Carcanet
The John Rylands Research Institute and Library was pleased to be able to plan and host an exhibition to mark the 50th anniversary of Carcanet press, which was due to open in March 2020. Owing to the Covid 19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, sadly, this exhibition did not open, and no viewings ever took place. This small digital exhibition features some of the material that we hoped to showcase, alongside other pieces that were produced as a response to the archive, and to the pandemic.
Carcanet is a leading independent publishing house in Manchester. It publishes poetry, championing established writers and nurturing new talent. The Rylands is home to the Carcanet Press Archive containing letters, manuscripts and art which map out Carcanet’s history.
Manchester was rebuilt in the years after the bombing and Carcanet found a new home on Cross Street in the heart of the city. Committed to nurturing established, neglected and new writers, Carcanet now celebrates over 50 years of publishing poetry.
Today the Rylands Library helps people explore poetry stories by using the Carcanet Press Archive for research and study.
Manchester continues to be an inspirational city and a hub of creativity.
On Sunday 15 June 1996 a bomb planted by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) exploded in Manchester. The bomb detonated on Corporation Street in the heart of the shopping district.
Situated on the same street, the Corn Exchange was badly damaged. Many creative and independent businesses had offices in the building, including Carcanet Press.
A part of what the exhibition would have explored was the effect that this event had upon the press, the archive and the city of Manchester.
Carcanet has taken a different shape. So has its city.
Michael Schmidt. Carcanet Managing Editor