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Thirteen letters, 1957-1967 from Vernon Watkins to his wife, his mother and his sister, reflecting the poet's family and public life (ff. 1-25). Also included are 30 letters of the same nature, 1938-1967, addressed to Vernon Watkins from various correspondents, including poet Charles Causley, 1962-1967 (ff. 26-32), lifelong friend Eric V. Falk, [1938]-1963 (ff. 35-47), and wife, Gwen, 1945-1947 (ff. 59-66). The correspondence includes a photograph of Vernon, Gwen and Rhiannon Watkins, [1945] (f. 65).
The file also includes 34 letters and cards, 1965 and 1967-2004, addressed to Gwen Watkins from various correspondents, including Roy Fuller, 1976 (f. 74), Michael Hamburger, 1972-2004 (ff. 75-78), John Heath-Stubbs, 1998 (f. 79), Andrew Motion, 1987 (f. 81), Leslie Norris, 1974-1980 (ff. 82-86), Peter Redgrove, 1977 (f. 88), and David Wright, 1971-1988 (ff. 101-106). Most of these letters relate to Vernon Watkins's poetry.

Eighty letters, 1939-1966, to John Davenport, literary critic and friend of Dylan Thomas, much of the correspondence relating to literary matters (ff. 1-91). There are references to Thomas throughout, including detailed (and contrasting) accounts, by John Malcolm Brinnin (ff. 12-13) and George Reavey (ff. 71-72 verso), of events surrounding his death.
The correspondents include Kingsley Amis, 1955-1965 (ff. 1-6), John Malcolm Brinnin, 1952-1953 (ff. 11-13), Walford Davies, 1963-1965 (ff. 16-23), Constantine FitzGibbon, 1950-1966 (ff. 27-52), Glyn Jones, March-April 1965 (ff. 57-59), T. H. Jones, 9 November 1961 (f. 60), George Reavey, [November 1953] (ff. 71-72), Roger Roughton, 1939-1940 (ff. 73-80), Caitlin Thomas, 1947-[?1952] (ff. 81-85, including a postcard also signed by Dylan Thomas), and Vernon Watkins, 1956-1965 (ff. 86-90). Also included are further papers relating to Dylan Thomas, comprising manuscript notes by Davenport, [1956x1966] (ff. 92-100); a postcard, [?1950], to Thomas from Jack Lindsay in Prague (f. 101); a typescript, 10 November 1953, of a radio obituary to Thomas by Davenport (ff. 102-104); a typescript article, [mid-1950s], on Thomas by Davenport (ff. 105-114); and press cuttings, 1954-1965 (ff. 115-121). A typescript table of contents is ff. i-iii. Three of the Kingsley Amis letters (ff. 1, 2, 4) are published in The Letters of Kingsley Amis, ed. by Zachary Leader (London, 2000) (pp. 448-50, 464-5, 527-8).

Forty-five letters and cards, 1948-1967 (mostly 1964-1967), from Vernon Watkins to his mother, Sarah Watkins, 1962-1967 (ff. 1-71), and to his sisters, Marjorie Watkins, 1964 (ff. 72-73), and Dorothy Watkins, 1948-1967 (ff. 74-94 verso), containing mainly personal and family news.

Some fourteen letters, 1923-1950 (mostly 1923-1924), from Vernon Watkins to his schoolfriend, Eric V. Falk, chiefly concerned with life at Repton School and the poet's unhappiness after leaving, including two apparently unpublished poems (ff. 14-15); together with two further letters to Falk, 1923, one being from Graham B. Smith, history master at Repton, the 'Mr Holmes' of Christopher Isherwood's Lions and Shadows (London, 1938).