Is My Look Back in Anger: A Play in Three Acts a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first impression is identified negatively, by the absence of an impression line: the imprint page carries Faber's Roman-numeral publication statement ('First published in mcmlvii by Faber and Faber Limited, 24 Russell Square, London') and nothing further, whereas later impressions add an explicit line — a copy seen in the course of this check states 'Second Impression' on that page while otherwise matching the first
• Bound in publisher's russet (brown) cloth, spine lettered in gilt; the gilt is characteristically oxidised or dulled on surviving copies, which is a condition trait rather than an issue point and should not be mistaken for one
• Collation 96 pp., octavo, approximately 8.5 x 5.5 inches
• Issued in a photographic dust jacket; the point collectors check is a priced jacket, with the price present at the flap and not clipped
• Offsetting to the endpapers is common and, again, is condition rather than issue

How Faber and Faber, London marked a first edition

• First printings state "First published in [Year]" (often "First published in mcmxxxx") on the copyright/verso page, with no list of later impressions
• Prior to 1968 the year was set in ROMAN NUMERALS (e.g. 'First published in mcmliv'); from 1968 onward Arabic numerals were used — a key dating tell

Full Faber and Faber, London first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the American true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The Faber and Faber, London, 1957 edition is the true first and precedes all others — Osborne's first published play, and the founding text of the 'Angry Young Men' moment. The first American edition, Criterion Books, New York, 1957, is a same-year issue but not a rival first: it was printed in Great Britain from the Faber sheets and issued with the American publisher's imprint, so it is textually identical to and derived from the London edition. Both are collected and should be named, but the Criterion issue is properly described as the first American edition from British sheets, never as a co-first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Reprint and later-issue tells are unusually clean for this title: any impression statement on the Faber imprint page ('Second Impression' and onward) rules out the first. The Criterion Books, New York, 1957 issue is distinguished by the American imprint on British sheets. Faber paperback and acting-edition texts, and the tie-in printings following the 1959 Tony Richardson film with Richard Burton and Mary Ure, are all later. No dedicated book-club edition was documented in the sources consulted.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Look Back in Anger: A Play in Three Acts a first edition?

A first edition of Look Back in Anger: A Play in Three Acts by John Osborne (Faber and Faber, London) is identified by: The first impression is identified negatively, by the absence of an impression line: the imprint page carries Faber's Roman-numeral publication statement ('First published in mcmlvii by Faber and Faber Limited, 24 Russell Square, London') and nothing further, whereas later impressions add an explicit line — a copy seen in the course of this check states 'Second Impression' on that page while otherwise matching the first.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The Faber and Faber, London, 1957 edition is the true first and precedes all others — Osborne's first published play, and the founding text of the 'Angry Young Men' moment.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

Reprint and later-issue tells are unusually clean for this title: any impression statement on the Faber imprint page ('Second Impression' and onward) rules out the first. The Criterion Books, New York, 1957 issue is distinguished by the American imprint on British sheets. Faber paperback and acting-edition texts, and the tie-in printings following the 1959 Tony Richardson film with Richard Burton and Mary Ure, are all later. No dedicated book-club edition was documented in the sources consulted.

I have a first edition of Look Back in Anger: A Play in Three Acts — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.