Edward Lloyd and His World: Sensationalism, Radical Reform, Popular Fiction, and the Press in Victorian Britain
Saturday 18 June 2016, 10:00 am-5:00 pm
Westminster Central Archive
10 St Ann's St, London SW1P 2DE, UNITED KINGDOM
This is a day devoted to exploring the world of Victorian popular fiction, publishing and the press through the figure of Edward Lloyd (1815-1890). The day will be a major act of recovery, exploring Lloyd as an eminent Victorian who had a profound impact on popular culture. From his publishing base in Salisbury Square off Fleet Street his penny dreadfuls dominated the early Victorian fiction market with plagiarisms of Dickens and tales such as Varney the Vampire and the first Sweeney Todd story. Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper became the first paper to sell a million copies but helped establish the template for the popular press with its emphasis on sensationalism. Lloyd throughout his life was a major entrepreneur but was also associated with radical and liberal reform. The organizers seek papers which explore either Lloyd and his publications or which can provide significant context on popular culture, fiction and journalism between 1840 and 1890.
The event is a follow up to a hugely successful event two years ago at the Westminster Central Archive on G.W.M. Reynolds.
Confirmed Speakers: Louis James, Ian Haywood, Sarah Lill, Rohan McWilliam.
Stephen Jarvis will deliver a presentation about his new novel, Death and Mr. Pickwick.
If you would like to offer a 20 minute paper, please contact rohan.mcwilliam@anglia.ac.uk. The deadline for offers of papers is 30 April 2016.