Linda Smith (1958 - 2006) was a stand-up comedian, comedy writer, and broadcaster. The collection was deposited at the University of Kent by Linda's partner Warren Lakin in 2013. The collection includes notes, diaries, scripts, audio-visual recordings, photographs, press cuttings, correspondence and publicity material covering her entire life and career, from school reports and early family photos, to Linda's stand-up career in the 1980s through to the 2000s, and through to her successful career on TV and radio in the 1990s and 2000s.
The collection as deposited also comprises material created by Warren in the editing and writing of two books ('I Think The Nurses Are Stealing My Clothes: The Very Best of Linda Smith' and 'Driving Miss Smith: A Memoir of Linda Smith') and in compiling three audio publications ('Linda Smith Live', 'I Think The Nurses Are Stealing My Clothes: The Very Best of Linda Smith', and 'Driving Miss Smith: A Memoir of Linda Smith'), and also comprises records concerning the organisation of memorial events for Linda, including correspondence, set lists, publicity material, audio-visual recordings, photographs, and press reviews.
A selection of material from the Linda Smith Collection is available on the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive flickr site.
Collection in brief
Contents: Audio-visual material, scripts, personal papers, correspondence, photographs and press
Period: 1970-2015
Subjects: comedy, performance