Here is news about projects from Woolf scholars around the globe.
Maggie Humm and Snapshots
Maggie Humm’s new book, Snapshots: Autobiography, Virginia Woolf, Writing and the Visual, published by Edinburgh University Press, is now out and receiving much acclaim. Read about it on USA Book DNA and on the EUP blog.
The book provides a survey and analysis of feminist criticism from the 1970s and an historical account of UK women’s writing from 1900 to the present. It also brings together Humm’s pioneering work on feminist literary criticism, Virginia Woolf, film and visual cultures.
Look below for the code to get a 30 percent discount on Snapshots from EUP.
Humm is an emeritus professor and vice-chair of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain whose last book was The Bloomsbury Photographs.
Martin Ferguson Smith, professor emeritus of Classics, Durham University and member of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain who is now in his eighties, has two new books out.
Urbi et Orbi: The Epicurean Inscription and Prescription of Diogenes of Oinoanda Tab Edizioni, Rome, March 2026, paperback and Open Access
Martin the Epicurean (autobiography), SilverWood, Bristol, 15 April 2026, paperback and ebook. For other information, including about the earlier books of the writer’s eighties, In and Out of Bloomsbury (2021; paperback 2023) and The Artist Helen Coombe (2023), visit http://www.martinfergusonsmith.com
For years, Virginia Woolf readers and scholars around the globe have fought against development plans that threatened the view of the Cornwall coast and Godrevy Lighthouse from Talland House in St. Ives, Cornwall. Now, it seems, that popular and precious view will likely be lost forever.
The message below was contributed by Polly Carter, the National Trust certified gardener at Talland House, and circulated by the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain. It is the latest update on the opposition to the plans and includes a discussion of legal options, costs, and the path ahead.
Background
Talland House is important to Woolf’s legacy for several reasons. It was the setting and inspiration for her 1927 novel To the Lighthouse. It was also where Woolf and her family spent their summers until her mother, Julia Stephen, died in 1895, when Woolf was 13.
As many of you will be aware, news broke in the new year that there was an application with Cornwall Council for amendments to a 2009 planning permission for a 5-storey block of 12 luxury apartments on a site in front of Talland house, which would block the famous view of the bay and lighthouse from Woolf’s formative childhood summer home in St Ives.
Professor Maggie Humm, vice-chair of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain, and Councillor Johnnie Wells, Deputy Mayor of St. Ives at the Talland House plaque unveiling on Sept. 11, 2022. Photo: St. Ives September Festival
Because the application was for amendments to an existing planning permission we were unable to object on grounds of harm to the setting of a listed building, which according to accounts from St Ives Town Council and Cornwall Council, we would have been successful in doing. We still wanted to object to the application for amendments in the hope that the developer would not want to build to the original plans and put in new planning permission, which we could them object to on heritage grounds.
Because our grounds for objecting to the specificity of the amendments were so limited, we chose to bring in legal expertise. Sarah Clover, Barrister at The Kings Chambers, a top of her field expert in planning law. She found fault with Cornwall Council’s route to applying the amendments to the original planning permission. Cornwall Council objected to the points raised in our KC’s advice and granted the permission anyway.
Last week we met with KC Clover and planning law expert solicitor Brendon Lee and they both considered that we do have a legal challenge worth bringing to judicial review. This would mean employing them to create a case detailing the legal mistakes made by Cornwall Council, inviting Cornwall Council to defend themselves and seeing if a judge agrees that the case is worth bringing to court.
If they did, then we could fight it in court in the hope of winning, resulting in the quashing of the application for amendments. Our problem is that the chances of winning are unpredictable and costs could potentially accumulate to un-manageable amounts.
The financial risks
Estimated costs could include:
Initial legal preparation: £10,000–£20,000
Further legal work if the case progresses: £10,000–£30,000
Potential court costs if the case proceeds and is unsuccessful: £10,000–£30,000 In total, costs could potentially reach £30,000–£80,000.
Because of these risks, it would likely require a named individual to act as the legal client, which also enables a lower cost capping threshold, rather than relying solely on a loosely organized fundraising effort, in case the fundraising cannot meet the demand.
A difficult decision
The group now faces a very narrow window of time. If a judicial review is to be pursued, legal preparations would need to begin within the next two weeks to meet the filing deadline. After this date, the option of judicial review is no longer available.
But the financial implications make this decision impossible without substantial and swift backing. Even if all the money could be found, the risk that it would still come to nothing at all, and even with a win that the original planning permission is still valid, it feels like too much to ask of anyone.
So, we have likely come to the end of the road for quashing the current application for amendments that the developer has asked for and received.
Looking forward
While the potential loss of the historic view from Talland House would be deeply disappointing to many who value its connection to Virginia Woolf, there is also growing interest in strengthening public engagement with the site itself.
Ideas being discussed include:
Developing visual arts related programming around Talland House
Increasing the garden tours and sharing the story of the meaningful planting being developed there
Setting up a Virginia Woolf themed Book Club in St Ives to connect local people to the significance of Woolf’s work and St Ives’ place within that
Building a broader network of supporters committed to protecting the cultural legacy of Talland House.
Exploring the possibility of a Virginia Woolf museum and gallery in St Ives
Curating To The Lighthouse centenary celebrations next year
Whatever the immediate outcome, the conversation has already highlighted how strongly many people feel about preserving the literary and historical significance of Talland House for future generations.
Thank-yous
Lots of work by lots of people has gone into the overall process so far, and despite it not being quite over yet I wanted to thank some key people who have been instrumental in getting us to this stage.
As the gardener at Talland house I am deeply connected to the place and have experienced first-hand how deeply moved people are by experiencing it and hearing its story which has urged me on. I’d like to thank:
Peter Eddy, the owner of Talland House, who has allowed these forms of engagement and supported the campaign opposing the development.
The residents of Talland house whose privacy I have tried to respect in this process, but who all care deeply about the place.
The Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain, particularly Maggie Humm who has been beside me all the way in this process, Sarah Latham Philips, previously of the VWSGB Executive but is still supporting the campaign and my development within it, Lynn Fox who helped put the case file together ahead of decision date and has been an encouraging support, the residents of Gallinus Point, who were among those who contributed to the legal fees, Gemma Jerome, environmental planner who appeared miraculously at just the right time and has provided guidance and clarity, and a huge thank you to Sharon Bylenga who jumped to action on day one, new year’s eve and has given essential financial support and unwavering guidance to and confidence in me and the team.
And finally, everyone who lodged an objection in the planning portal or wrote to the Council/MP’s.
For answers to any questions or to add offers for further support, please write to pollycartergardener@icloud.com, and follow @Tallandhouse on Instagram for future updates.
Developers are at it again. As in 2015, and 2003, they are planning a multi-million dollar flat project that would obstruct the view from Talland House in St. Ives, Cornwall, which was the setting and inspiration for Virginia Woolf’s 1927 novel To the Lighthouse.
Professor Maggie Humm, vice-chair of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain, and Councillor Johnnie Wells, Deputy Mayor of St. Ives at the Talland House plaque unveiling on Sept. 11, 2022. Photo: St. Ives September Festival
The last time, in 2015, developers proposed building a six-story, 10-flat project that would hide the view of Godrevy Lighthouse and the St. Ives coast.
This time, the project submitted to St. Ives Town Council by R.L. Southern, Ltd. is for 12 flats and again threatens to obstruct the view of the lighthouse, as well as of the Heritage Plaque installed on Talland House on Sept. 11, 20022, which will no longer be visible from a public highway, a requirement of any Heritage Plaque.
A parking garage will also be part of the multi-story project developed by R.L. Southern, Ltd., which incorporated in 2019 and appears to have no website of its own. Its director is Robert Mark Lane, 146 High Street, Billericay, Essex, United Kingdom, CM12 9DF. No other contact information is listed online.
Woolfians called to action
In 2015, Woolfians around the world fought back against the project that threatened the view of Godrevy, and the development was halted. Now, Woolf scholars and readers are being asked to take up the fight again by posting comments objecting to the plan on the St. Ives Town Council website at this link. Registration is required before commenting.
Background
Woolf and her family summered at Talland House for the first 12 years of her life. Godrevy Lighthouse, which she could see from her summer home plays an integral role in her famous novel To the Lighthouse (1927).
Maggie Humm announced this sad news and gave some background on previous development plans:
“For the first application I garnered objections from around the world including from Cecil Woolf, Leonard and Virginia Woolf’s nephew, now sadly deceased. The planning application was denounced in the Observer and other media. (At that time, Cecil posted this comment: ‘About the proposal to build a block of six flats and a car park in front of Talland House, which should, of course, be protected by English Heritage — I am appalled. This is sheer vandalism and should be stopped now.’)
“The [2025] application hardly differs from the original application which received objections from around the world.”
The application for the development, PA25/07750, can be accessed online, along with planning documents, a map, and more.
Maggie shares her objections
The view from Talland House of Godrevy Lighthouse was central to VW’s imagination and appears in her novels Jacob’s Room, To the Lighthouse and The Waves, and “Sketch of the Past.” Woolf even called her first Sussex home in Firle Little Talland House. The development would obstruct that view.
Tourism, a vital industry in St Ives, relies on writers/artist connections to the town. World-wide visitors come to St Ives to see their houses. This development would constrain visits to Talland House and diminish the number of tourists.
A plaque celebrating Woolf’s connections with St Ives, supported by the VWSGB and St Ives Council, and donations from Woolf scholars from around the world, was unveiled on 11 September 2022 by the Deputy Mayor and Maggie. It was part of the St Ives Festival programme that year, and praised on BBC Radio Cornwall, the Observer and by other media. A St Ives spokesman said at the time “this will mark our connection to important writers who also left their mark on west Cornwall.”
Woolf’s family made a huge contribution to the town. Julia Stephen, Woolf’s mother, nursed and raised money for a trained nurse; Leslie Stephen gave prizes at the Regatta; and they joined the St Ives Arts Club. The Heritage Plaque celebrates that contribution.
Post objections now
Maggie urges all of us to forward our objections to the development as soon as possible, as the final decision on the new application will be made on 6 February 2026.
Map of the proposed development that would obstruct the view of the coast from Talland House in St. Ives, Cornwall. Talland House is to the left and below the development area, which is outlined in red.
Here are just a handful of news bits about Virginia Woolf scholars. I know there are more. So if you have one, please add it as a comment below this post. Or send it to me by clicking on the email link in the right sidebar.
Maggie Humm’s book The Bloomsbury Photographs (2024) received two honors this year. It was a finalist in the American Writing Award 2025 for Academic/Educational book, and it won the American Writing Award 2025 for photography.
Amanda Golden and Karen V. Kukil edited The Poems of Sylvia Plath, which is listed in the Faber Spring Catalogue and is now available for pre-order on Amazon UK. It is considered the definitive edition of Plath’s poetry.
Anne Fernald has a new book coming out in August. Her Own Voice: Eight Women Who Rewrote Life and Art tells the stories of eight radical women who responded to social oppression and helped create the modernist movement. In it, Fernald argues that the stories we read shape the lives we imagine for ourselves, and offers these stories as possible templates for living boldly and creatively.
Harchards new edition of Mrs. Dalloway filled one of the shop’s windows.
Dalloway Day celebrations are taking place across the globe this month, as Virginia Woolf’s novel Mrs. Dalloway marks its centenary. Today I have a report from Dalloway Day in London, held June 28 at one of my favorite London bookstores, Hatchards in Piccadilly.
The event, held in collaboration with the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain, featured two panels. The first was led by Maggie Humm and featured Maggie Gee, author of Virginia Woolf in Manhattan and Michelle de Kretser, author of Theory and Practice.
The second included Vara Neverow, editor of the Virginia Woolf Miscellany, interviewing Mark Hussey about his new book, Mrs Dalloway: Biography of a Novel. Sarah Hall facilitated the question and answer period.
A book signing was then followed by champagne, sweets, and live music as Mrs. Dalloway’s Party got into full swing.
The three books by the authors on the first panel.
Michelle de Kretser reads a passage from her new novel while Maggie Humm looks on.
Standing to project Virginia’s voice, Maggie Gee reads from her novel.
Maggie Gee and Michelle de Kretzer sign their books.
Vara Neverow, Mark Hussey and Sarah Hall are ready for their panel at Hatchards.
It was a sell-out crowd for the Dalloway Day event at Hatchards.
Live music from the 1930s and ‘40s added to the ambience.
Guests at Mrs. Dalloway’s party came from near and far — London, Boston, Antwerp, Italy, Germany, and more.
