Jim Carrol wrote,
Those of us who have been involved for centuries started off with collections like A L Lloyd's and Vaughan Williams' 'The Penguin Book of English Folk Song', and MacColl's 'Singing Island' and Frank Purslow's selections from the Hammond and Gardiner collection 'Marrowbones', 'Foggy Dew'. 'Wanton Seed' and 'Constant Lovers'

I would add Alfred Williams, "Folk Songs of the Upper Thames" to that list.
And as others have mentioned, lots of Topic and Leader records.

We all seem to have been there. Do we really need to go through all this again?

Think I'll wait for Dereck's book. to come out.

Chas