W.H. Allen
W. H. Allen & Co. was a London publisher founded in 1835 by William Houghton Allen, later home of Target's Doctor Who novelisations, which Virgin absorbed and renamed Virgin Publishing in 1991.
- Editions tracked
- 102
- First editions
- 16
- Books
- 102
- Years
- 1880 to 1989
W.H. Allen is a publisher based in London, founded in 1835. We track 102 editions it published between 1880 and 1989, 16 of them first editions across 102 books. Each book lists its first edition and the points that identify it.
About W.H. Allen
W. H. Allen & Co. was a London bookselling and publishing house founded in 1835 by William Houghton Allen, which became part of Virgin in the late 1980s and gave way to Virgin Publishing in 1991.
The firm grew out of a series of partnerships dating from 1818, among them Parbury, Allen and Co. Its early list concentrated on works about the British colonies, and it traded from Leadenhall Street before moving to Waterloo Place.
In the twentieth century W. H. Allen ran the paperback line Target Books; Target, best known for its novelisations of Doctor Who, was published by W. H. Allen's paperback division from the mid-1970s until 1990. By 1975 the company belonged to the entertainment group Howard & Wyndham. In 1977 it bought Warner Communications' publishing division, but both acquired divisions had closed by 1979.
Virgin Books acquired W. H. Allen between 1986 and 1987 and renamed the company Virgin Publishing Ltd in 1991. Random House UK bought 90 per cent of Virgin Books in 2007, and since 2009 Virgin has been an imprint of Ebury Publishing, then part of the Random House Group.
We have not yet written the guide to W.H. Allen's first-edition conventions. Until we do, check each book's own page: we list its points where we know them. Know how W.H. Allen marked its firsts? Tell us.
Authors
Published by W.H. Allen
Frequently asked questions
How many W.H. Allen books does MyVolumes track?
We track 102 editions published by W.H. Allen, 16 of them first editions, across 102 books.
Where these facts come from
- W. H. Allen & Co., Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- W. H. Allen & Co. (Q28803186), Wikidata (wikidata.org)
- Target Books, 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.