Cultural institutions in the UK are being forced not to exhibit certain historical works on the basis that copyright law is preventing their display.

Display cases at the Imperial War Museum (IWM), National Library of Scotland and University of Leeds, among others, are currently sitting empty with a note explaining that due to copyright law – which currently rules that many unpublished works from the First World War will remain in copyright until 2039 – the artefacts are unavailable for display.

An estimated 50 per cent of archival records in the UK are known as ‘orphan works’ – a term to describe when an unpublished work does not have a known rights holder. The IWM has around 1.75 million documents alone, accounting for approximately 25 per cent of the documents in its collection.

At present, UK copyright law means these letters and documents cannot be placed on display without permission from the rights holder. A campaign backed by the IWM and others is now underway with the Free Our History campaign, which is looking to change the term of copyright protection in unpublished texts to be reduced to the author’s lifetime plus 70 years, as per provisions laid out in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act (ERRA) 2013.

“During the First World War Centenary commemorations, many organisations want to make original unpublished works such as diaries and letters accessible to the public," said Diane Lees, director general for the IWM.

“We are asking everyone who cares about our history, everyone who cares about telling our collective story without restrictions, to join the campaign.”