Standard orders

Our deliveries are now carbon neutral. 

Orders over £75* will qualify for FREE standard shipping within the UK.

Order value	Under £25	£25 - £75	Over £75	Timescale
UK Standard	£ 3.50	£ 5.00	FREE	up to 7 Business Days

Please allow 7 working days from the time you place your order to contact us about undelivered orders.

*does not include custom prints or custom clothing.

Local pick up

Local pick up is free and allows you to buy online and collect your items from our shop in St. Pancras (London) or from Reception at Boston Spa.

London

Orders placed before 3pm will be ready to collect from noon the following day (including weekends). Please ensure you check our opening times before coming to collect.

Boston Spa

Orders placed before 3pm will be ready to collect between 2 - 4 working days, though this is usually quicker. 

Please ensure you check our opening times before coming to collect.

To pick up your order, you will need to show both:

• Your order confirmation email

And

• Personal ID (e.g. driving license, debit/credit card)

If someone is collecting an order on your behalf, they will need to show your order confirmation email and the ID in your (the purchaser’s) name.

Items will be held for 10 working days; if not collected during that time, your purchase will be refunded.

If you are unable to collect, please get in touch.

EU and Europe orders

Due to the new EU Regulation 2023/988 (GPSR), we are temporarily pausing shipments to Europe, including the Republic of Ireland. We understand this may be disappointing, and we are working to resume our services as soon as possible. Please check this page for updates.

If you placed an order before 11 December 2024, your order has been shipped unless you have been notified.

North American and Rest of the World orders

Order value	Under £25	£25 - £50	£50 - £100*	Over £100*	Timescale
Airmail	£ 20	£ 30	£ 40	£ 50	Usually 2 - 4 weeks

 

Please check here for information on international delivery status from Royal Mail. Not all international orders are sent tracked so we may not be able to provide tracking details.

Please allow up to 30 working days from the time you place your order to contact us about undelivered orders.

Please note this is not applicable to Custom prints, you can find more information below.

Customs

If your delivery address is not within the United Kingdom, you may be subject to import duties, taxes and delivery service charges, which are levied once a shipment reaches your country. You will need to pay any additional charges for customs clearance. The British Library is not responsible for paying these charges.

If an order remains unclaimed from your local customs authority, a refund will be given once the order has been returned to the British Library. The time this takes will be dependent on the local customs authority, and a refund of the original shipping charge unfortunately cannot be given.

Please be aware that customs policies vary widely from country to country and we advise you to contact your local customs office for further information. Cross-border shipments are subject to opening and inspection by custom authorities.

Custom Prints

We are able to process UK and international orders for custom prints, with the exception of Europe.

UK Orders

Custom Print Type	UK Shipping	Timescale
Unframed Custom Print	£8	5-7 Business Days
Framed Custom Print	£12.50	21 Business Days*

 North America

Custom Print Type	North American Shipping	Timescale
Unframed Custom Print	£20	15+ Business Days

 Rest of the World

Custom Print Type	ROW Shipping	Timescale
Unframed Custom Print	£25	15+ Business Days

Please note our Custom prints are not eligible for free shipping.

Your prints and frames will be handmade by King & McGaw at their Sussex workshop.

Unframed orders are shipped within 5 working days (normally shipped next day).

Framed orders are shipped within 20 working days.

For more information about Custom prints please visit our FAQ's.

Custom clothing

We are able to process UK and international orders for custom clothing.

Shipping and delivery 

Shipping type	Price	Shipping times*
UK Standard Royal Mail	£ 5	3 - 5 days
EU Delivery	Suspended	Suspended
International Delivery	£ 15	10 - 20 days

*from dispatch, please allow up to 3 working days for production. 

Please note our Custom clothes are not eligible for free shipping.

Your items are made to order and shipped by Teemill from the UK.

For more information about custom clothing please click here.

Shipping exceptions

Please note that we do not deliver to PO boxes

There may be some territories which are restricted by Royal Mail. Which will be reviewed and updated regularly. Check here for the international shipping status from Royal Mail.

Alcohol can only be delivered to UK addresses.

Alcohol

There is an additional charge of £5 to cover courier postage costs.

Orders containing alcohol can only be sent to addresses in the UK.

Alcohol is not eligible for any discounts and may not be discounted unless previously agreed with licence holder.

It is illegal to buy, or to try to buy alcohol if you are under the age of 18. By agreeing to the terms and conditions, you are confirming that you are over 18 years of age.

Challenge 25 Statement:

The sale of alcohol to a child or young person is an offence which may lead to a fine of up to £5,000 and/or a term of imprisonment not exceeding three months. Such a sale will also lead to a review of the premises licence and could result in the licence being suspended or revoked.

The British Library Shop operates an ‘age verification policy’, in terms of which the customer must confirm they are over the age of 18 and therefore can legally purchase alcoholic products. The terms and conditions must be agreed to for an online order to be processed.

If delivery is selected as an option at check-out, The British Library Shop holds the right to check the customer's identification to confirm they are over eighteen years of age.

Only the following documents are acceptable for proof-of-age purposes and may be requested by the courier:

• A passport.
• A European Union photo-card driving licence.

If no such document is produced or if the company has a suspicion that the document presented is not genuine, or has been tampered with or has been altered, then the company has the right to refuse the sale or refuse delivery and process a refund to the customer.

Pre-orders

Pre-orders will be dispatched separately from the rest of your order on the publication date specified.

Discounts

Discounts and voucher codes may not be used in conjunction with any other offer.

Exchange rates

All payments and refunds are made in pound sterling and we are not responsible for fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.

Resending of Orders

Due to varying timescales for international customs procedures, if you do not receive your order within 30 days of the original dispatch date, we reserve the right to review the missing or delayed order on a case by case basis.

Sustainability

For every order we receive, a formula is used to calculate the estimated shipping emissions. Based on those estimates, a portion of our revenue goes to carbon removal companies that have been vetted by scientists.

Those companies use that money to remove however much carbon our shipments created. Any extra funds go toward the further development of carbon removal technologies.