A Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and a former member of the Councils of the both the Bibliographical Society and the Library Association, Mark Purcell is the Libraries Curator of the National Trust, responsible for more than 150 historic libraries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Educated at Oriel College, Oxford and University College, London, he has published extensively on the history of the books, libraries and reading, and has lectured in Britain, Ireland and in the United States.
