British Fantasy Library membership 1947-1949

The British Fantasy Library (BFL) was a successor to the British Fantasy Society, becoming a separate organisation in January 1947 and continuing for an unknown period although after 1949 it seemingly no longer issued publications aside from, presumably, "bare" lists of its books and magazines. The British Fantasy Library Handbook likely dates from late 1947 and lists 30 names although these don't include the organisers, Ron Holmes and Nigel Lindsay. Further new members were reported in issues of its OO/clubzine Booklist and the first run of Operation Fantast. When Walt Willis mailed Booklist around Christmas 1948 there were 41 paid up members although some of the original 30 may have lapsed.

A likely incomplete listing of known members (alphabetically) follows. The fourteen names with an asterisk had previously been members of the British Fantasy Society. Americans Koestner and MacInnes, marked (H), were honorary members (presumably connected to gifts of books and magazines that Britfandom had received).

1. Norman Ashfield
2. Jack Banks *
3. Peter B. Bell
4. M. A. Boyd
5. Daphne Bradley
6. Colin Brown
7. Arthur Busby *
8. M. Charity
9. Jimmy Clay
10. I. Clay-Jones
11. T. Cunningham
12. S. R. Dalton
13. Jim Donaldson
14. Arthur Duell
15. Charles Duncombe
16. George Ellis *
17. D. W. Evans
18. P. D. Fortey
19. Derek Gardiner *
20. W. Arthur Gibson *
21. N. C. Gourley
22. F. J. Grimes
23. Mrs Helliwell
24. R. Henery
25. Phil Hetherington
26. Ron Holmes *
27. Ian R. Innes
28. E. R. James *
29. Bill Johnson
30. Kenneth Johnson *
31. W. Kerr
32. John E. Koestner (H)
33. Shivaji Lal
34. Nigel Lindsay *
35. Harold Loney
36. Allan Longton *
37. E. Lumer
38. Thomas L. MacDonald
39. Harry Manson *
40. Dave MacInnes (H)
41. D. McNaught
42. Peter G. Medcalf
43. Tom Moulton
44. S. Nodleman
45. P. Pennington
46. C. H. Pepper
47. Derek Pickles
48. A. E. Prince
49. Francis G. Rayer *
50. E. W. Roberts
51. Stanley Roberts
52. J. Michael Rosenblum *
53. Ken Slater
54. D. R. Smith *
55. E. F. Smith
56. R. Smith
57. M. J. V. Steer
58. L. G. Street
59. Myrtle Taylor
60. Joyce Teagle
61. Terry O. Trollope
62. Cedric Walker
63. A. E. Williams
64. I. G. Williams
65. Walt Willis
66. F. D. Wilson

The following five don't appear on any membership list but may have been members:

• Vin¢ Clarke who distributed Booklist with Science Fantasy News.
• John Gunn who took over as editor of Booklist in 1948.
• Bert Lewis appears on the list of people wanting magazines in Operation Fantast #2.
• Walter I. Norcott appears on the list of people interested in trading magazines in Operation Fantast #2.
• J. Frank White who according to Booklist #6 stopped answering letters.

After 1949 the BFL sections were operated by Jim Donaldson (books), William Dawson and Vera Douglas (magazines split by title), with Dawson and Douglas (not in the members list above) continuing until at least 1959 by which point they'd become 'British Fantasy and Science Fiction Library' (showing the evolution of the genre terminology, see discussion at BFS).

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Club

1947—????

This is a club page. Please extend it by adding information about when and where the club met, when and by whom it was founded, how long it was active, notable accomplishments, well-known members, clubzines, any conventions it ran, external links to the club's website, other club pages, etc. When there's a floreat (Fl.), this indicates the time or times for which we have found evidence that the club existed. This is probably not going to represent the club's full lifetime, so please update it if you can!