Papers of Robert Ridgill Trout (1878-1969), including: material created or collected by Ridgill Trout relating to his support for the theory that Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford wrote the poetry and plays attributed to William Shakespeare, including a biography of Edward de Vere, an examination of the Cornwallis Manuscript, copies of the Shakespeare Authorship Review featuring articles by and about Ridgill Trout and photographs, 1967-1969; typescript draft of work, Twenty Earls and Shakespeare by Ridgill Trout, espousing his support for the theory that Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford wrote the poetry and plays attributed to William Shakespeare, c1967; typescript draft of Robert Ridgill Trout's work, Twenty Earls and Shakespeare. The background of the Historical Plays with the life story of Edward de Vere (a different, more lengthy and later work than Twenty Earls and Shakespeare held in MS862/2) giving a detailed history of the De Vere Family and espousing his support for the theory that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, wrote the poetry and plays attributed to William Shakespeare, c1967; material compiled by Robert Ridgill Trout during his career as a bookseller and valuer, including valuation catalogues for books, incunabula and manuscripts held by the Wellcome Foundation and in the library of Sir William Dugdale, an auction catalogue, and miscellanous notes and sale advertisements concerning books and manuscripts, 1921-1939.

Diaries of George Bernard Shaw, 1885-1897, containing entries relating to his daily life in London during this period, mostly written in Pitman shorthand, with details of names, places, finances and petty expenses. The diaries provide and interesting insight into his personal life, various radical intellectual organisations in London, his professional journalistic work, and his attempts to create a successful writing career. Also included in the collection are five volumes of transcripts made by Shaw's secretary, Blanche Patch, [1946-1950].

A bi-lateral cipher translation and transcription, prepared by Henry Seymour in 1921, from Bacon's The Historie of the raigne of King Henry the Seventh, 1622, using Bacon's own cipher, as given in the De Augmentis scientarum.

A volume entitled A new Commonplace Book... properly ruled throughout with a complete skeleton index, and ample directions for its use.... London. Printed for Walker & Edwards, 44 Paternoster Row. Inscribed on the front fly-leaf 'Isabella Poyntz from her Uncle Courtnay Boyle.' The entries include passages from Samuel Johnson, Mme. de Staël, Blair's Sermons, Pestalozzi.

Papers of Katharine Longley, 1812-1993, comprising research notebooks; correspondence files; material associated with the Wickham and Ternan families; photocopies of manuscript material; photocopies from periodicals; a copy of The Charles Dickens Birthday Book; material on The Mystery of Edwin Drood; typescript of A Singular Light; typescript of A Pardoner's Tale; typescripts of Charles Dickens: Towards the Truth; typescript essays; printed books; and photographs and negatives.

The archive consists of material relating to a memoir of Harriet Shaw Weaver that Lidderdale was invited by the family to write in 1962. These two files contain Lidderdale's correspondence with the authors Margaret Storm Jameson and Dame Rebecca West, whom she approached while writing the book. Jameson recollected only an invitation in 1914 from Harriet Shaw Weaver to work for the magazine 'The Egoist' (which she could not accept) and brief contact with the author and publisher Dora Marsden. West was more closely involved with Dora, as she worked on the latter's journal 'The New Freewoman' and introduced to it various contributions of literary fame, including Ezra Pound and Richard Aldington. On receiving Miss Lidderdale's drafts of the relevant sections of her memoir, Dame Rebecca sent detailed comments and suggestions which provide interesting information on Dora Marsden and various contributors to 'The New Freewoman'. Included with her papers is a photograph of Dame Rebecca taken in about 1935 and presented to Miss Lidderdale in 1969.

Papers, correspondence and other material of politician and writer Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence (1837-1914), including: material regarding the administration of the library collected by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence, including catalogues, accession registers, invoices and receipts for purchases and lists and catalogues compiled for insurance and fire valuation purposes, 1896-1929; cuttings and other material compiled by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence and others relating to the Bacon-Shakespeare authorship debate, including scrapbooks of cuttings and other material, cuttings of correspondence by Durning-Lawrence and others to national and local newspapers regarding the issue, playbills for plays by Shakespeare and other material relating to the debate, 1798-1954; material relating to the family and personal careers of Sir Edwin and Lady Durning-Lawrence, including school notebooks, diaries of tours to foreign countries, ephemera relating to Sir Edwin's political career, collections of seaweeds, books of sketches and watercolours and scrapbooks of illustrations, valentines and press cuttings regarding family members, 1804-1909; photographs and illustrations relating to William Shakespeare, Francis Bacon and the authorship debate, including portraits of Shakespeare, Bacon and Sir Nicholas Bacon used by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence for his work 'Bacon is Shakespeare', prints and illustrations of other Shakespeare-Bacon related sites, including Canonbury Tower and various monuments and memorials, and from various books by Bacon, Shakespeare and others. Also includes photographs of the library at Durning-Lawrence's home and glass plate negatives, 1912-1913; paintings relating to Shakespeare and Bacon possibly collected by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence, including oil paintings by Henry Liverseege and Thomas Stohard and portraits of Bacon and Thomas Egerton by unidentified artists, c1675-c1830; artefacts relating to Shakespeare and Bacon possibly collected by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence including copper printing blocks of illustrations from 'Bacon is Shakespeare', medals and tokens, casts of Shakespeare's face, and of the Bacon memorial at Trinity College and other miscellaneous items, including a set of small plaster casts on classical themes, 1885-1912; manuscripts collected and purchased by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence, or discovered amongst books during the cataloguing of the Durning-Lawrence Library at Senate House Library, University of London including material regarding Francis Bacon, William Shakespeare, miscellaneous 16th and 17th century documents and a series of unidentified manuscript fragments (These manuscripts were assigned MS numbers before the cataloguing of the Durning Lawrence archive collection and these numbers have been retained), c1200-1921; Manuscripts collected and purchased by Sir Edwin Durning-Lawrence, or discovered amongst books during the cataloguing of the Durning-Lawrence Library at Senate House Library, University of London including material regarding Francis Bacon, William Shakespeare and letters and press cuttings regarding books held within the Durning-Lawrence Library (These manuscripts were not assigned previous archival references), c1600-1924.

Papers of Dr William Martin, Captain William Jaggard and Keen himself, concerning William Shakespeare. Includes papers on Jaggard's case against Hunter Charles Rogers over forged Shakespeare documents.

The collection contains the papers of Harold Jenkins,1909-2000, comprising of papers relating to his work as a literary scholar and university teacher, specialising in Shakespeare. It also contains some personal papers relating to his career, and his wife Gladys Jenkins.

It comprises Hamlet Lecture Notes, 1965-1989; Other Shakespeare Lecture Notes, 1941-1988; Other Subject Lecture Notes, c.1945-1986; Hamlet Research Notes, Mid-Late 20th Century; Other Shakespeare Research Notes, c.1948-1990s; Benlowes Research Notes, c.1936-1963; Other Subject Research Notes, Mid-Late 20th Century; Papers relating to the Arden Hamlet, c.1970s-1986; Other Publications, 1948-1992; Career Papers, c.1930-1994; and papers relating to Gladys Jenkins, 1940-1950s.

Academic notebooks and indexes, c1947-1976, of Shakespearean vocabulary created by Hilda Hulme.

A notebook, c1897, containing forged signatures of letters from nineteenth century literary and other figures, collected by Samuel Englefield.

The collection contains printed volumes, mainly on Shakespeare and a collection of typescript and manuscript notes for a book, which was being prepared on the life and times of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford.

Letter from Sara Coleridge of Keswick, Cumberland to [John] J Morgan Esq of 71 Berners Street, Oxford Street, London [a friend of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who was staying with Morgan's family in London], 5 Sep 1812. '... to request the favor of you to use your influence with my husband to prevail on him to send me a few lines immediately, for I have been so long [since Apr 1812] waiting for a letter from him ... I will thank you to represent to him that I want a little money very much ... for my sister [Edith] Southey having lost 30 pounds by the failure of the Workington Bank, and having occasion for money at present more than is convenient for S [i.e. Robert Southey, Edith's husband] to draw for - I own I feel very uncomfortable at the thought of not being able to settle my accounts with him ... I have bought the books for the boys; I was obliged to send to London for them ... I have also been obliged to get all their school books bound, the Aeschylus among the rest which was coming to peices [sic]. Please also say that we have not been able to find at Grasmere that "Reynard the Fox" which C [her husband] designed for Southey, and that probably he has it with him in town ...'

Autograph, with signature. A note in the hand of her 9-year-old daughter, also Sara, appears at the end of the letter.

A holograph manuscript, 1854-1867, of the essay Prinzebraub.

6 letters written by Thomas Campbell, c 1815-1841. Correspondents include Lord Jeffrey [Francis Jeffrey], Cyrus Redding and Bess Campbell. Topics covered include social engagements and Campbell's health.

All items are autograph, with signatures.

Letter from Thomas Campbell of 10 Upper Seymour Street West, [London] to Longmans and Co, Paternoster Row, 4 Apr 1823. Asking for copies of his works Pleasures of Hope and Gertrude of Wyoming.

Autograph, no signature. With seal.

Letter from Thomas Campbell to [? Henry Thomas, Lord] Cockburn, 22 Apr 1809. 'I have put to press my farrago [Gertrude of Wyoming (1809)] and if Bensley can print it fast enough I shall be out in a few weeks but they compose almost as slowly as myself - You will think it odd ... that I have not seen Marmion [published 1808] but in a random glance at some pages - When you come to town we shall settle every thing about its merits'. The 3 remaining lines of the letter have been scored out.

Autograph, with signature.

Letter from Thomas Campbell of 61 Lincoln's Inn Fields, [London] to [Mr Fonblanque], 14 Aug 1838. Apologising for breaking a dinner engagement without warning: he was called suddenly to Edinburgh to the bedside of his eldest sister. Complaining of feeling 'wretchedly feeble' himself.

Autograph, with signature.

Two holograph manuscripts, 1830-1. The first is a six verse poem written for The Metropolitan. The second is a draft of an article, 'Notices of the Life of Lord Byron by Mr Moore, and remarks on those notices by Lady Byron', published without significant alteration in The New Monthly Magazine and Literary Journal, Vol. 28 (1830), pp. 33.