The English Review

The English Review was an English-language literary magazine published in London from 1908 to 1937. At its peak, the journal published some of the leading writers of its day.

History

The magazine was started by 1908 by Ford Madox Hueffer (later Ford Madox Ford) "in a rage that there was no place in England to print a poem by Thomas Hardy" and as a venue for some of the best writers available. Published in December 1908, the first issue contained original work by Thomas Hardy, Henry James, Joseph Conrad, John Galsworthy, W. H. Hudson, and H. G. Wells. Hueffer maintained this level of quality in subsequent issues he edited, publishing the early work of Ezra Pound, D. H. Lawrence, and Wyndham Lewis as well. Yet despite its literary excellence, the new venture was not a financial success. Issued as a monthly magazine of approximately 175 pages and sold for half a crown, The English Review did not exceed a circulation of 1,000 during Hueffer's editorship.

With the magazine struggling, Hueffer sold the magazine after publishing twelve issues to Alfred Mond. With Hueffer departing as editor, Mond brought in Austin Harrison as Hueffer's successor. Harrison maintained the high quality of contributors, and broadened the scope of the review to include women writers and writers from abroad. In addition to continuing to print works by Conrad, Lawrence, and Wells, authors such as Sherwood Anderson, Anton Chekhov, Hermann Hesse, Aldous Huxley, Katherine Mansfield, Bertrand Russell, G. B. Shaw, Ivan Turgenev, and William Butler Yeats now appeared in the magazine's pages. Coverage of politics also increased substantially, reflecting Harrison's background as a journalist.

English Review (18th century)

The English Review was a London literary magazine launched in 1783 by John Murray I, under the full title English Review, or Abstract of English and Foreign Literature. Its editor was Gilbert Stuart.

Initially Stuart wrote much of the Review with William Thomson. He died in 1786. Thomson carried it on, becoming proprietor in 1794. In 1796 the English Review was merged into the Analytical Review.

Contributors

Some notable contributors to the magazine were:

References