Quartet begins new chapter after acquisition by Irish businessman and publisher Hyland

Independent publisher Quartet Books has been acquired by Irish businessman and publisher Ian Hyland, enabling it to begin a new chapter after its closure following the death of chairman Naim Attallah. 

Quartet Books was originally established in 1972, and acquired by Attallah in 1976. The publisher became known as a home for radical authors, releasing works by Helmut Newton, Brian Sewell, Sally Emerson, Michael Darlow, Barbara Bray, John Swannell, Desmond Cecil, Rupert Darwell, Amanda Prantera and Jonnah Yacoub. The company closed following Attallah’s death in February 2021.  

Hyland, the owner of Catalyst Media Group and publisher of Business & Finance, has now acquired the business and plans to relaunch titles from Quartet’s existing catalogue while signing new books. Under the newly incorporated Quartet Publishing in London and Dublin, he also hopes to expand the publisher for an international audience in the US and Ireland. 

He said: “I am honoured to be the custodian of Quartet Books which has an incredibly rich legacy as a champion of independent book publishing. I believe while respecting Quartet’s heritage we will now begin to build an exciting international independent publishing business working with new authors.” 

Hyland added: “Quartet Publishing will creatively embrace modern publishing practices in print and digital to maximise the potential for our authors, titles and reader experience. This is a very exciting time for book publishing and I look forward to working closely with our community of authors and partners to commence a new exciting chapter in Quartet’s journey.”