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James Kirkup, literary papers and correspondence with related material

Archive Collection: BC MS 20c Kirkup

Details

Type of record: Archive

Title: James Kirkup, literary papers and correspondence with related material

Level: Collection

Classmark: BC MS 20c Kirkup

Creator(s): Kirkup, James (1918-2009)()

Date(s): 1955-2000

Language: English

Size and medium: 1 box; manuscript, typescript, photographs, postcards, press cuttings, and printed material (some photocopy).

Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/8505

Collection group(s): Leeds Poetry | English Literature

Description

Comprises: Material acquired in 1964, namely, autograph manuscript and typescript drafts and copies of poems composed by James Kirkup between ca. 1955 and 1964, including 8 letters and 8 press cuttings, totalling some 284 ff. in all; Material acquired in 1991, namely, autograph signed manuscript poem 'Black Shadows', about Martin Luther King, revised version (dated 1970), together with corrected typescripts of the poems 'Marsyas' (2 versions, 1990), 'Cain and Abel' (1990), 'Succuba' (2 versions, 1990), 'March of the Mutilated Torsos' (2 versions, 1990), 'Cullercoats, 1920', undated, 'Tyneside, 1936' (7 versions, 1990), 'A Gay Nursery Rhyme' (1976), 'Weight Lifter' (autograph manuscript and corrected typescript, 1990), and 'Westoe Village, 1838' (3 versions, 1990), some extensively corrected, with cancellations and manuscript additions, in black ink; Material acquired in 2004, namely, 3 autograph typescript letters with stamped addressed envelopes and 1 autograph manuscript postcard from
Kirkup in Andorra to Herbert Ronson in Merseyside dated 1999-2000, with a signed typescript of a poem, a colour photograph of a bust and 3 photocopied obituaries written by Kirkup; Material acquired in 2007, namely, an autograph manuscript copy of Kirkup's poem 'A City of the North.' A further letter from Kirkup to Herbert Ronson, with typescript poems, is loosely inserted in a copy of Kirkup's book 'I, of all people' that previously belonged to Ronson. The earliest papers (including poems, drafts and correspondence) date from his time in Bath, Sweden and Salamanca (ca. 1955-1959). The majority of later papers (also including poems, drafts and correspondence) date from 1990-2000.


Additional items added to collection in November 2017: Correspondence from F.T. Prince [BC MS 20c Kirkup/3/4]; correspondence from Stanley Snaith [BC MS 20c Kirkup/3/5]; correspondence to Roland John [BC MS 20c Kirkup/3/6], and letter to Wes Magee [BC MS 20c Kirkup/3/7].

Biography or history

James (Falconer) Kirkup, the travel writer, poet, novelist, playwright, translator, and broadcaster, was born in South Shields, Co. Durham, on 23 April 1918 and educated at South Shields High School and Durham University. He became the first Gregory Fellow in Poetry at Leeds University, 1950-1952, and subsequently filled numerous academic posts, mainly abroad and especially in Japan. He has won many awards for poetry and other branches of literature.

Provenance

Acquired largely in three stages: first, by purchase from the author on 3 June 1964 with money from the Anna Gordon Keown fund; secondly, by purchase from Sotheby's on 31 July 1991 (part of lot 296); and thirdly, via Liverpool University Library on 27 April 2004. A typescript list outlining the 1964 acquisition, and a photocopy of a fax listing the printed books from the 2004 acquisition are held with Kirkup's papers. An autograph manuscript of the poem A City of the North was presented by Jane De Sausmarez in August 2007. A manuscript of the poem Transfiguration was presented by James Bush in January 2008.

System of arrangement

This collection is arranged into the following subfonds (sub-collections): Poetry Collections and Published Poems Other Poems and Drafts Correspondence and Personalia

Access and usage

Reproduction

Access

Access to this part of the collection is protected under the Data Protection Act. You will need to complete a data protection access form and return it to Special Collections for review by staff before access can be granted

Material in this collection is in copyright. Photocopies or digital images can only be supplied by the Library for research or private study within the terms of copyright legislation. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain the copyright holder's permission to reproduce for any other purpose. Guidance is available on tracing copyright status and ownership.

Material in this collection is in copyright. Photocopies or digital images can only be supplied by the Library for research or private study within the terms of copyright legislation. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain the copyright holder's permission to reproduce for any other purpose. Guidance is available on tracing copyright status and ownership.

On our website

Maurice de Sausmarez, Portrait of James Kirkup, Gregory Fellow in Poetry (1951). Oil on canvas. University of Leeds Art Collection P1/1951. Reproduced with permission of Jane de Sausmarez ©.

Profile: James Kirkup

A biography of James Kirkup the first Gregory Fellowship Poet in 1950.

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