# Simon Beattie

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{{Short description|British antiquarian bookseller}}
{{for|the Australian cricketer|Simon Beattie (cricketer)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2017}}
thumb|right|250px|Cover of Beattie’s Short List 2, published October 2010
'''Simon Beattie''' {{post-nominals|country=GBR|FSA|}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Mr Simon Beattie |publisher=Society of Antiquaries of London |access-date=24 April 2024 |url=https://www.sal.org.uk/our-fellows/directory/mr-simon-beattie/}}</ref> (born 5 February 1975 in [Aylesbury](/source/Aylesbury)) is a [British](/source/Great_Britain) [antiquarian bookseller](/source/antiquarian_bookseller), literary translator and music composer. He was the first British bookseller to be featured in the ''Fine Books Magazine'' series Bright Young Things;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.finebooksmagazine.com/fine-books-news/bright-young-things-simon-beattie|title=Bright Young Things: Simon Beattie &#124; Fine Books & Collections|website=www.finebooksmagazine.com|accessdate=20 January 2024}}</ref> when he became a member of the [Antiquarian Booksellers Association](/source/Antiquarian_Booksellers_Association) in 2011, the Association's newsletter described him as "a dealer to watch" (October 2011, Issue 364, p.&nbsp;15).{{cn|date=February 2024}}
 
Beattie was educated at [Aylesbury Grammar School](/source/Aylesbury_Grammar_School) and the [University of Exeter](/source/University_of_Exeter), where he took a [double first](/source/double_first) in German and Russian (1997). He subsequently earned an [MA](/source/Master_of_Arts) in [Lexicography](/source/Lexicography) (1998).  Whilst at Exeter, Beattie also held a choral scholarship at [Exeter Cathedral](/source/Exeter_Cathedral).  After brief freelance dictionary work for [Bloomsbury Publishing](/source/Bloomsbury_Publishing) (''[Encarta](/source/Encarta)® World English Dictionary'', 1999) and [Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press) (''The Oxford Russian Dictionary'', third edition, 2000), Beattie joined the London antiquarian booksellers Bernard Quaritch Ltd in 1998.

In January 2010 he set up his own independent company in [Chesham](/source/Chesham), [Buckinghamshire](/source/Buckinghamshire), specialising in European cross-cultural history.  His printed catalogues, entitled ''Short Lists'', won the catalogue category in the 2010 McNaughton Review awards,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.antalis.co.uk/news/article/10/Corporate-News/March-2011/orange/Construct-Win-The-Review-2010-Competition.aspx |title=Antalis McNaughton Construct Win The Review 2010 Competition |publisher=Antalis.co.uk |date=2011-03-16 |access-date=2011-10-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120729070911/http://www.antalis.co.uk/news/article/10/Corporate-News/March-2011/orange/Construct-Win-The-Review-2010-Competition.aspx |archive-date=29 July 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> a Gold Award at the 2011 Fresh Awards,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.freshawards.co.uk/Awards/Home/Entry/909 |title=Fresh 2016 Shortlist Catalogues – 1, 2, 3 ~ Fresh Awards ~ 2016 |access-date=30 September 2011 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304034225/http://www.freshawards.co.uk/Awards/Home/Entry/909 |url-status=dead }}</ref> two Gold Awards at the 2011 Roses Design Awards,<ref>[http://www.rosesdesignawards.com/nominations Nominations]rosesdesignawards.com {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111025171611/http://www.rosesdesignawards.com/nominations |date=25 October 2011 }}</ref> Best Publication at the 2011 Cream Awards,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://creamlondon.net/nominations|title = Domain parking page}}</ref> and a Bronze Award at the Art Directors Club, New York, 2012.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130223101702/http://www.adcglobal.org/archive/search/?year=&id=2998 Archive search] </ref>  Short List 5 won In Book at the D&AD awards in 2013,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Simon Beattie — Short List 5 {{!}} Robin Howie {{!}} Simon Beattie {{!}} D&AD Awards 2013 Pencil Winner {{!}} Catalogues & Brochures {{!}} D&AD |url=https://www.dandad.org/awards/professional/2013/graphic-design/19709/simon-beattie-short-list-5/ |access-date=2024-01-24 |website=www.dandad.org}}</ref> and a Premier Award at the 2014 ISTD Awards.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Premier - International Society of Typographic Designers |url=http://www.istd.org.uk/awards/awards-results/premier |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141012120814/http://www.istd.org.uk/awards/awards-results/premier |archive-date=2014-10-12 |website=istd.org.uk}}</ref>

On the publication of Beattie's first catalogue, [The Book Collector](/source/The_Book_Collector) wrote: 'If you have not got a copy of Beattie Short List 1, get it at once' (Autumn 2010, p.&nbsp;462).  Beattie was a 2012 winner in the Smarta 100 Awards for 'the most resourceful, original, exciting and disruptive small businesses in the UK'.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.smarta.com/smarta100/2012/simon-beattie |title=Simon Beattie - Smarta 100 Winner 2012 &#124; Smarta 100 |access-date=2012-10-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010220942/http://www.smarta.com/smarta100/2012/simon-beattie |archive-date=10 October 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>  He has taught at the York Antiquarian Book Seminar<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.yabseminar.com/ |title=Home |website=yabseminar.com}}</ref> since its inception in 2014.  It was Beattie who set in motion the worldwide strike by over 450 booksellers against [AbeBooks](/source/AbeBooks)' decision to withdraw from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Russia, and South Korea in November 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/nov/06/booksellers-protest-amazon-abebooks-withdraw-russia-south-korea|title=Booksellers unite in protest as Amazon's AbeBooks withdraws from several countries|website=[TheGuardian.com](/source/TheGuardian.com)|date=6 November 2018}}</ref>
 
Beattie's new translation of [Gottfried Benn](/source/Gottfried_Benn)'s shocking first poem ''[Morgue](/source/Morgue_and_Other_Poems)'' was published in 2018.  He has also translated [Rainer Maria Rilke](/source/Rainer_Maria_Rilke) and [Anna Akhmatova](/source/Anna_Akhmatova).  His translation of the novel ''At the Edge of the Night''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hesperuspress.com/|title=hesperuspress.com|date=28 November 2023|website=hesperuspress.com|accessdate=20 January 2024}}</ref> by the German writer [Friedo Lampe](/source/Friedo_Lampe) was published by [Hesperus Press](/source/Hesperus_Press) in 2019.

Beattie also composes choral music.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://soundcloud.com/simon-42-1|title=Simon Beattie|website=SoundCloud|accessdate=20 January 2024}}</ref>  His setting of ''Advent Calendar'', a poem by [Rowan Williams](/source/Rowan_Williams), was broadcast on [BBC Radio 3](/source/BBC_Radio_3) as part of the 2008 Advent carol service from [St John's College, Cambridge](/source/St_John's_College%2C_Cambridge).  It has since been performed on both sides of the Atlantic.  A more recent piece, ''The Angel and the Unicorn'', setting a poem by Rilke (which Beattie himself translated) on the [Annunciation](/source/Annunciation), was premiered by the Choir of [Selwyn College, Cambridge](/source/Selwyn_College%2C_Cambridge) in 2020.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211208/hFed7Jaw7g4 Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20201206193305/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFed7Jaw7g4 Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite AV media| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFed7Jaw7g4| title = SIMON BEATTIE The Angel and the Unicorn | website=[YouTube](/source/YouTube)}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==See also==
* [Book trade in the United Kingdom](/source/Book_trade_in_the_United_Kingdom)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.simonbeattie.co.uk Official website]
* [https://soundcloud.com/simon-42-1 SoundCloud page]

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beattie, Simon}}
Category:1975 births
Category:Living people
Category:Alumni of the University of Exeter
Category:Antiquarian booksellers
Category:British booksellers
Category:English booksellers
Category:English composers
Category:Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London
Category:People from Aylesbury
Category:People from Chesham

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Simon Beattie](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Beattie) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Beattie?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.