From today all British Library reading rooms (not just rare books) are pencil-only. Pens are absolutely verboten. And the pencils in the shop cost 60p! each. (So it is worth remembering to BYO.)
I can see the argument – there was a woman prosecuted for persistently causing lots of damage last year, and no doubt they get the odd absent-minded doodle – but it is a real pain.
Working for a while in rare books – and trying to read my notes later – made me value Mr Bic a whole lot more.
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