Shakespearean Collections
These collections comprise materials including books, plays, poetry, journals and ephemera written by and about Shakespeare and his time. They were donated by the De Vere Society, the Shakespearean Authorship Trust and Jean Holmes, wife of Edward Holmes.
Many of the collection’s books are listed in the Library’s catalogue. You can check ephemera and journal lists by following the PDF links to the right of this screen.
The Shakespearean Collections are held in the Research Commons at the top of the green staircase. All Brunel research postgraduates and academic staff have access 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Brunel taught postgraduates and undergraduates can arrange temporary access by e-mailing Special.Collections@brunel.ac.uk. Visitors can arrange appointments by e-mailing Special.Collections@brunel.ac.uk at least one working day in advance.
Edward Holmes worked in education and theatre, devoting his time to theatre and literary research. He investigated the construction of Shakepearean plays and wrote "Discovering Shakespeare: A Handbook for Heretics". The Shakespearean Collections contain books and journals from his personal library, along with manuscripts and working notes of his research. His personal papers include examinations of Shakespearean plays, poems and theatre.
