Everyman’s Library has celebrated the 35 years since its rebirth through an event held at Spencer House in London, attended by King Charles III, writers, academics, book sellers and members of the publishing industry. It was also an opportunity for Everyman’s Library to celebrate its 120 years of existence since its establishment in 1906.

The event was held on 21 October 2026, where approximately 200 people gathered at Spencer House, the same venue used by publisher David Campbell to rebirth Everyman’s Library in 1991.

King Charles Joins Writers and Publishers

King Charles joined the anniversary celebrations and received a warm welcome from David Campbell, who escorted him through the event and introduced him to the writers and scholars linked to the imprint.

Jonathan Bate, Antony Beevor, Gyles Brandreth, Jung Chang, William Dalrymple, Misha Glenny, Ben Okri, James Naughtie, Hannah Rothschild, Tim Rice, Edward St Aubyn and others were among the guests at the event.

The event provided an opportunity for bringing together writers from all corners of the literary world to honor the imprint's contribution towards the publication of classical books in high-quality formats.

A Story from 1906 to 1991

Everyman’s Library was formed in the year 1906 by Joseph Dent. David Campbell bought the imprint and gave it a new lease of life in the year 1991 along with a few independent publishing members helped by Random House UK and Alfred A. Knopf from the US.

This first relaunch took place at Spencer House and was witnessed by many cultural personalities like Mick Jagger, Jerry Hall, Martin Amis, and Isaiah Berlin. This 2026 celebration was also hosted at Spencer House to remember the history and development of the imprint over three decades since revival.

Campbell stated that this anniversary was a chance to thank all the authors, scholars, agents, publishers, printers, and booksellers that made the imprint successful. Campbell also emphasized on making books that people can read and enjoy for decades.

David Campbell stated that Everyman’s Library has more than 30 million books in print.

Classic Literature in Print

The Everyman’s Library imprint is recognized for publishing classic literature in books that have cloth bindings, introductions written by scholars and authors, and a carefully curated selection of bibliographies and literary chronologies.

Some of the elements that characterize its production process include acid-free paper and sewn bindings. The list of authors who have been published under this imprint ranges from Homer to Leo Tolstoy and from Chinua Achebe to Kazuo Ishiguro.

Maya Mavjee, President and Publisher of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, lauded the leadership of Campbell along with the editorial philosophy of the imprint of marrying literary merit with excellent book design.

With the anniversary celebration, it became evident that despite the current changes happening in the reading culture, format and distribution of books, there is still relevance for well-designed print books in the publishing world. For the Everyman’s Library, the milestone not only celebrates its roots but also its dedication to making important literary works available for the future.