[Nabeel]

I'm writing a study of a Creative Writing group which was started in 1947. One thread that I find really interesting is a poet who published her work in the 1970s: obviously, here, I mean real books on real paper. I'm writing a short study of her and her work. (There may have been some book reviews of her in the 1970s, but this could well be the first study ever of her.)

My question: as it's less than 50 years since her poems were published, I believe they're still covered by copyright. Under these circumstances, I am allowed to quote short extracts from her poems (say: one line here, four words there) in my study; but I cannot reproduce the whole of one of her poems. Perhaps I should add that I'm working in the UK. Have I understood the legal context correctly?

To follow the law, in order to reproduce the whole of one of her poems, I'd need to contact her Estate, and ask permission. Is this correct? (But how do I find her Estate - if it exists at all?)

On the other hand - the press which published her disappeared in the 1980s and absolutely nobody seems to remember her. Would anyone notice if I copied out one or two of her poems? On balance, I'm inclined to play it safe.

Any advice on these topics would be very welcome,

Thank you in advance,

Nabeel