Finding UK Theatre Collections

Below is a list of UK Theatre Collections (UKTC) who contributed to the UKTC online database. The UK Theatre Collections (UKTC) was an online database of more than 900 collection-level records contributed by approximately 350 institutions. The records contained details either of a single collection within the institution, or of the institution’s holdings as a whole – with the focus on performing arts materials. 

 UKTC had its origins in Backstage, an online catalogue of UK performing arts collections launched in 2002. After the Backstage website was taken down in 2009, APAC transferred the records into Culture Grid to form UK Theatre Collections. The data migration was carried out in 2010/11. Culture Grid then closed in 2015, and UKTC was taken down. 

This is a list of the institutions that submitted records to the UKTC database. Their name is given as it was in UTKC and may have changed since.  

• Aberdeen Central Library Local Studies Theatrical Collection
• Aldham Robarts Learning Resource Centre Theatre Studies Collection, Liverpool John Moores University
• Angus Archives Theatrical Collection
• Anthony Denning Collection Pickford’s House Museum
• Archive and Collection, The Dartington Hall Trust
• Archives of Progress Theatre, Reading Berkshire Record Office
• Arts Council Library Collection
• Barbican Library
• Barnet Public Libraries Local Studies and Archives Collection
• BBC Written Archives
• Bedford Museum Theatrical Collection
• Bedfordshire and Luton Archives
• Berkshire Record Office Theatre Collection
• Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Institute of Indian Art and Culture
• Bill Douglas Centre for History of Cinema and Popular Culture
• Birmingham Archives & Heritage Theatrical Archives
• Birmingham Central Library
• Birmingham Shakespeare Library
• Blackburn with Darwen Theatrical Collection
• Bodleian Library
• Bradford District Archives Theatrical Collection West Yorkshire Archive Service
• Bradford Museums, Galleries and Heritage Collections
• Brighton Local Studies Collection of Theatrical Material
• Brighton Theatrical Collections: Bloomfield Collection and Others, Brighton Central Library
• British Architectural Library & Information Centre Collection
• British Film Institute Library and Information Services
• British Library
• British Museum
• British Theatrical Patents – Theatresearch
• Britten-Pears Library
• Bromley Local Studies Library
• Buckinghamshire Record Office Theatre Collection
• Burnley Central Library Theatrical Collection
• Bury Theatre Collection
• Buxton Museum Theatre Collection
• Calderdale District Archives Theatrical Collection
• Cambridgeshire Archives Theatrical Collection
• Cambridgeshire Collection Cambridge Central Library,
• Camden Local Studies – Theatrical Collection
• Cameron Mackintosh Archive
• Canterbury Cathedral Archives
• Canterbury Library Local Studies Collection
• Capell Collection University of Cambridge
• Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design Library
• Central School of Speech and Drama Performing Arts Collection
• Centre for Kentish Studies: Theatrical Collection
• Centre for Oxfordshire Studies Theatrical Collection
• Centre for Oxfordshire Studies Theatrical Collection
• Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum Theatre Collection
• Cheshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Chesterfield Library
• Cinema Museum (theatre collection)
• City of Wakefield Theatre Collection
• City of Westminster Archives
• City of York Theatre Collection
• Clark Programme Collection Newcastle City Library
• Cobbe Collection Hatchlands Park
• Colne Local Theatrical Collection Colne Library
• Commonwealth Literature Commonwealth Institute,
• Coram Family Handel Collection
• Cornwall Centre Theatrical Section Cornwall Centre / Kresenn Kernow, Cornwall Library Service
• Cornwall Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Coutts & Co., Bankers, Archives
• Croydon Local History Library – Theatre Collection
• Cumbria Archive Service, Carlisle: Theatrical Collection
• Cuming Museum Theatrical Collection
• Dame Eva Turner Collection Royal Northern College of Music
• Darlington Theatres Collection Darlington Library
• Dartington College of Arts Collection
• Davison Collection of Theatre Bills Northumberland Record Office
• De Montfort University
• Denbighshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Department of Arts Policy and Management Resource Centre City University
• Department of Culture, Media and Sport, Library and Public Enquiry Service Collection
• Derby Local Studies Theatrical Collection
• Derbyshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Derek Newton Theatre Collection Chester College of Higher Education
• Devon Record Office Theatre Collection
• Dickens House Library
• Doncaster Theatrical Archive Doncaster Archives
• Dorchester Reference Library Theatrical Collection
• Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society Theatre Collection
• Dorset Record Office Theatre Collection
• Dudley Theatrical Archives Dudley Archives & Local History Service
• Durham Record Office Theatre Collection
• Ealing Local Studies – Theatre Collection
• East Sussex Record Office
• Edinburgh Festival Collection Edinburgh City Libraries and Information Services
• Edward Alleyn Archives
• Eighteenth-century Italian opera and Handelian libretti
• Birmingham Central Library
• Elgar Birthplace Museum
• Ellen Terry Memorial Museum
• EMI Music Archive
• Enfield Local Studies – Theatre Collection
• English Heritage Photographic Library Theatre Collection
• English National Ballet Archives
• English National Opera Archives
• Essex Plays Collection University of Essex
• Essex Record Office
• Exeter Performing Arts Collection
• Fenton House
• Finchcocks Musical Instruments Collection
• Fisher Theatre, Bungay University of East Anglia Archives.
• Francis Bridgford Brady Collection Christ Church Library, University of Oxford
• Frank Bradley Collection Pickford’s House Museum
• Garrick Club Library Theatrical Collection
• Gateshead Local Studies Theatrical Collection
• Georgian Theatre Royal & Theatre Museum Collection
• Glasgow Collection Glasgow City Archives
• Gloucester Music and Drama Library Collections
• Gloucestershire Record Office Theatrical Records
• Glyndebourne Festival Opera Archives
• Gordon Collection of Playbills Canterbury Royal Museum & Art Gallery, Canterbury City Council
• Grand Theatre Wolverhampton Archives and Local Studies
• Greenwich Local History Library
• Grimsby Reference Library Collection
• Guildhall Library Collection
• Guildhall School of Music and Drama – Library
• Gunnersbury Park Museum
• Hackney Local History – Theatrical Collection
• Hammersmith and Fulham Archives – Theatrical Archives
• Hampshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Hereford Library Theatre Collection
• Hertfordshire Performing Arts Collection
• Hertfordshire Theatrical Archives (Miscellaneous)
• Highland Council Archive Playbill Collection
• Hillingdon Local Studies and Archives Service – Theatrical Collection
• Holmes Programme Collection, Newcastle City Library
• Holst and Williams Manuscripts Collection St. Paul’s Girls’ School
• Horniman Museum Musical Instrument Collection
• Hull Museums Theatre Collection, Kingston upon Hull City Council
• Huntingdonshire Archives, County Record Office, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire
• Institute of Education Curriculum Resources Collection
• Institute of Germanic Studies Library
• Institute of Latin American Studies Library Performing Arts Collection UCL
• Islington Local History Collection
• J.M. Barrie Birthplace
• J.O. Francis Collection University of Wales
• Jazz Heritage Wales Archive
• Joe Orton Collection University of Leicester
• John Rylands University Library of Manchester
• Kensington Local Studies – Theatre Collection
• King Alfred’s College Performing Arts Education Collection
• King’s College Theatre Archive
• Kingston Museum – Theatre Collection
• Kirklees District Archives Theatrical Collection
• Lambeth Archives and the Minet Library – Theatre Collections
• Lancaster Library Local Studies Theatre Collection
• Lancaster University
• Laurel and Hardy Museum
• Leeds District Archives Theatrical Collection
• Leggett Library Guildford School of Acting
• Les Ballets 1933 Collection Royal Pavilion, Brighton
• Letter of George Bernard Shaw
• Lewisham Local Studies & Archives – Theatrical Collection
• Library of the National Operatic and Dramatic Association
• Lincoln Local Studies Theatre Collection
• Lincolnshire Archives Performing Arts Collection
• Live Art Archive, Nottingham Trent University
• Liverpool Central Library Theatrical Collections
• Local Studies Collection Bristol Reference Library
• Local Studies Theatre Collection Coventry Central Library
• Local Studies Theatrical Collection Margate Library
• London Contemporary Dance School
• London Metropolitan Archives
• London Metropolitan University Performing Arts Collection
• London School of Economics
• Loughborough University of Technology Theatrical Collection
• Lowestoft Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Luton Museum & Art Gallery Theatrical Collection
• Lynn Museum Theatrical Collection
• Lyric Theatre Archive
• Lytton Family of Knebworth House Archive
• Manchester Theatre Collection Manchester Central Library
• Marconi Collection Marconi Archives
• Merseyside Unity Theatre Collection National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside Archives
• Merton Local Studies – Theatrical Collection
• Michael Peto Collection University of Dundee
• Middlesbrough Central Library Theatrical Collection
• Middlesex University Performing Arts Collection
• Moyse’s Hall Museum, St Edmundsbury Borough Council
• Museum of Lancashire Theatrical Collection
• Museum of Lincolnshire Life Theatrical Collection
• Museum of London Theatre Collections
• Museums Resource Centre, Colchester Borough Council
• Music Preserved, Barbican Library (Corporation of London)
• Musical Museum
• National Library of Scotland
• National Monuments Records Theatre Collection
• National Portrait Gallery
• National Resource Centre for Dance Archive
• National Theatre
• Newcastle City Libraries, Local Studies Collection
• Newcastle Discovery Museum Costume Collection
• Newham Archives & Local Studies Library – Theatrical Collection
• NODA Library
• Norfolk and Norwich Theatre Collection Norfolk Heritage Centre
• Norfolk Record Office Theatrical Collection
• North Devon Record Office Theatre Collection
• North Shields Local Studies Collection Theatrical Archive
• North Yorkshire Local Studies Theatrical Collection
• North Yorkshire Theatre Collection
• Northampton Record Office Theatre Collection
• Northamptonshire Studies Theatre Collection Northamptonshire Central Library
• Northcott Theatre Archive
• Northumberland Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Nottingham Arts Library Playsets Collection
• Nottingham Local Studies Library Theatrical Collection
• Nottingham Playhouse Collection – Nottinghamshire Archives
• Nottingham Trent University Theatre Design Holdings
• Nottinghamshire Archives
• Pallant House Theatre Design Collection, Pallent House Gallery
• Peace Pledge Union Archive Theatrical Collection
• Pembrokeshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• People’s Palace Museum Theatre Collection, Glasgow
• Performing Arts Collection St Mary’s College
• Philharmonica Orchestra Archives
• Pickford’s House Museum Collection
• Playbills Collection – Leeds Local and Family History Library
• Plymouth Human History Collection Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery
• Plymouth Music and Drama Library Theatrical Collection Central Library, Plymouth
• Poole Reference Library Local Arts Collection
• Poole Waterfront Museum Theatrical Collection
• Printed Books Section, Corporation of London
• Programmes and Playbills for Bournemouth Theatres Bournemouth Reference Library
• Public Record Office of Northern Ireland Theatrical Collection
• Public Record Office of Northern Ireland Theatrical Collection
• Puppets on the Move, Puppet Centre Trust
• Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch, Archive Hornchurch Branch Library
• Radley College Archives, Oxford
• Rambert Archives
• Ramsgate Local Studies Theatre Collection
• Ramsgate Museum Theatrical Collection
• Record Office Theatre Collection Record Office for Leicestershire
• Records of the Rapier Players, Bristol – Bristol Record Office
• Records of Theatre Royal, Bristol Record Office
• Reference Library Theatre Collection Dorset County Council
• Rex Whistler Collection Plas Newydd, National Trust
• RIBA Manuscripts and Archives Collection
• Richmond Local Studies – Theatrical Collection
• Rochdale Theatre Posters Collection, Rochdale Local Studies Library
• Roehampton Performing Arts Collection, University of Roehampton
• Rolls (Llangattock) Mss (D361), Gwent Record Office
• Rose Bruford College Library
• Royal Academy of Dance Library
• Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Library
• Royal Academy of Music Library
• Royal Albert Hall Archives
• Royal Ballet School Archives
• Royal College of Music
• Royal Cornwall Museum Performing Arts Collection
• Royal Festival Hall Archives
• Royal Holloway University of London
• Royal Military School of Music Museum
• Royal Opera House Collections
• Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama Theatrical Collection
• Royal Shakespeare Company Collection
• Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce Archive
• Royston & District Museum Performing Arts Collection
• Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum Theatrical Collection
• Salford Local History Library Theatrical Collection
• School of Oriental & African Studies Library Performing Arts Archive
• School of Slavonic and East European Studies Theatrical Archives University College London
• Scottish Theatre Archive, University of Glasgow
• Shakespeare Birthplace Trust/Shakespeare Centre Library
• Shakespeare Institute Library, University of Birmingham
• Shakespeare’s Globe
• Shaw’s Corner
• Sheffield Central Library
• Shropshire Theatrical Archive Shropshire Records and Research Centre
• Signet Playbills Edinburgh City Libraries
• Sir Frederic Madden Collection of Playbills Portsmouth Central Library & City Records Central Library
• Sir John Soane’s Museum Theatre Drawings Collection
• Sir Thomas Beecham Music Library
• Sir William Gray House Theatrical Collection
• Snowshill Manor Music Collection
• Somerset Heritage Centre Theatrical Collection
• Somerset Record Office
• Somerset Studies Library Theatrical Collection
• Sound and Moving Image Collection, National Library of Wales
• South East Film and Video Archive
• South Tyneside Local Studies Library Theatrical Collection
• South Wales Miners’ Library Theatrical Collection
• Southwark Local History Library – Theatrical Collection
• Special Collections, Tunbridge Wells Museum and Art Gallery
• Spotlight Drama Collection Essex Libraries: Witham Library
• Staffordshire Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Stockport Heritage Library Theatrical Collection
• Suffolk Record Office Library and Archives
• Sunderland Theatre Collection Sunderland Museum
• Surrey History Centre Theatrical Collection
• Surrey Performing Arts Library Theatrical Collection
• Swansea Local Studies Department Theatre Collection
• Swindon Collection Theatrical Collection
• T.D. Williams Collection University of Wales, Aberystwyth
• Taunton Theatre Collection Somerset Record Office Teesside Archives
• Thanet Branch Archive Theatrical Collection
• The National Archives
• Theatre Quarterly Archive University of East Anglia Archives.
• Theatre Royal Bath – Bath Central Library Collections
• Theatresearch library of theatre architecture books
• Theatresearch Theatre Building Postcard Collection
• Theatrical Collection (Miscellaneous) – Leeds Local and Family History Library
• Thomas Hardy Collection Dorchester Reference Library
• Tolson Memorial Museum Theatrical Collection
• Tomlinson Poster Collection, Kirklees District Archives, West Yorkshire Archive Service
• Torquay Reference Library Theatrical Collection
• Tower Hamlets Local History – Theatrical Collection
• Townley Hall Theatrical Collection
• Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
• Tunbridge Wells Museum and Art Gallery Theatre Collection
• Twickenham Local Studies Collection
• Tyne and Wear Archives
• University College Chichester Performing Arts Collection
• University College London: Performing Arts Holdings
• University College Northampton Library Theatrical Collection
• University College Northampton Performing Arts Collection
• University of Aberdeen Education Collection
• University of Birmingham Special Theatre Collections
• University of Bristol Theatre Collection
• University of Cambridge
• University of Durham Theatrical Collection
• University of Edinburgh
• University of Exeter
• University of Hull
• University of Kent
• University of Leeds Special Theatrical Collections
• University of Nottingham Library Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections
• University of Reading
• University of Sheffield
• University of Southampton Theatre Collections
• University of Stirling
• University of Warwick Theatre Collection
• V&A Theatre and Performance
• Vestry House Museum Collections – Theatre
• Wakefield District Archives Theatrical Collection West Yorkshire Archive Service
• Walsall Theatre Playbills Collection Walsall Local History Centre
• Waltham Forest Archives – Theatre
• Waltham Forest Local Studies Library – Theatre
• Wandsworth Museum – Theatre Collection
• Warburg Institute Library Theatrical Collection
• Warrington Local Theatres Collection Warrington Public Library
• Warwick Drama Collection Warwick Library
• Wellcome Library for the History and Understanding of Medicine
• Welsh Music Information Centre
• Welsh National Opera Archives
• Wessex Film & Sound Archive Performing Arts Collection
• West Sussex Record Office Theatrical Collection
• Westcountry Studies Library Theatrical Collection
• Westminster Music Library
• Westminster Reference Library: Performing Arts Collection
• Wigan Archives Theatrical Collection
• Wigmore Hall Archive
• Wilkinson Collection Sheffield Central Library
• William Salt Library Theatrical Collection
• Wiltshire and Swindon Archives Theatrical Collection
• Wiltshire Performing Arts Collection Wiltshire Performing Arts Library
• Wiltshire Performing Arts Library
• Wimbledon College of Art Theatrical Collection
• Winchester Historic Resources Centre Theatrical Collection
• Wirral Archives Theatrical Collection
• Witt Library
• Wolverhampton Archives and Local Studies: Theatrical Collection
• Worcester College Library Theatrical Holdings
• Worcester Museum of Local Life Theatrical Collection
• Worcestershire Local History
• Worthing Museum and Art Gallery Theatrical Collection
• York Minster manuscript music collection
• Yorkshire Dance Archive