Does anyone here go to the British Library?

[Waawo]

There are a couple of books from the 1930s that I want to read that are really hard to find second hand or in more general lending libraries, but they are of course in the British Library.

How does it work? All I know is what I've read in various novels about going there to study; and what I've read on the BL website.

I know I have to go there in person to get a Reader Pass: is it possible to order an item to look at for the same day? Or do you have to get the pass first, and that then gives you the ability to order things?

No food and drink is allowed in the Reading Rooms; what happens to the items you are studying if you want to go down to the cafe or whatever? Do you have to return them and then re-request them? Are you allowed to leave the building whilst you have items "out", or are you limited to on-site catering options?

Is it really as quiet as people make out? Obviously the website says turn your laptop and phone to silent; but loads of places say that, and it doesn't work most of the time! What would actually happen if someone started watching Tiktoks on loudspeaker?!

Lastly, is taking photographs of items as a kind of note-taking allowed? I.E. for personal reference, not uploading to the internet.

Thanks in advance if you know the answers to any of these or have any other top British Library tips!

That's pretty standard. It's always busy. You need to get there early or risk not finding a seat, though some reading rooms are generally quieter than others.
Definitely no jackets, or anything you could hide BL material in when leaving. Most people are using laptops to take notes these days, so I don't think pens are that high up on anyone's mental checklist, though staff do walk around, and I seem to remember seeing them confiscating pens in the past.

Thanks to everyone for your helpful comments - mission accomplished! What a great day overall.

Unusual start, as King's Cross was rammed with people coming in for marches in central. Mostly seemed to be a retail opportunity, judging by the number of pavement merchants with flags and hats for sale.

Euston Road ludicrously busy and the main entrance to the library closed anyway for security reasons, so had to go round to a side entrance. Very busy in the non-reading room study spaces, even at 9:45am.

Downstairs for a locker, up to Humanities 1, collected the books I'd ordered, no problem getting a seat, there were very few folks in the reading room at that time (it did get busier around lunchtime). And then: bliss. Real quiet. Nobody talking, and no phones going off. The loudest sounds are coughing and typing.

Managed to get through all three volumes of 1930s poetry that I went there for, so that goes down as a successful day!

It's a great place to get properly absorbed. I remember once needing to go there for the day when I was on maternity leave to look up some references, and I was so in the zone that when I left at 5.30, I got straight on the my old tube line and was nearly at our old London flat when I remembered that in fact we no longer lived in London, I had a baby, and I needed to go back to St Pancras and get the train to a completely different part of the country...😀

Great story! 😀

Do interlibrary loans exist where you are? Where you put in a request and your local library orders it from elsewhere for you to borrow?

Yes. I’m a member at a few London libraries, but I couldn’t find what I wanted available for loan. I checked on Worldcat, and there is a copy at the University of London library, which I could access by renewing my Sconul access this year; but tbh I’ve been wanting to go to the British Library for years, and Euston / Bloomsbury are basically the same distance from me so no travel drama :)

I'm not sure if I was clear. The inter-library loan I was thinking of is where you just give the local library the information, and they do the job of tracking it down for you - anywhere in the country.

The inter-library loan I was thinking of is where you just give the local library the information, and they do the job of tracking it down for you - anywhere in the country.

If it's a long out of print book, there may not be a copy available for loan anywhere in the country. Any copies may be reference only.

Anyone who is looking for out of print books and can't get to the BL, I recommend archive.org. I've found some very obscure stuff there. Google search Book Title archive.org

Yes, I understand the concept, or at least, I thought I did. Interestingly, I've just checked the websites of Greenwich Libraries, Tower Hamlets Libraries, and City of London Libraries and none mention ILL at all in their "services" pages. Although CoL is a member of the London Library Network which has a shared catalogue across all 32 boroughs. I will ask staff next time I'm in a physical library. Sense this might be a rabbit hole lol :)

One thing I've learned with libraries: When you go ask in person, and the person doesn't know what you're talking about - ask to speak to the supervisor.

There are a lot of untrained people in council-run libraries these days, especially on the front desk. I heard of someone with zero training getting a job running a local library a few months ago. She's a nice, smart woman but literally no experience.