Netflix British Library partnership sends book collections to 100 libraries
Netflix will fund British Library conservation, donate adaptation-linked books and host screen-to-page events across the U.K.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
2 min read
The Netflix British Library partnership will put collections of books behind Netflix films and series into 100 public libraries across the U.K., while also funding the national library’s literary conservation and archive work.
Netflix and the British Library have formed a national partnership involving local libraries around the country, Variety reported. Netflix says the aim is to help audiences find the books behind the films and shows they watch.
The initiative arrives during the U.K.’s 2026 National Year of Reading, an effort intended to address a decline in reading for pleasure, according to Variety.
What does the Netflix British Library partnership include?
The programme has three parts: Netflix support for the British Library’s conservation and archives, book donations to 100 public libraries, and events about turning literature into screen stories. Those events will also be streamed to libraries nationwide.
The donated sets will include Frankenstein, Pride and Prejudice, Heartstopper, One Day, The Thursday Murder Club and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Variety reported. The titles have each been adapted for Netflix films or series.
Book-to-screen events have already featured Q&As connected to Frankenstein, The Thursday Murder Club and The Seven Dials Mystery, according to Variety.
Florence Pugh and Zoe Kazan join East of Eden discussion
Florence Pugh, Zoe Kazan, Christopher Abbott and Mike Faist appeared at a Monday-night discussion about the making of East of Eden, Variety reported. The event is part of the new programme.
East of Eden is Netflix’s seven-episode limited-series adaptation of John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel. Kazan adapted and executive produced the series; Pugh plays Cathy Ames, while Abbott plays Adam Trask and Faist plays Charles Trask, Netflix’s Tudum site says.
All seven episodes are due to stream globally on Oct. 1, 2026. The British Library’s event listing for East of Eden says its programme is available both at the library’s Knowledge Centre and online.
Why put screen adaptations on library shelves?
The partnership is betting that a favourite show or film can lead viewers back to the page. Variety reported that the National Literacy Trust’s 2025 Annual Literacy Survey found children’s enjoyment of reading at its lowest recorded level, while also finding that film- and TV-linked books can encourage reluctant readers.
Variety also reported Nielsen BookData’s finding that 12% of adult fiction purchased by occasional readers was discovered through, or selected because of, a screen adaptation.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.