Song sheets and posters go to Kent Uni

Roy Hudd is set to donate his vast collection of music hall memorabilia to an academic archive.

The comedian is planning to give his collection of more than 20,000 song sheets and posters to the University of Kent.

Already the university boasts major collections of showbusiness ephemera, including Linda Smith's personal files, pantomime archives, and records relating to the early days of alternative comedy.

Eight years ago, Hudd announced that he was giving his archive to Suffolk New College in Ipswich, close to his home, which embarked on a £70,000 project to archive the vast collection.

However, Hudd – a keen historian of music hall entertainment –  has now said it is going to Kent after the local college told him they did not have room for  the full collection and would have to ‘cherry-pick’ the best bits. 

‘I said "You take the whole thing or not at all' because it is a complete collection",’ Hudd told the BBC. ‘ So it will go to the University of Kent which have fantastic facilities and are able to take the whole collection.’

Hudd is president of the  British Music Hall Society, and has written several books on the subject.

Published: 4 Jan 2020