including Charles Dickens, Virginia Woolf, Patrick Hamilton, Sam Selvon and Nell Dunn and consider what the city offers both writers and readers. 

Write & Shine workshops take place in the early morning light - the best time to think, dream and imagine! You won’t be expected to share your writing, which offers great freedom and encourages all kinds of fascinating ideas to emerge.

This is an online workshop via Zoom. Please log in at 7:30am for 7:45am start. 

You will be sent a Zoom link a few days before the workshop (if you do not receive it, please check your junk file or email us).

London Library events are subject to Terms & Conditions 

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Discover one of the world's greatest literary institutions, providing inspiration to readers and writers for over 180 years, with a public guided tour. 

Led by our friendly and knowledgeable staff, The London Library tours offer visitors the opportunity to enter this historic literary oasis in the heart of the capital and explore the Library's extensive collection of 1 million volumes on 17 miles of shelving, in a truly unforgettable building.  

Tours take place on one Monday evening each month. Due to limited space, booking is essential. 

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Please note:

• To ensure a smooth experience, we recommend arriving by 5:45 pm as late arrivals cannot be accommodated.
  
  
• The tour is designed for adults and is not suitable for children under 16.
  
  
• There will be a considerable amount of walking involved, so if you have any accessibility requirements, kindly inform us in advance so we can make necessary arrangements. 
  
  
• We also recommend wearing comfortable footwear, as some areas of the Library feature grated flooring. 
  
  
• Please be aware that filming or recording during the tour is not permitted. However, simple photography is welcome. 
  
  
• Large bags are not permitted.
   
• Phones will need to be switched to silent mode during the tour.

Join us on the Upper-East Side for an evening celebrating the literary and cultural currents that have long flowed between Britain and America.

Our friends at Peter Harrington - the UK's leading rare book firm, which has just opened its first New York gallery - will guide us on a transatlantic journey with a fascinating selection of letters, notes and ephemera from Library members and beyond.

The words of Charles Dickens, P.G. Wodehouse, Virginia and Clive Bell, T.S. Eliot and more will be brought to life through readings by special guests. We are delighted to host this event in conjunction with the International Friends of the London Library.

Image credit: Hugh Ferris, The Metropolis of Tomorrow – Peter Harrington

This is a London Library Founders’ Circle event. If you would like to become a Patron, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Not one, but two, national treasures join bibliotherapist Ella Berthoud on the biblio-couch for the latest instalment of her illuminating Under the Covers series of talks. 

Writer, actor, comedian and television presenter Mel Giedroyc and the bestselling novelist and screenwriter David Nicholls, fresh from working together on the stage musical adaptation of Nicholls’ Starter for Ten, discuss the books that have shaped and inspired them throughout their lives, as well as the books they have written themselves. And after they've bared their literary souls, they will receive their bibliotherapeutic analysis and prescription. 

Mel Giedroyc is a comedian, writer, actor and presenter. She is known for her work alongside Sue Perkins in shows such as the Great British Bake Off (BBC) and Light Lunch (Channel 4). She hosts the comedy panel show Unforgivable (BBC2) and has appeared in sitcoms, panel shows and on stage, most recently in Stephen Sondheim’s Olivier Award winning Company in the West End and currently in Starter for Ten at Bristol Old Vic. She has published two memoirs, From Here to Maternity and Going Ga Ga and a novel, The Best Things. 

David Nicholls is the bestselling author of Starter for Ten, The Understudy, One Day, Us, Sweet Sorrow and You Are Here. As a screenwriter, he has adapted Far from the Madding Crowd, When Did You Last See Your Father? and Great Expectations, as well as of his own novels, Starter for Ten, One Day and Us. His adaptation of Edward St Aubyn’s Patrick Melrose, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, was nominated for an Emmy and won him a BAFTA for best writer. 

Ella Berthoud is a bibliotherapist, artist and co-author of The Novel Cure: An A-Z of Literary Remedies. She has been prescribing literary cures to readers everywhere for many years. 

Books by all the speakers will be available to buy at the event and online from our partner bookshop Hatchards. 

NB This event will take place in person at The London Library. Please see our Event Access Guidelines before you arrive. Doors (and the bar) will open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. 

London Library events are subject to Terms & Conditions

Book Tickets

Beaton joined The London Library in the 1940s, part way through an extraordinary life that spanned fashion illustrator, Oscar-winning costume designer, social caricaturist and writer.

Join us for a private tour of Cecil Beaton’s Fashionable World, the first exhibition to focus exclusively on his ground-breaking fashion work - from the Jazz Age and the Bright Young Things, to the high fashion brilliance of the fifties and the glittering success of My Fair Lady. Our guide is writer, broadcaster and longstanding Library member Hugo Vickers, who was appointed Beaton’s official biographer in 1979 shortly before the artist’s death. Entrusted not only with Beaton's papers but also access to his friends and contemporaries, the then emerging biographer began his own personal adventure into the artist's world, later documented in his book Malice in Wonderland.

Image credit: Cecil Beaton and Stephen Tennant, ‘Riviera Wanderers’ by Maurice Beck and Helen Macgregor, © 1927 reserved; collection National Portrait Gallery

This is a London Library Founders’ Circle event. If you would like to become a Patron, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The 184th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The London Library will take place at 6.00 pm on Tuesday 25 November 2025, in the Reading Room (and online).

The AGM is your opportunity, as a Member, to participate in discussions around the Library's operations, cast a vote in decision-making processes, and engage with the wider Library community.

Members attending in person are cordially invited for drinks in the Art Reading Room from 5.30pm onwards and to meet with Library Trustees and senior staff.

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Proceedings

Please see the AGM webpage for full details including the agenda, formal AGM Notice, minutes of the AGM 2024, and the Annual Report and Accounts for 2024/25.

Questions

Questions are welcomed in person or via the Q&A facility within the Zoom Webinar.

Voting

Please may we remind all attendees that Remote and Associate memberships categories are not entitled to vote at the AGM. For our institutional members, one representative is entitled to vote only.

Online attendees

Members attending online will receive a join link 24 hours before the start of the AGM.

Cancellations and waiting list

Please note if you are unable to attend in person you can cancel your place by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. This will enable us to offer your place to another Member and ensure the meeting is quorate.

If you are unable to book an in-person ticket and you wish to be placed on the waiting list, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. In the meantime, please consider booking an online ticket.