Murder by the Book: A Celebration of 20th Century British Crime Fiction

 Murder by the Book: A Celebration of 20th Century 

British Crime Fiction

23 March – 24 August 2024

Monday – Friday 9am – 6:30pm

Saturday 9am – 4:30pm

Closed Sundays, and 29 March to 1 April 2024 inclusive 

Booking is essential. Entry is FREE.

Crime fiction is the UK's most read, bought and borrowed genre. Cambridge University Library draws on its world-leading collections of British crime fiction to stage a murderously good exhibition! 

Bringing together literature, culture and heritage, Murder by the Book: A Celebration of 20th Century British Crime Fiction illuminates and celebrates the stories of the UK’s most popular fiction writing. Curated by award-winning crime novelist Nicola Upson, the Library's exhibition challenges traditional distinctions between literary fiction and genre fiction. Murder by the Book examines crime’s place in our literary history and the Library’s own Special Collections. 

The exhibition showcases rare books and audio-visual recordings looking at the genre from its origins in the works of Wilkie Collins and Charles Dickens to contemporary best-sellers Val McDermid and Ian Rankin. 

With first editions of The Moonstone and Bleak House, as well as Sherlock Holmes' debut appearance, the exhibition also looks at the Library’s remarkable collections and stylish dust jackets that represent more than a century of British book design. 

Tickets can be booked here.

Curated by crime novelist Nicola Upson.

Lee Child at UEA on 31 March /Symposium/ In Conversation/ Exhibition

To celebrate the opening of Lee Child's Archive at the University of East Anglia (UEA) and twenty-five years since the publication of the first Jack Reacher novel, the School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing and the British Archive for Contemporary Writing are hosting two landmark events on 31 March 2022 to explore Child's legacy and the evolution of the crime thriller.

Lee Child will be with us throughout the day. Join a range of extraordinary writers, leading critics and researchers to consider what's next for this most exciting and malleable of forms.

The full programme can be found here.

Tickets are available for both events. A ticket for the Symposium is discounted for alumni and provides free entry to the evening event. Further information and booking can be found at www.uea.ac.uk/bacw/leechild.

Murder in the Library: An A-Z of Crime Fiction at the British Library

If you are interested in knowing about the development of crime and detective fiction then the British Library in conjunction with the Folio Society are hosting a free exhibition.

Classic locked-room mysteries, tales of murder and mayhem in quaint villages or gritty adventures on mean city streets.

Crime fiction, which currently accounts for over a third of all fiction published in English, holds millions of people enthralled. Murder in the Library will take you on a fascinating journey through the development of crime and detective fiction, from its origins in the early 19th century through to contemporary Nordic Noir, taking in the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, the first appearance of Miss Marple and the fiendish plots of Dr Fu Manchu along the way.

Free exhibition/ Folio Society Gallery at the British Library

18 January to 12 May 2013

Billingham, Ryan, Wilson, Forshaw At The British Library

As part of Murder in the Library, a new exhibition at the British Library (18 January to 12 May 2013) a series of crime events will take place alongside the exhibition, including Real Crime Real Fiction. In this panel discussion writers, curators and journalists explore the impact of real life crimes on the writing and production of crime fiction both on television and in print. Does the consumption of crime novels influence the way we read about real crime? Where does 'true crime', which takes its inspiration from actual events rather than mere imagination, fit in?

Joining host, writer and journalist Barry Forshaw, will be authors Laura Wilson, Robert Ryan and Mark Billingham and Carla Connolly, curator at St Bartholomew's Pathology Museum.

Real Crime Real Fiction, Monday 21 January 2013 18.30 – 20.00
£7.50 / £5 concessions Conference Centre, British Library
To book tickets for events please visit http://boxoffice.bl.uk, call 01937 546546 (Mon - Fri, 09.00 - 17.00) or buy tickets in person at the British Library.

Related Links: boxoffice.bl.uk

James Bond Exhibition

Since 17 April 2008 the James Bond/Ian Fleming centenary exhibition has been taking place at the Imperial War Museum. This celebration of all things James Bond and Ian Fleming is a fascinating exhibition and one that should not be missed.

The exhibition includes personal belongings of Ian Fleming and his family and range from letters to Christmas stockings and all things in between along with photographs of his family, his time at Eton and his naval work. There are also a number of interactive screens (including a roulette wheel) which visitors are encouraged to play with. Alongside this there are artifacts from a number of James Bond films including the gun used by Scaramanga, the blood stained shirt worn by Daniel Craig in Casino Royale and my favourite Rosa Klebb's flick-knife shoes in From Russia with Love. There is also a collection of various James Bond books from throughout the world.

If you have not managed to see the exhibition then I would suggest that you hot foot it down to the Imperial War Museum as it is due to close soon, as a matter of fact on 1 March 2009.