Heritage Hub

The collection at Shaw's Corner
This collaborative project between the
National Trust and Dr Pat Simpson at the
University of Hertfordshire’s School of Creative
Arts aims to provide scholarly information
on playwright, politician and philosopher
George Bernard Shaw.
Funded by the Arts and Humanities
Research Council, the initiative hopes to give
a greater understanding to the collection on
display at Shaw’s Corner to benefit:
-visitors
-staff
-volunteer guides
-the National Trust
-the academic community
George Bernard Shaw
Learn more about the Irish playwright during his time in Hertfordshire.
Examining the past
Artefacts and materials that embody Shaw’s
enduring engagement with Fabian socialist principles
are currently being researched by University
of Hertfordshire PhD student Alice McEwan.
These items are being given context by analysing
the shifting definitions of ‘modernity’
between 1906 – when Shaw moved in to his
Hertfordshire home – and 1950 when he donated
the house and its content to the National
Trust.
Artefacts include:
-elements of Jaeger clothing
-Shaw’s concern with having a plumbed-in
bathroom
-the use of ‘arts and crafts’ furniture and fitting
in both his house and the staging of his plays
Working together
This is the second collaboration between the
University of Hertfordshire and Shaw’s Corner.
In 1989, the Faculty of Engineering undertook
an investigative project into the restoration and
reconstruction of Shaw’s circularly moveable
writing hut.