Methuen Publishing
Founded | 1889 |
---|---|
Founder | Algernon Methuen |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Headquarters location | North Yorkshire |
Distribution | Penguin Random House (most books, including the current Methuen Books) Routledge (academic) HarperCollins (children's books) A & C Black (dramas) |
Publication types | books |
Official website | www |
Methuen Publishing Ltd (/ˈmɛθjuən/; also known as Methuen Books) is an English publishing house. It was founded in 1889 by Sir Algernon Methuen (1856–1924) and began publishing in London in 1892. Initially Methuen mainly published non-fiction academic works, eventually diversifying to encourage female authors and later translated works.[1] E. V. Lucas headed the firm from 1924 to 1938.
Establishment
In June 1889, as a sideline to teaching, Algernon Methuen began to publish and market his own textbooks under the label Methuen & Co. The company's first success came in 1892 with the publication of Rudyard Kipling's Barrack-Room Ballads. Rapid growth came with works by Marie Corelli, Hilaire Belloc, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Oscar Wilde (De Profundis, 1905)[2] as well as Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan of the Apes.[3]
In 1910 the business was converted into a limited liability company with E. V. Lucas and G.E. Webster joining the founder on the board of directors.[4] The company published the 1920 English translation of Albert Einstein's Relativity, the Special and the General Theory: A Popular Exposition.
With knowledge he had gained of
The Rainbow
Following the publication of Lawrence's The Rainbow (1915), Methuen was prosecuted for obscenity. The firm offered no defence and agreed to destroy the remaining stock of 1,011 copies.[3] It is thought that one reason for the firm's failure to support Lawrence was that he had at the time written an unkind portrait of the chief editor's brother, who had recently been killed in France.[5]
Edward Verrall Lucas
In 1924 E. V. Lucas succeeded Algernon Methuen as chairman and led the company until his death in 1938.[5] Besides his executive role he also received a separate salary as the chief reader of the company. His commercial judgment added authors Enid Blyton, P. G. Wodehouse, Pearl S. Buck and Maurice Maeterlinck to the company's list. In 1935 they published Daniele Varè's novel The Maker of Heavenly Trousers.
In 1930 the company published the popular humorous book 1066 and All That.
Tintin
Methuen was the English publisher of the book editions of
Recent history
In 1958 Methuen was part of the conglomerate
In 2003, Methuen Drama purchased the company Politico's Publishing from its owner Iain Dale.[9] In 2006, Methuen sold its notable drama lists to A & C Black for £2.35 million.
Penguin Random House now owns the rights to many books that used to be published under the Methuen name through Random House and the Adrian Mole franchise through Penguin Books, the company also distributed the titles of now-independent Methuen Books.[8] Many of the publisher's academic titles are now published by Routledge.[10]
Methuen Books continues to publish new works of fiction and non-fiction, as well as reprinting older, classic works. Contemporary Methuen authors include Mark Dunn,[11] Robert McKee,[12] Michael Palin,[13] 1986 Nobel Prize Winner Wole Soyinka,[14] and 2012 Nobel Prize Winner Mo Yan.[15] Classic Methuen authors include the US novelist Walker Percy,[16] the US academic and commentator Neil Postman,[17] and the UK cartoonist Norman Thelwell.[18]
References
- ^ a b "History of Methuen Publishing". Penguin Random House UK Archive. Archived from the original on 16 April 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ De Profundis, Oscar Wilde. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd., 1905 (22nd Ed., 1911)
- ^ a b Stevenson, page 59.
- ^ Obituary of Sir Algernon Methuen The Times, Monday, 22 September 1924; page 18. Issue 43763.
- ^ a b c Stevenson, page 60.
- ^ a b Tintin: The Complete Companion by Michael Farr, John Murray publishers, 2001
- ^ TAIT, N. (1987, December 3). UK Company News: Octopus Buys Methuen From Int Thomson. Financial Times (London, England), 30.
- ^ a b "Methuen - How to Purchase". Methuen Books. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- ^ Pierce, Andrew (4 August 2004). "Methuen writes new chapter for lovers of Politico's intrigue - People". The Times. Times Newspapers Limited. p. 6.
- ^ "Contact Methuen". Archived from the original on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ "Methuen Books". www.methuen.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
Further reading
- ISBN 978-0413573506.
- Stevenson, Iain (2010). Book Makers: British Publishing in the Twentieth Century (hardback). London: The British Library. pp. 314 pages. ISBN 978-0-7123-0961-5.