Historians dismayed by 'scandal' of BBC cutting access to written archives

Critics say new limit to trove of information sounds knell for independent research

- Vanessa Thorpe Arts and Media Correspondent

Any country would be lucky to have a vast record of its social and technological history to pass down the generations. Even luckier if its files, put together over a century with public money, were regularly opened up.

The BBC Written Archives Centre was just such a rare trove of information - an accessible public catalogue of British attitudes and habits. But this summer, historians and researchers have been dismayed by moves to alter and limit the available files. Following an audit, the BBC has switched to releasing the contents in an orchestrated way, instead of in response to research queries. It claims this is more efficient and offers better value to licence fee payers.

An open letter published this weekend, signed by more than 400 influential writers, researchers and academics, argues the BBC’s decision is sounding the death knell for “independent and exploratory research”.

One signatory, social historian David Kynaston, told The Observer he suspects “a serious scandal is unfolding”, as the old request system is ditched. “It is intolerable that a researcher can no longer go in and straightforwardly explain to the excellent archivists that worked there what they are interested in having cleared for their research.”