The Times Literary Supplement - The TLS in Literature

The TLS in Literature

The Times Literary Supplement has appeared in works of fiction. One of the most backhanded of such mentions appears in the English translation of Samuel Beckett's novel Molloy (1953), in which Molloy relates that:

... in winter, under my greatcoat, I wrapped myself in swathes of newspaper, and did not shed them until the earth awoke, for good, in April. The Times Literary Supplement was admirably adapted to this purpose, of a neverfailing toughness and impermeability. Even farts made no impression on it.

Another example is in George Orwell's Keep the Aspidistra Flying, in which the central character Gordon Comstock's collection of poetry was reviewed by the "Times Lit. Supp.".