THE OLD SCHOOL PRESS

Recorded voices from the world of printing

Letterpress printing at Oxford University Press

  
 
 
  In researching our books on Oxford University Press, we have occasionally recorded conversations with some of the people involved. These recordings were not originally intended for publication, but rather as aides memoire when we came to work on the material gathered. However, they clearly have great interest both as records of those we talked to and of the printing world they describe.   
 
 
In the first conversation recorded in 1998 Martyn Ould and Martyn Thomas talk to Vivian Ridler, who was Printer to the University Press, Oxford from 1958 to 1978, having joined as Assistant to Printer Charles Batey in 1948. We were researching The Fell Revival, so the theme was the use of the Fell types in general. The book was published in 2000. Vivian Ridler
We returned in February 2000, this time to talk about Harry Carter for Martyn Thomas's biographical sketch of Carter published in Harry Carter, Typographer in 2004. Vivian Ridler
Martyn Ould visited Vivian again in January 2003, this time to talk about his memories of Stanley Morison and the production of his book John Fell, the University Press and the 'Fell' types as part of research into the history of the making of that book for Stanley Morison & 'John Fell' published in 2003. Vivian Ridler
In two conversations in 2001 and 2003, Martyn Ould talked to John Simmons who worked at the Press from 1951 to 1956. During that time he was one of Stanley Morison's collaborators on John Fell, the University Press and the 'Fell' types. John Simmons
Morison's John Fell, the University Press and the 'Fell' types was one of the last major books to be hand-set at OUP in the Fell types. John Bowley was one of the compositors.  Martyn Ould talked to him in February 2003 at his home near Oxford. John Bowley
 
 

All of these recordings are the copyright © of Martyn Ould, Martyn Thomas, et al 2007. If you wish to make use of them please contact The Old School Press.