Tag: #collections

Hello Europe. This is Durham Calling.

A post by Collections Coordinator Tim Buckle

It can’t have escaped your attention that it is Eurovision again, and this year the UK are hosting the event on behalf of Ukraine. The contest is taking place in Liverpool.

I know Eurovision divides opinion, but whatever your views are about the music, one thing that is clear is the message of inclusion and equality that it sends out. Having just got back from Liverpool from the event, this sense of inclusion was everywhere to see and as a gay man it means a lot to be yourself and feel safe at the same time.

Whoever you are and whatever your background, Eurovision allows you to be yourself without any judgement. This is something that we encourage here at Durham University, especially in Library and Collections. Whether it is having a safe space for you to be yourself while studying, or seeing yourself represented in our collections we will continue to improve services and listen your feedback about collections and study spaces.

To celebrate Eurovision we have looked through our library collections and picked out some titles from countries that have previously won the contest. The titles we have picked have been published in the year the Country selected last won the Contest.

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Getting to know eBooks better

black tablet computer behind books

We have talked about eBooks a few times on the blog over the years. Whether you love or loathe eBooks, one thing is for sure – they are a big part of our library and academic lives.

Last academic year (21/22) we purchased almost 6000 new individual eBook titles and just over 300 additional licenses. In addition to the individual purchases, we continue to have access to a large range of eBook packages. The eBooks in our collection were used over 2.7 million times and we expect that to increase even more this year.

Although we maybe using eBooks more, we are aware it isn’t always straightforward getting started with them or using them. One day you may have access to a title, and then the next you don’t – or you receive a message saying there are no available licenses…

So, in this blog post we thought we would explain some of these queries.

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eResource of the month: The Churchill Archive

Each month we spotlight one of our databases to highlight the range of resources available to our users.

Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965) was one of the most important figures in British and Imperial history. The son of the aristocratic Churchill family of Blenheim Palace, he gained military experience as a soldier and war correspondent in India, Afghanistan, Sudan, South Africa, and in the trenches in France during the First World War.

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Bishop Tunstall: The man who survived the Tudors by calculating the odds

On the International Day of Mathematics, a post by Dr Elizabeth Biggs (Trinity College Dublin/TNA Postdoctoral Research Fellow) Dr Danielle Westerhof (Rare Books Librarian) and Gemma Lewis (Castle Curator).

How many of us who have lived, worked or explored Durham Castle have ever heard about the man who built the Tunstall Gallery and Chapel?

Cuthbert Tunstall (1474-1559), bishop of Durham from 1530 until his death, was a survivor.

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International Women’s Day 2022

Yesterday was International Women’s Day! This year’s theme was #BreakingTheBias and we wanted to explore and celebrate this concept in the Library by highlighting some of the inspirational women who are featured in our collections.

With our beloved mascot Billy Bee leading the helm, we took a dive into the many thousands of books here at Billy B and picked a selection of amazing female authors, scientists, medieval mystics, and poets!

#BreakTheBias
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University Library and Collections – favourites from our collections…

As part of our World Book Day celebrations, we’ve been exploring the theme of ‘Choice – curiosity has no age limits and neither do books.’ There can be no better examples of this than from our very own collections held within our archives, special collections and museums. With a vast range of books that are as fascinating today as they were when first written, they continue to generate a desire to discover and learn and will cultivate this curiosity for many, many years to come. 

With that in mind, we’ve asked some of our librarians and curators to choose their favourite book from our collections and share their insight into these incredible items… 

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The Importance of the Rainbow in Library Collections

person s hand forming heart

As part of LGBT History Month we wanted to highlight the importance of representation of the LGBT+ Community within our library collections.

When we read a book or watch a film, if we see ourselves or our community represented we have a sense of identity and belonging. It also helps challenge and fight prejudice and encourages education.

In the last year many LGBT+ events, such as Pride, have been cancelled and safe spaces and representation of the LGBT+ Community has been challenging for people to access. This means representation in books, media and objects have been even more important for people to turn to.

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Holocaust Memorial Day

On Holocaust Memorial Day, our blog post is written by Dan Lewis, Information Assistant at Bill Bryson Library, where she shares her thoughts and reflections on the holocaust and what she found when looking through our collections at Bill Bryson Library.

Further information about Holocaust Memorial Day, as well as university, local, and national events, can be found on the Durham University website – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion : Holocaust Memorial Day – Durham University.

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A review of ‘Liberate My Library’. Diversifying collections in a challenging year.

As we approach the end of the year we thought it would be a good time to look back at a new service we launched back in February. Wow talking about February seems like a lifetime ago now doesn’t it? So much has happened in 10 months and although not everything has been what we would have liked there have been things to celebrate. Our ‘Liberate My Library’ scheme we think is one of them.

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RLUK Collections: a virtual tour of our shared treasures

Durham University Library and Collections is a member of Research Libraries UK (RLUK), a consortium of the most significant research libraries in the UK and Ireland. As many members entered lockdown in March, Dr David Prosser (Executive Director of RLUK) took a virtual tour of RLUK member’s special collections via Twitter (#RLUKCollections), including those at Durham University, to highlight just a small selection of the extensive, diverse, and unique collections held within the member libraries and archives.

We have (with permission) highlighted here Durham’s brief entry, and provided links to each of the others, as an opportunity to quickly sample some of the many treasures held within the British Isles.

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