For many years Max Tyler was the historian and archivist of the British Music Hall Society. He wrote regularly for 'The Stage' and 'The Call Boy' (the magazine of the British Music Hall Society) and was co-editor of 'Music Hall Studies'.
Max looked after the British Music Hall Society's own large archive of theatrical memorabilia but also built up his own substantial personal collection of books, ephemera, research notes, and audiovisual recordings relating to the British Music Hall tradition. The Max Tyler collection contains material spanning from the late 19th century to the early 21st century.
During his lifetime, Max was in touch with the University and made arrangements to gift his Music Hall collection to the University of Kent's Special Collections and Archives through his will. The collection contains material spanning from the late 19th century to the early 21st century. In June 2018 the University accepted the gift along with a planned financial legacy to support the work needed to make the collection accessible to a wide range of audiences, including researchers.