Futura
Futura Publications was a London mass-market paperback house founded in 1973 by the British Printing Corporation, parent of Orbit, later absorbed into Little, Brown.
- Editions tracked
- 78
- First editions
- 5
- Books
- 78
- Years
- 1976 to 1991
Futura is a publisher based in Prague, founded in 1991. We track 78 editions it published between 1976 and 1991, 5 of them first editions across 78 books. Each book lists its first edition and the points that identify it.
About Futura
Futura Publications was a British mass-market paperback publisher launched in London in 1973 by the British Printing Corporation, with Anthony Cheetham as founder and managing director, to complement the hardback house Macdonald and Jane's.
Cheetham had been non-fiction editor at Sphere Books. Orbit, the science fiction and fantasy list, was founded in 1974 within the group. After Robert Maxwell's 1976 bid for the British Printing Corporation, Cheetham took charge of both Macdonald and Futura, and the two operated together as Macdonald Futura; Colleen McCullough's The Thorn Birds (1977) was the combined firm's biggest success. Cheetham later co-founded Century Publishing.
In April 1989 Macdonald bought Sphere Books, folding Sphere's general fiction and non-fiction into Futura's list and its science fiction into Orbit; the Sphere name was retired in 1990. In 1992 Little, Brown, then part of Time Warner, bought Macdonald from Maxwell Communication Corporation, and the business became the core of the Little, Brown Book Group in London. Hachette bought Little, Brown from Time Warner in 2006, and Orbit and Sphere continue as Hachette imprints.
We have not yet written the guide to Futura's first-edition conventions. Until we do, check each book's own page: we list its points where we know them. Know how Futura marked its firsts? Tell us.
Authors
Published by Futura
Frequently asked questions
How many Futura books does MyVolumes track?
We track 78 editions published by Futura, 5 of them first editions, across 78 books.
Where these facts come from
- Anthony Cheetham (publisher), Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- Orbit Books, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- Sphere Books, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- Little, Brown Book Group, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
Every fact on this page was checked against the sources listed. Checked 17 October 2026. Reviewed by Harriet Ellis; read how we check facts.