NEW WORLDS 72 – JUNE 1958

EDITORIAL - NEWS ITEMS

B.S.F.A.

British fans had what can only be termed a ' quiet' convention this year after the supreme effort that had been expended last year in staging the 15th World Science Fiction Convention in London. This year's informal conference was held at the George Hotel, Kettering, over Easter, and there was an attendance of some sixty members during the four days.

However, a major item of interest has come from this year's conference—the formation of the official British Science Fiction Association, with a working committee and specific aims and objects in view, the least of which is to create an official organisation where heretofore there has been no such body since the end of 1939, when the old Science Fiction Association was dissolved at the outbreak of World War II.

The Chairman of the new association is David Newman, who was largely instrumental in arranging the programming for last year's World Convention and was subsequently voted a Director of the World Science Fiction Society, whose headquarters are in New York. At the moment it is too early to give complete details of the new Association's plans, although a Treasurer has been appointed and two Joint Honorary Secretaries, but Mr. Newman has indicated that there will be two classes of membership ; full membership at 20/- a year, and associate membership at 10/- a year, the latter will not entitle such associates to vote at any of the Association's meetings.

I understand that a postal library has already been instituted, which is being run from Cheltenham and that an official journal will be issued privately to members every quarter.

Mr. Newman has also stated, "It is almost certain that all future British science fiction Conventions will be sponsored by the new B.S.F.A., and it is our plan to build up the new organisation into one of considerable prestige. Of recent years the tendency amongst the smaller science fiction fan groups has been to drift away from the literature as their focal interest, incorporating other interesting hobbies as well. It is our intention to make the B.S.F.A. the springboard for many interesting activities within the science fiction field as a whole." As soon as I receive more complete details from the new Association, including the Secretarial address, I will pass this information on to you. In the meantime, I would like to open the pages of Postmortem for discussion as to the type of activities readers would like to see incorporated in such a new Association. While we, as a company, are in no way connected with the Association officially, I am, naturally, extremely interested in such a project and only too willing to assist it with ideas received from our general readership, which in the normal course of events they would not receive.

John Carnell

Unfortunately for historians no letters discussing, or even mentioning, the BSFA were published in the following eight issues of NW (nos 73-80). And no further reference in the Editorials. However in issue 75 (September 1958) there is the appearance of a small-ad exhorting readers to join up.

NEW WORLDS 79 of January 1959 has an announcement of  the Reader Survey, and while one of the questions is "Do you belong to the Science Fiction Book Club?" there is no mention of the BSFA.