The Barbara Cavanagh Collection: A Lifetime of Theatre History Comes to Auction
23rd July 2026
Burstow & Hewett are delighted to present The Barbara Cavanagh Collection, a remarkable auction celebrating the life and legacy of one of Britain’s most respected antiquarian theatrical booksellers and researchers.
Taking place on Thursday 23rd July at 10am, the auction will feature over 180 lots from Barbara’s final collection, offering collectors, institutions and theatre enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire pieces gathered through a lifetime dedicated to the preservation of performing arts history.
Born in Mumbles, South Wales, in 1939, Barbara developed a lifelong passion for books and historical material. After working at Swansea University Library, she moved to London in 1958 where she joined the renowned theatrical bookseller and historian Ifan Kyrle Fletcher, founder of the Society for Theatre Research. This marked the beginning of a remarkable career immersed in the world of theatre, literature and entertainment history.
Barbara later established Motley Books Ltd with her husband John Cavanagh, building an internationally respected specialist bookselling business. Together, they travelled widely in search of rare and significant material, carefully researching and cataloguing their discoveries before placing them into private collections, museums, libraries and academic institutions around the world.
Throughout her career, Barbara’s expertise extended far beyond rare books. She catalogued important theatrical archives, including Serge Diaghilev costume designs and a collection of more than a quarter of a million theatre programmes, while developing a deep knowledge of performance history, pre- and early cinema, magic lantern material and theatrical ephemera.
The collection coming to auction reflects Barbara’s extraordinary eye for unusual and historically significant pieces. Highlights include rare theatrical books, printed ephemera, photographs, illustrations and material connected to the fascinating worlds of theatre and entertainment.
Barbara remained passionate about her work until the end of her life, continuing to research and deal in theatrical material right up until her final months. Her enthusiasm, specialist knowledge and dedication have left a lasting contribution to the study and preservation of theatre history.
The Barbara Cavanagh Collection represents the final chapter of an exceptional collecting journey — a rare opportunity to own a piece of a lifetime spent uncovering and safeguarding the stories of the stage.
The Barbara Cavanagh Collection
Thursday 23rd July at 10am
Over 180 lots | Bid live online, by telephone or absentee bid
The Barbara Cavanagh Collection
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Lot 155
This Lot represents part of Barbara Cavanagh's working library of performing arts-related texts - three volumes relating to Albert Smith [1816-1860] i. . .
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Lot 3
A folder of sheets for Juvenile theatres produced by the publisher, John Redington
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Lot 103
Victorian playbills for Toole's Theatre (11), different productions or different dates
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Lot 1
A large quantity (c.135 photographs) of cabinet photographs of Victorian actors, almost all identified and held within a concertina folder
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Lot 107
A rich trove of ephemera relating to women in the theatre from the Victorian era into the mid-twentieth century
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Lot 105
A rich trove of ephemera relating to women in the theatre from the Victorian era into the mid-twentieth century
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Lot 104
Suffragette ephemera to include: The Fifth Annual Report of the New Constitutional Society for Women's Suffrage
