From The Little Red Book to the Green Cross Code, Propaganda: Power and Persuasion opens at the British Library exploring state propaganda from all over the world in its many forms

• 17 May to 17 September 2013

The British Library is delighted to present a major new exhibition examining state propaganda, from its origins in the ancient world up until the present day. With over 200 exhibits on display, ranging from chilling Nazi propaganda to modern day ephemera such as bank notes, badges and even tweets which permeate our everyday lives, Propaganda: Power and Persuasion is the first exhibition to gather such a significant range of international state propaganda in one room, looking at its rationales, methods and effectiveness.

Summer 2013: the British Library explores state propaganda with a new major exhibition and hosts a season of music celebrating Benjamin Britten and Wagner

The British Library this summer opens the new major exhibition Propaganda: Power and Persuasion, accompanied by a line-up of fascinating speakers and events as well as a performance from exciting multi media duo Public Service Broadcasting, as well as a new exhibition in The Folio Society Gallery, Poetry in Sound: The Music of Benjamin Britten, exploring Britten’s strong literary influences as part of the Britten 100 celebrations.

British Library launches previously unpublished humorous autobiography of Keith Waterhouse, How to Live to Be 22

‘I have written it for the same reason that any young man of twenty-two writes a book, because I am in a sustained coma of industrious exuberance of having got a good idea, because my friends are going to wish that they had thought of it first and because many people are going to pay me a great many compliments about it. This is not being conceited; this is being a twenty-two year old.’
- Keith Waterhouse

Coinciding with the 50^th anniversary of Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall’s film adaptation of Billy Liar, the British Library will next month release the previously unpublished precursor to the iconic novel. How to Live to Be 22 was discovered by the British Library when the Keith Waterhouse archive was donated to the Library last year. Written in 1951 the manuscript remained unseen in Waterhouse’s personal archive for 62 years until now, as the Library publishes this humorous first work by the much loved writer for the first time.

The Balfour Declaration

The British Library has a policy of supporting loans of items from our collection to other institutions, subject to a range of conditions being met.