Faber & Faber
The year 1925 marked the birth of a new partnership between Geoffrey Faber and the Gwyers. Sir Maurice and Lady Gwyer owned Scientific Press, which earned most of its income from The Nursing Mirror magazine. They wanted to expand into trade publishing and chose Geoffrey Faber as their partner. This firm was named Faber and Gwyer. Four years later, The Nursing Mirror was sold off. Geoffrey Faber and the Gwyers decided to part ways. The resulting company took the name Faber and Faber even though no other person named Faber was involved. Toby Faber later described this history in his book published in 2019.
T. S. Eliot joined the firm shortly after its formation. He had left Lloyds Bank in London to work as a literary adviser for the publisher. In the first season, the company issued his collection Poems 1909, 1925. The early catalogues included works by Ezra Pound, Jean Cocteau, Herbert Read, Max Eastman, George Rylands, John Dover Wilson, Geoffrey Keynes, Forrest Reid, Charles Williams, and Vita Sackville-West. In 1928, the firm achieved its first commercial success with Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man. Siegfried Sassoon wrote the book anonymously at first. His name appeared on the title page only during the second impression. Within six months, the book was reprinted eight times.
Poetry formed the most renowned section of the Faber list from the beginning. W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender, and Louis MacNeice joined Ezra Pound under T. S. Eliot's guidance. Marianne Moore, Wyndham Lewis, John Gould Fletcher, Roy Campbell, James Joyce, David Jones, and Walter de la Mare also published their poetry through this house. Berthold Wolpe served as the art director during these formative years.
The board in 1929 included Eliot, Richard de la Mare, Charles Stewart, and Frank Vigor Morley while Geoffrey Faber chaired the company. Eliot rejected two books by George Orwell: A Scullion's Diary and Animal Farm. The firm published biographies, memoirs, fiction, political essays, religious texts, art monographs, architecture studies, children's books, and an ecology list. It also issued Eliot's literary review called The Criterion. During the Second World War, paper shortages led to high profits for the publisher. Much of that profit went toward taxation instead of expansion.
Notable postwar writers included William Golding, Lawrence Durrell, Robert Lowell, Ted Hughes, Sylvia Plath, W. S. Graham, Philip Larkin, P. D. James, Tom Stoppard, and John Osborne. The company increased its investment in contemporary drama significantly. Three Nobel Laureates wrote plays for Faber: Harold Pinter, Samuel Beckett, and T. S. Eliot. Other playwrights subsequently joined the roster including Alan Ayckbourn, Alan Bennett, Brian Friel, Tony Harrison, David Hare, Frank McGuinness, and Timberlake Wertenbaker.
The firm acquired the rights to the remainder of Samuel Beckett's oeuvre from the publishing house of John Calder in 2007. This move solidified their position as a major force in modern theatre literature. The decision reflected a long-term strategy to support dramatic works alongside poetry and fiction. Critics noted how this approach distinguished Faber from other houses focused solely on commercial bestsellers.
Faber and Faber Inc. served as the American branch of the London-based company. In 1998, the firm sold this division to the Holtzbrinck company Farrar, Straus and Giroux. That entity kept it as an imprint focused on arts, entertainment, media, and popular culture. The partnership lasted until February 2015 when Faber announced its end. The London headquarters then began distributing books directly within the United States again.
This shift marked a significant change in how the publisher reached American readers. Direct distribution allowed for greater control over marketing and sales strategies. It also enabled closer collaboration between the British editorial team and US distributors. The transition required logistical adjustments but ultimately strengthened the brand's presence across the Atlantic.
In 2008, Faber launched Faber Academy offering creative writing courses for aspiring writers. Programs included Writing a Novel, Advanced Poetry, and Getting Started: Beginners' Fiction. Famous writers such as Mike Figgis, Jeanette Winterson, and Tobias Hill sometimes tutored these classes. Notable students included S. J. Watson and Georgian singer-songwriter Katie Melua.
The academy started offering scholarships to two writers every year beginning in 2018. These awards targeted under-represented groups including writers of colour, disabled writers, and LGBTQ+ writers. In 2009, Faber Digital released book-related apps for iPhone and iPad devices. Titles like Malcolm Tucker: The Missing Phone received BAFTA nominations. The Waste Land for iPad app won the Futurebook Award for Digital innovation at the Book Industry Awards in 2011. Drama Online launched in 2013 as a subscription-based platform for libraries and educators alongside Bloomsbury Publishing plc.
Harold Pinter won the prize in 2005. Orhan Pamuk received his award in 2006. Mario Vargas Llosa was named laureate in 2010. Kazuo Ishiguro completed the list in 2017. This chronological succession demonstrated the firm's consistent ability to publish major literary figures over seven decades. The roster included poets, playwrights, and novelists from diverse backgrounds. Their collective achievements underscored Faber's reputation as a premier publisher of serious literature.
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Common questions
When was Faber and Faber founded?
Faber and Faber was established in 1925 as a partnership between Geoffrey Faber and the Gwyers. The firm originally operated under the name Faber and Gwyer before changing its identity four years later.
Who joined Faber and Faber shortly after it formed?
T. S. Eliot joined the firm shortly after its formation to work as a literary adviser for the publisher. He had previously left Lloyds Bank in London to take this role within the company.
What book gave Faber and Faber its first commercial success?
The firm achieved its first commercial success with Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man published in 1928. Siegfried Sassoon wrote the book anonymously at first, and his name appeared on the title page only during the second impression.
Which Nobel Laureates wrote plays for Faber and Faber?
Three Nobel Laureates wrote plays for Faber: Harold Pinter, Samuel Beckett, and T. S. Eliot. Harold Pinter won the prize in 2005 while Orhan Pamuk received his award in 2006.
When did Faber and Faber sell its American branch?
Faber and Faber Inc. served as the American branch until February 2015 when the partnership ended. The firm sold this division to the Holtzbrinck company Farrar Straus and Giroux in 1998 before announcing the end of their relationship in 2015.