Better Books
1981 — Closed
94 Charing Cross Road, London
Better Books was an iconic independent bookstore founded by Tony Godwin, located at 94 Charing Cross Road, London. It played a significant role in the 1960s counterculture movement in London, serving as a stage, cinema, and gallery.
The bookshop welcomed new art forms such as assemblage, performance art, and radical poetry. It hosted the Better Books Writers Nights and events, including the sTigma Environmental Exhibition in March 1965, inspired by Alex Trocchi's "Sigma, A Tactical Blueprint" as well as featuring contributions from Jeff Nuttall. In May 1965, the legendary Allen Ginsberg arrived at Better Books, further cementing its status as a cultural hub.
Another Better Books shop later opened on Forrest Road, Edinburgh, becoming part of the city's "alternative" scene during the 1970s. It followed a similar policy to the London shop and served as a venue for poetry readings during the Edinburgh Festival, continuing the legacy of promoting radical and avant-garde literature and art.
Sources:
Radical Bookshops Listing, Radical Bookshop History Project (November 2023) [Available online here, accessed 13.05.2025]
Wikipedia - Better Books
BFI - Better Books: Art, Anarchy, and Apostasy
1977 — 1983
The Emporium, Merchants Place, Reading
1983 — Closed
17 Chatham Street, Reading RG1 7BJ
1974 — Closed
38a Clarence Street Liverpool
1974 — Closed
2a Hardman Street Liverpool
2014 — Present day
26 King St, Lancaster LA1 1JY
Closed
1 Wellington Rd, Shephall, Stevenage SG2 9HR
Closed
8 Parsons Green, Boulton Road, Stevenage SG1 4QR
2007 — 2008
Glasgow Sculpture Studios, Bridge Street, Glasgow
2008 — Present day
350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow G2 3JD
1970 — Closed
2-16, Culmore Cross, SW12 - Balham
1981 — 1986
92 Balham High Road, London SW12
1987 — 1989
15 Squire's Walk, Spinney Hill, Northhampton NN3 1AL
1988 — 1989
54 Craven Street, Northampton
1991 — Closed
84 St Michael’s Avenue, Northampton
Closed
4 Allen Road, Northampton
Closed
Fagin's Alley, 23 High Street, Rochester
1988 — Closed
Featherstone House, 375 High Street, Rochester
1971 — 1998
265 Seven Sisters Road, Finsbury Park, London N4 2DE
1998 — Present day
1 Bloomsbury Street, London WC1B 3QE
1978 — Closed
12 Orchard Street, Derry, Northern Ireland
2012
Bishop Street, Derry, N. Ireland BT48 6PW
1988 — 1990
104 College Rd, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 2B
1990 — Closed
2b Hope Street, Hanley, Stoke
1941 — Closed
18 Norton Street, Liverpool
Closed
113 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool
Closed
12 Upper Duke Street, Liverpool
Closed
12 Berry Street, Liverpool
Closed
15-19 Parnie Street, Glasgow G1 5RJ
Closed
3 Bothwell Street, Glasgow G2 6NL
Closed
292 High Street, Glasgow
1934 — Closed
64, 66 Charing Cross Rd, London WC2H 7JD
Closed
67 Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3BN
Closed
9 Southampton Place, London WC1A 2EA
Closed
193 Haverstock Hill, Belsize Park, London NW3 4QL
Closed
62 Carr Lane, Hull HU1 3RQ
Closed
36 Deansgate, Manchester M3 1RH
Closed
15 Dundas Street, Glasgow
1968 — 2000
240 Camden High Street, NW1
1972 — Closed
281 Camden High Street
Closed
234 Camden High Street, London
1978 — 1981
14 Railway Street, Langley Park, Durham
1981 — 1985
85a New Elvet, Durham
1990 — Closed
28b Sutton Street, Durham
Closed
Somerton Road, North Ashton, Bicester
Closed
8 Hunters Moon, Dartington, Totnes TQ9 6JT
1976 — 1987
45 Niddry Street, Edinburgh
1982 — 1987
43 Candlemaker Row, Edinburgh, EH1 2QB
1940 — 1941
Red Lion Passage
1941 — 1945
27 Belsize Road
1945 — 1960
Red Lion Street
1968 — Present day
Angel Alley, 84b Whitechapel High Street, London E1 7QX
1978 — 1990
110 Cheltenham Road, Bristol, B56 5RW
Closed
37 Stokes Croft, Bristol, BS1 3PY
1980 — 1981
Decourceys Arcade, Cresswell Lane, Glasgow
1981 — 1984
488 Great Western Road, Glasgow
1979 — 1991
41 Fitzroy Street, Cambridge
1981 — 1983
186 East Road, Cambridge
1984 — 1991
Dales Brewery, Gwydir Street, Cambridge
1971 — 1973
Upper Brook Street, Manchester
1973 — 1974
100 Oxford Road, Manchester M13 0JN
1974 — 1975
178 Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9QQ
1975 — 1979
109 Oxford Road, Manchester
1977 — 1990
1 Newton Street, Manchester
1945 — 1948
124 Shaftesbury Avenue, London
1959 — Present day
5 Caledonian RoadKing's Cross ,London N1 9DX,
Present day
136 Grosvenor Rd, St Paul's, Bristol BS2 9LP
Closed
24 Ashley Hill, St Werburgh's, Bristol BS6 5JG
2011 — 2019
34 Old Market, Bristol BS2 0EZ
2019 — Present day
108 Stokes Croft, St Paul's, Bristol BS1 3RU
1982 — 1986
38 Mannamead Road, Mutley, Plymouth
1986 — 1997
72 Mutley Plain, Plymouth
1997 — 2007
64 Mutley Plain, Plymouth
1978 — 1994
7 Winetavern Street, Smithfield, Belfast BT1 1JQ
2010 — 2016
13-15 Clarence Street, Belfast
2016 — 2019
Belfast Solidarity Centre, 22 Berry Street, Belfast, BT1 1FJ
1980 — 1982
115, 116 Dale End, Birmingham B4 7LS
1982 — 1987
25 Essex Street, Birmingham B5 4TR
1987 — Closed
136 Digbeth
2016 — 2024
61 Eyre Lane, Sheffield City Centre, Sheffield S1 3GF
2024 — Present day
Leah's Yard, 20 Cambridge Street, Sheffield, S1 4HP
Closed
Transport House, Smith Square, SW1
Closed
144–152 Walworth Road, SE17
1993
150 Walworth Road, London SE17 1JT
1980 — Closed
22 Church street, Leigh, Lancs, WN7 1QH
1988 — Closed
91 Bradshawgate, Leigh, Lancashsire WN7 4ND
1982 — 1987
11a, Forth Street Edinburgh EH1 3LE
1987 — 1997
25a Dundas Street, Edinburgh EH3 6QQ
1972 — 1975
Arkwright Street, Nottingham
1975 — 2000
10-12 Heathcote Street, Nottingham, NG1 3AA
1978 — 2018
745-747 Barking Road, London E13 9ER
2018 — Present day
743-745 Barking Road, London E13 9ER
1974 — 1977
48 Manchester Street, Liverpool
1977 — 1989
100 Whitechapel, Liverpool L1 6EN
1989 — 1996
112 Bold Street, Liverpool L1 4HY
1996 — Present day
96 Bold Street, Liverpool L1 4HY
1977 — 2003
4 Onslow Road, Southampton
2003 — 2018
243 Portswood Road, Southampton
2018 — Present day
189 Portswood Road, Southampton
Closed
45 Darley Street, Bradford BD1 3HN
Present day
61 Merrion Centre, Leeds LS2 8PJ
Present day
17 Goodramgate, York, YO1 2LW
2011 — 2024
The Attic, Saddlers Yard, 70 Saddler Street, Durham City, County Durham, DH1 3NP
2025 — Present day
19 High Street, Prince Bishop's Centre, Durham DH1 3UJ
1965 — 1988
189 Westgate Road, Newcastle
1988 — Closed
1st Floor, 65a Heaton Road, Heaton, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE6 5HH
Closed
N.C.A.T Llyngwern Quarrym Machynlleth, Powys Centre for Alternative Technology, Machynlleth, Powys, SY20 9AZ
1981 — 1988
10 Lymington Avenue, Wood Green, London N22 6JA
1988 — 1991
187 High Road, Wood Green N22 6BA
1970 — 1974
182 Pentonville Road, London N1
1974 — 1975
24 Boundary Road, NW8
1975 — 1976
97 Caledonian Road, N1
1976 — 1985
329 Upper Street
2019 — Present day
Brixton Village, 73 Granville Arcade, Coldharbour Lane, London SW9 8PS
Closed
Near the junction of Matilda Street and The Moor, Sheffield
1984 — Closed
51 Leopold Street, Sheffield
1982 — Closed
198 Blackstock Road, N5 1EN
Closed
83 Blackstock Rd, Finsbury Park, London N4 2JW
2020 — 2023
58, Merrion Shopping Centre, upstairs, Leeds LS2 8NG
2023 — Present day
77a Great George Street, Leeds LS1 3BR
1977 — 1979
Regent street / West Street
1979 — 1986
341 Glossop Road, Sheffield S10 2HP
1986 — 1998
67-69 Surrey Street, City centre S1 2LH
1986 — Closed
102 Grange Road, Hartlepool, Cleveland, TS26 8JQ
1988 — 1990
35 Raby Road, Hartlepool, Cleveland TS24 8AS
1990 — Closed
The Labour Hall, Park Road, Hartlepool, Cleveland
1972 — 1981
Regent Place, Leamington Spa
1981 — Closed
42 Bath Street, Leamington Spa
1987 — Closed
12 Gloucester Street, Leamington Spa
Closed
34 Southampton Street, London WC2E 7HE
1984 — Closed
64 Long Acre, London WC2E 9JD
Closed
375 Cambridge Heath Road, London E2
Closed
3-13 Hepscott Rd, London E9 5HJ
2000 — Closed
841/3 High Road, London, E11