The Latest Breaking News from British Library

Secret Maps at the British Library reconsiders the lines that shape our world

Maps do more than show us where we are or help us find where we need to go. They are powerful cultural documents, reflecting – and often shaping – the values, priorities and secrets of the societies that create them.

The Conversation · Nov 3, 2025

‘People have had to move house’: Inside the British Library, two years on from devastating cyber attack

Staff tell Athena Stavrou they’ve faced abuse because of ongoing issues at the library, where dozens of services remain unavailable

The Independent UK · Nov 1, 2025

Stephen King’s son among writers boycotting British Library event in solidarity with striking workers

King’s son, Joe Hill, joins V Castro and Keith Rosson in withdrawing from the Tales of the Weird festival this weekend in support of industrial action

The Guardian - UK · Oct 31, 2025

The medieval folklore of Britain’s endangered wildlife ‘omens’ – from hedgehogs to nightjars

As the seasons turn and the nights draw in, the countryside of the British Isles seems alive with omens: an owl’s screech, or a bat above the hedgerows.

The Conversation · Oct 14, 2025

For medieval people, the Moon was both a riddle and a blessing

Each night, the Moon glistens in the night sky, replete with all sorts of meanings depending on the person viewing it. Poets and artists have contemplated it for thousands of years.

The Conversation · Sep 16, 2025

New exhibition explores history of decorative borders: from medieval manuscripts to William Morris

The Nature of Gothic, at the Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery, explores the history of decorative borders over hundreds of years. It covers the period from the late medieval age to the Arts and Crafts Movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Conversation · Sep 12, 2025

Monastic music that survived Henry VIII’s dissolution brought back to life

Buckland Abbey recreates music telling of medieval life in extraordinary discovery

The Guardian - UK · Aug 16, 2025

Vera Lynn’s audition records to be released 90 years after they were recorded

What A Difference A Day Makes will be released as a single on Friday to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day.

Evening Standard · Aug 14, 2025

Government launches major attempt to crack down on ransomware epidemic

The UK government has launched a major attempt to crackdown on ransomware – as the particularly kind of cyber attack continues to threaten life in the country.

The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2025

Why snappy dogs, scratchy cats, and hungry worms were part of a medieval woman’s vision of the afterlife

The afterlife is not typically associated with aggressive pets and insatiable worms. But these are exactly the creatures that appeared to an unnamed woman recluse living in Winchester, England, over the course of three nights in the summer of 1422. The woman was an anchoress. That means she had chosen…

The Conversation · Jul 7, 2025