Small Press Collections 60th anniversary

In 2025 UCL Special Collections celebrates 60 years of collecting small press publications with a series of events and activities.

The Little Magazines, Poetry Store, and Alternative Presses are globally important collections of independently produced and distributed literary little magazines, experimental art and poetry in a variety of print formats, countercultural publications, and supporting bibliographic and archival material. Established in 1965 in response to a burgeoning international culture of self-publishing, it was one of the first institutional collections of small press publications and developed despite the myriad challenges presented by such unpredictable, ephemeral, and bibliographically erratic material.

The collections were developed by Geoffrey Soar, UCL English Librarian, and the initial aim was ambitious: total coverage of UK Little Magazines, along with significant acquisition from Europe, the Commonwealth, and the US. As such, the collection was global in scope from the outset and UCL can boast holdings of rarities from, amongst others, India, Japan, Nigeria, Ghana, Barbados, Jamaica, and Brazil. Alongside the Little Magazines, the Poetry Store now contains a diverse range of independently published works including poetry in all its forms, artists’ books, visual scores, and other experimental, hybrid works that explore the intersection of art and literature. Alternative Press underground newspapers featuring an amalgam of political and cultural commentary record the activities of underrepresented groups and focus on topics such as feminism, Black rights, LGBTQ+ equality, the peace movement, and radical ecology.

Today, the collections extend to approximately 20,000 items in the Poetry Store and 4,500 little magazines and alternative newspapers. The diverse profile evolves in response to an independent publishing scene that continues to promote those not always represented by the mainstream.

Upcoming events

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