A Visit to the British Library
In September 2024 I traveled to England for five full days and nights and every moment afforded me the opportunity to learn something new that will provide guidance on future stories, especially Barnaby Druthers stories. Interestingly, the research I conducted here shed light on some prior Druthers stories and I’m excited to share just a little bit of that as I extol the virtues of some of my favorite places during my all too brief visit.
On Friday afternoon I took the tube from Tower Hill to Kings Cross station and walked to The British Library, the extraordinary institution featuring a team of librarians, researchers, administrative staff, security workers, custodial workers, and vendors all working in concert to provide an exceptional resource to the public. It is a veritable transportation hub of knowledge where everyone contributes flawlessly to the visitor experience.
On the ground floor there is a free exhibit whose contents could be the basis of an entire museum charging admission. The exhibit displays handwritten works of merit throughout the ages from Leonardo DaVinci to the Beatles, with historic versions of sacred texts and important civic documents like the Magna Carta and the Emancipation Proclamation and it is all there in display cases for our viewing consideration.
Within these display cases I saw two items that related to Barnaby Druthers stories. The Barnaby Druthers story “Year of the Spring Heeled Jack” described the tale wherein a particular fiend possessed the trappings of the spring heeled jack, particularly the boots and gloves. I was thrilled to see an actual 19th century published Spring Heeled Jack book from 1890 on display. (see Year of Spring Heeled Jack in Season 3)
A Modern Druthers story was called the Secret Serenade about a potentially undiscovered work by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Barnaby conducts some research at the British Library by viewing an original Mozart piece (although in the story the Mozart piece he viewed was not encased in a display in a public exhibit but was shown separately to him in a study room). (see Season 4)
The library houses so many books of note, manuscripts, and documents that if I had just a full month to visit daily to research and write, I can only imagine how many Druthers stories I could create in that time. Alas, that is not a luxury I possess, so I am thankful for the time I had now to experience and learn as much as I could, an to make every moment on the visit meaningful and I can say without question that my most valued keepsake, besides the memories and the stories, from this entire journey is the British Library card I now hold in my wallet.
