A Tribute to Liz James

Our dear friend and Senate House Library colleague, Liz James (who tragically died 14 months ago), would undoubtedly have been in attendance at this conference, perhaps together with her beautiful part-Bengal 'daughter' Suzy.

Liz was a very kind and thoughtful person - towards people as well as towards cats, other animals, and birds. I well remember her patience and helpfulness when I first started working at SHL in 2000; frequently dazed and confused about library procedures and the whereabouts of obscure books, Liz was always ready to help.

We shared various interests; I always liked talking with her about music, especially The Fall; about cats (of course), squirrels and birds; Welsh folklore; or about the ancient / Classical world. Liz was very knowledgeable about the latter, having studied it at Masters level - but such was her modesty that it was some long while before I learned of this. Liz had a talented eye for photography, and many of us enjoyed her Instagram posts, which often portrayed her highly photogenic Suzy.

I think Liz was the first person at SHL to listen with genuine interest (rather than roll eyes and walk away hurriedly) when I would begin talking at length about Gef, the talking mongoose of the Isle of Man. Indeed, our discussions about that mischievous poltergeist mongoose helped clarify my ideas while I was writing about him. Appropriately enough, Gef, a shape-shifting 'eerie weasel', is recorded to have transformed himself into a cat on at least two occasions.

She had a wonderful and original sense of humour, was a generous and lovely person, and touched so many peoples’ lives. Like all of us, I will never forget her, and the world is a poorer place without her. I feel sure Liz is here today in spirit.

- Christopher Josiffe, SHL staff member 2000-2016 and author of Gef! The Strange Tale of an Extra-Special Talking Mongoose (Strange Attractor Press, 2017)