The London Library is pleased to announce the appointment of Willa Beckett as the new Director of Development.

Beckett has worked in development and project management roles in arts organisations for over 20 years. Previous employers include the Art Fund, the National Gallery and most recently Sir John Soane’s Museum. She also spent over two years representing the Royal Drawing School in New York, developing partnerships with art schools and funders.

Of her appointment Beckett said, ‘I feel extremely fortunate to be joining The London Library as the programme and resources for its growing membership continue to develop. After a rewarding six years at Sir John Soane’s Museum, I look forward to being part of the Library’s dedicated team, and through the enhancement of charitable income, supporting the work of such a respected and much loved institution.’

We were delighted to host the Academy of St Martin in the Fields chamber orchestra on 13 September for the first concert of its kind in the Library’s Reading Room.

Founders’ Circle patrons enjoyed an evening of music featuring works by Sir Edward Elgar, who was a Library member and Library Committee Member for nearly a decade. The musicians remarked on the surprisingly good acoustics and the evening inspired us to continue to broaden our events programme for our Founders’ Circle patrons.

If you would like to find out more about being a Founders’ Circle patron, you can visit the website or contact the Development Team on 020 7766 4731 or via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Last week, the Library installed a door between the Art Room and the Art Reading Room.

The new door will help to control noise flow between the two reading rooms and enable the Art Reading Room to be used as a dynamic space, both as a reading room and an additional event space.

During the pandemic, the Library opened the Art Reading Room to allow for more working spaces with appropriate social distancing measures across the Library. Since that time, the room has proved to be enduringly popular with members.

The Art Reading Room is just one of six reading rooms available to members across the Library.