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Where the books were written, set, sold, printed and buried: from the Globe to the graves, the bookshops to the presses.
This season's book talks, festivals and exhibitions are in What's On: Books & writers
The V&A's library, free to use, holding the manuscripts of Dickens's novels, Leonardo's notebooks and the Beatrix Potter archive.
Libraries & archivesIllustrationGo insideFree
It began in 1837 as the library of the Government School of Design and grew with the museum into the largest library of art and design in the country, reached up the stairs from the museum's galleries: the Forster bequest brought the manuscripts of nearly all of Dickens's novels and Leonardo's Codex Forster, the Linder bequest the drawings and letters of Beatrix Potter, and around them a million items on illustration, typography, bookbinding and the book as an object. The Victorian reading rooms are among the handsomest in London, and a reader's card is free.
| Monday | Closed |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 10:00 – 17:00 |
| Wednesday | 10:00 – 17:00 |
| Thursday | 10:00 – 17:00 |
| Friday | Closed |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
Hours from the page that lists them, checked 5 September 2026.
Free; register online or on the day with ID for a reader's card.
Submit a correction for this listing.
Data is compiled from public sources including OpenStreetMap, under the ODbL. Hours change often, so check before making a journey.