Tag: #interview

#Article #Interview #Reviews By Lou -Celebrating the Work of Matson Taylor @matson_taylor_ @ScribnerUK @simonschusterUK #TheMiseducationOfEvieEpworth #AllAboutEvie

As part of my blog in 2023 until it reaches 5 years old in September, I will be celebrating an author or publisher every so often. I am beginning with Matson Taylor, a design historian and author with lots of wit and poignancy in his writing. He is also someone I’ve had the joy of doing Zoom with and interviewing. I have included links to previous reviews and an interview at the end of each section.

Matson Taylor burst onto the writing scene with his humorous, contemporary fiction book – The Miseducation of Evie Epworth to much praise, so much so that this debut novel had made it to the BBC Radio Book Club. His books caused quite a stir as they landed on bookshelves. He then followed up with All About Evie, again with more high praise, no mean feat I should think when authors often say that writing a second book is one of the hardest and you can only hope the first lot of readers stay with you and also builds too.
The books, set between parts of Yorkshire, London and parts of Scotland are brilliantly humorous and then catch you with poignancy as you lean about her teenage and adult life. All is well-researched and observed and fit into the eras well. So many people would be able to relate to the universal themes and to the fashions and music at the time, whether they lived through the eras or not and if not, there’s certainly plenty that people can learn from that may pique interest within the entertaining story-telling.

The Books and Interview


The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is set in 1962 and you first join her at 16 1/2. She has her music, literary and actor idols and she’s growing fast with philosophical musings about future jobs. She is also  learning lots from Mrs Pym; which is where the poignancy comes in. 
You can find out more about the book in my review, which also includes a blurb in the link: The Miseducation of Evie Epworth Review

 


All About Evie is about how her life is as an adult in 1972. The setting is between London, various parts of Yorkshire and Scotland. She had a job in London working for the BBC, which turns out disastrous, meaning she needs a different direction in life and even her love-life is poor. The situations she finds herself in brings much humour. Again, there’s poignancy with family matters.
You can find out more about the book in my review, which also includes a blurb in the link: All About Evie


The style and layout of writing is interesting in both books as the poignancy is written within what he calls Interludes. The humour is quick-witted and all of it is highly engaging with universal themes. Matson Taylor is a design historian and his passion comes across well as does his knowledge in the eras of which he writes. He also likes his writing to bring many emotions from happy to sad these two books do it with a plomb. He once said the Evie Epworth books will become a trilogy. You may need to wait because he’s another wonderful sounding book he is writing ahead of that. I once did an interview with Matson Taylor, Find out what he has to say about his books, his future plans in his writing career and how his career as a design historian aids his writing and much more in the link: Interview With Matson Taylor

#Interview #QandA By Lou with #author of Conveniently Married To A Laird By Jeanine Englert @JeanineWrites @HarlequinBooks @MillsandBoon @rararesources #RomanticFiction #HistoricalRomance #HistoricalFiction

Conveniently Married To A Laird
By Jeanine Englert
Interview/Q&A conducted by Louise (Lou) Bookmarks and Stages blog

Today I have the great pleasure to share with you, an interview with the author of Conveniently Married To A Laird – Jeanine Englert, published by Harlequin, Mills & Boon as part of the blog tour by Rachel Random Tours. Discover more about Jeanine Englert’s inspiration and more as I probe into the darker themes, history and characters within Conveniently Wed to the Laird. Find out why book she is reading, one is which I reviewed and enjoyed… First, take a look the romance oozing from the cover. Discover if all will be as it seems in the eye-catching blurb (no spoilers though). Then, you’ll be all ready for the fascinating interview I have conducted and have ready to present to you, just after the short blurb.

Conveniently Wed to the Laird

The laird’s bridal bid…

Is love too high a price to pay?

When new laird, Ewan Stewart, comes across a wife for sale at a market, he outbids everyone to rescue her. He never intended for Catriona to become his bride, but a convenient marriage could secure his clan’s future and her freedom. They agree that their arrangement must stay free of love, yet Catriona’s bravery and fire intrigue him. Can Ewan resist falling for his wife—the one rule he must not break?

Without further ado, onto the interview.

    1.  Who or what inspired you to write?

I have been writing since I was 8 years old. It was mostly poetry until I went to get my master’s degree in writing that I expanded into short stories and later novels. My first novel took me 11 years to complete and will never see the light of day, as it is horrendous. To quote Karina Gioertz: “I write because in the end it’s the only thing I don’t know how not to do.”

  1. What inspired you to write Historical Romance and set it in Scotland, showing not only a bit of the class system, but also the selling of people, in this case, a wife in the Grassmarket, whom you have Ewan Stewart coming across and how and where did you research this?

I have always loved reading historical romance. Some of my early favourite historical romance authors were Jude Deveraux, Julie Garwood, and Judith McNaught.

I fell in love with Scotland when I studied abroad in England for a semester when I was in college. One weekend in late November, we took a train to Inverness and stayed the weekend. It was a magical experience that I often draw upon when I write my books set in the Highlands.

Much of my research is done from reading books, finding historical articles or letters online, exploring maps, as well as watching modern day videos on YouTube of the places my books are set in since I can’t visit. Having digital access to so many historical documents online has really helped my process.

  1. Conveniently Wed to A Laird is darker than the title suggests, with flashbacks of losing a loved one and references to abuse from a previous husband and foster parent, how did that feel writing about such deep, dark topics and did you do anything after writing them to be in the next moment of your life outside writing?

I think I am naturally drawn to write about these topics based on my original desire and hope to be a social worker and the experiences I had during internships working with survivors of abuse. I suppose I don’t even think of them as dark or deep, but merely part of our society.

I also tend to write in the early hours of the morning before I go to work, so it is quite easy to jump back into my day. As a teacher, I am always busy, on the move, and in the moment when I am at school.

  1. The characters Ewan Stewart and Catriona marry out of convenience to save the Stewart clan, before their romance evolves. Do you think this was commonplace and what inspired you to take this particular angle?

Marriage of convenience is such a uniquely historical trope that I am often drawn to it. The idea of marrying someone out of necessity or convenience rather than love has always interested me. And while I don’t think such marriages were entirely commonplace at the time, I do believe they were at times necessary for both parties involved. I also believe it served Ewan and Catriona’s characters well as they were both disappointed by their past experiences with love and reluctant to the idea of marriage.

  1. What’s next for you, in terms of writing?

I’m currently editing book 1 in The Secrets of Clan Cameron series for Harlequin/Mills & Boon which is titled A Laird without a Past. It will be out in late July of 2023. I am also starting to draft book 2 in that same series.

  1. Are you reading anything at the moment and if so, what?

I just finished Lenora Worth’s Deadly Holiday Reunion as I always love a good suspense, and I’ll be starting The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston next.

 

#Interview By Lou with Matson Taylor – author of The Miseducation of Evie Epworth and All About Evie @matson_taylor_ @ScribnerUK @simonschusterUK #EvieEpworth #TheMiseducationOfEvieEpworth #AllAboutEvie #1960s #1970s

Interview with Author – Matson Taylor
Conducted By Louise Cannon (Lou)

Thanks very much to author of The Miseducation of Evie Epworth and All About Evie – Matson Taylor for agreeing to being interviewed. Within the interview , discover who inspires him to write and why he chose a particular timeline, his other job and what he is writing next and more…

 

 

 


The Miseducation of Evie Epworth was bestselling in both the Radio 2 Book Club and  Richard And Judy Book Club. 

Set in Yorkshire and London between the 1960’s and 1970’s. There is humour and poignancy to be had in both books. 

Matson Taylor and his creation of Evie Epworth hit the bookshelves and caused quite a stir with witty and charming writing in both books

So, without further ado, here is the interview:

1. What or who inspired you to write?

Many things! I’ve always been a reader and just about every book I’ve ever read has fed into me wanting to be a writer. I think reading Kate Atkinson’s books, in particular, drew me to writing – I love the way she writes – there’s a real sense of fun but at the same time every sentence is beautiful – tuned and balanced to perfection. I wanted to see if I could write a book that combines humour with moments of restrained lyricism just like Kate Atkinson’s. Other authors who inspire me and push me to write better include Virginia Woolf, Sue Townsend, Alan Bennett, and Sarah Winman.


2. The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is set in the 1960s and All About Evie, in the 1970s, what inspired this to be your timeline?

I’m a design historian and -like all historians- talk a lot about decades. I realised that quite a few of my students see decades as monolithic blocks of 10 years with everything staying the same until, on the 1st of January at the start of the next decade, everything changed. It’s not like this of course! Decades take a few years to ‘grow up’ – they need time to shake off the previous decade and develop a character of their own. So I thought I’d write a novel about the ‘coming of age’ of a decade and combine it with the coming of age of a young woman (Evie). I chose the 1960s because everyone feels like they know the 60s – we’re all children of the 60s and very aware of the all the music, fashion, films etc of the decade. And then in the second book I wanted to look at the the end of the 60s and the start of what comes next – and 1972 is really when the sixties ended! It’s the death of the idealism of the 1960s – quite a sad messy time… The new decade wasn’t quite sure where it wanted to go and it’s only really when the new generation came of age that the seventies arrived in all its glam, colourful, glittery glory.

3. The series could have gone either way – humorous as it is now or focusing on the more serious with Mrs Pym, was the humour and balance between the two intentional?

I wanted to write a funny book about serious things and combining the humour with emotional heft was always my intention for both books. I think books need both in order to make them balanced and enjoyable. I’ve had lots of wonderful compliments about how funny the books are but there’s also some pretty dark themes in there too: grief, death, guilt, the importance of liberalism and tolerance… People often tell me they laughed out loud AND cried when reading the books – and that’s just what I want!

4. All About Evie is still as humorous as the first, but shows a bit more fashion of the 1970s. How much did your job as a design historian at the V&A influence you in your writing of this?

It’s a huge influence. My job as a design historian has given me the tools to research material culture – when I started writing the first novel I was very confident writing about ’things’  (the fashion, food, interiors etc) because it’s my day job – I was much less confident about making up a story! The museum’s a great resource too – in fact, in the final chapter of the 1st book, Evie is wearing a Mary Quant dress – initially it was a generic 60s dress but, while I was writing, the V&A had a Mary Quant exhibition so Evie ended up wearing one of the 1962 dresses from the exhibition.

5. You’ve written about the 60s and 70s, so can readers expect more of Evie Epworth to be written, perhaps in the 80s and beyond?

Absolutely! I always planned the Evie story as a trilogy so there’s a final Evie book set in 1982. But before I get to that, I’m writing a stand-alone book (ie non Evie) – it’s set in the mid-to-late 70s in Rome and is the story of two broken people brought together by the universe to fix each other…
 

#Interview with Val Penny Conducted By Louise @valeriepenny @zooloosBT #Interview #CrimeFiction #ScottishNoir #BlogTour #HuntersChase

Interview with Val Penny

Recently I caught up with Val Penny and interviewed her on her book – Hunter’s Chase. It’s a series of books set in Edinburgh. So I asked her about this, getting into the mindset of her characters and the dark humour. First a little bit about the book and the link to my review, which I wrote previously, can also be found after the interview.

“Thank you for inviting me to your blog today, Louise. It is always nice to speak to you.

Hunter by name – Hunter by nature: DI Hunter Wilson will not rest until Edinburgh is safe is the byline.

D.I. Hunter Wilson needs to find the source of cocaine flooding the city, but then a corpse is discovered, he also becomes focused on this. Then there is a second murder and a young women’s life hanging in the balance as the son of his nemesis joins the team.

Now onto the questions.

1. What inspired you to write crime fiction and set your series in Edinburgh?

I have to admit that the type of book that I enjoy most to read is crime fiction, so I decided to write what I like to read. Before I set the DI Wilson series in Edinburgh, I did debate making up my own town like Peter Robinson did for his crime series. However I know Edinburgh well and it is a city many people have visited or want to visit. It is also quite a small city, but cosmopolitan and it has everything I needed, so Edinburgh is Hunter’s home.

2. The book has some dark humour within it as well as some pretty brutal murders, how did you manage to combine the two without it sounding forced and was it intentional to combine both and yet keep a gritty feel?

Aah, yes, well that was intentional. I enjoy humour and especially dark humour. I think you need to lift a crime novel from darkness.

3. How do you get into the mindset of the characters to write both the murderer and the police solving the case?

I drafted biographies for each of my main characters and that allowed me to get to know them before I started to write the novel.

4. Did you have to research for the procedures? If so, how easy or difficult was this and then to translate it into a work of fiction?

Yes, I am lucky to have a friend who is a retired detective chief inspector and another who is a CSI. They were most helpful in guiding me in the right direction. Of course, I may have strayed for dramatic effect and any errors are mine.

5. There are several books in the series now, do you have more planned or what’s next in your writing career?

I certainly plan to write more in the Hunter series. I have a second series now where Jane Renwick is the main character. I am writing the second book in that series now.

6. You write a blog and keep a social media presence as well as books. From an author’s perspective how does this benefit both you and your readers?

I like to keep in touch with my readers and to hear from them through my website, blog and social media. It is always lovely to keep in touch.

7. What genres do you like to read and what are you reading just now?

I read many crime fiction novels, but also women’s fiction. I have just finished reading My Extra Life By Maggie Corbett, a non-fiction book about her 20 year career as a tv and film extra. Now I am reading a historical fiction novel, There is Mo Going Home By Madalyn Morgan.

Link to the review I wrote previously: Hunters Chase Review

An #Interview By Lou with Singer Nigel Craft @CraftyNigel covering #Music and #Books #Theatre #Musicals #Ballads #Songs #StephenKing #DeanKoontz #SingersWhoReadBooks #SingerReadingBooks

Music notes clip art free clipart images 5Firstly, thank you to Nigel Craft for allowing me to interview you about the music you create, who you like to listen to, the books you read and your social media platforms.  Discover upbeat and interesting answers, as well as links to where you can find Nigel’s music.
Delve into a bit of insight into whatCartoon stack of books clipart 2 png he produces within the interview.                      So, let’s proceed onto the first question, of which there are 7.

Free music note clipart

1. Where does your interest in music come from and what made you decide to sing and put yourself out there on You Tube and Tik-Tok, which now has many followers?

INigel pic 2’m not really sure where I got my music interest from, none of my family are musicians, but ever since I was a kid I loved music. I especially loved music from the movies and computer games and would always look at the credits to see which composer had produced the music and would always watch a movie or play a game if they had composed the music, even if it was rubbish and I guess that’s really what got me into music. The singing part didn’t really surface until I was in my 20’s really. I used to play piano and organ, but could never read music so I used to play by ear and create my own music.

 Free music notes clip art free vector for free download about

2. You sing a number of ballads and songs from musicals, which is your favourite genre of music to sing?

I love singing ballads and although I love songs from the musicals they are very hard songs to sing. I think ballads are definitely my favourites, but I do love big band as well – the Michael buble style of songs really ,but I will try anything really.
I’m currently finishing off a rock version of my original song which is called “A Love So Strong” which is very different to the ballad version I have already released. I like to challenge myself and do things people that would not expect to hear from me. 

Music notes clipart free clipart images

3. You did some lockdown concerts on YouTube, what was that like knowing that it was at a time when the world was changing and people truly needed entertaining to keep going? As an artist, did it affect your work?

For me lockdown changed my life! I had been posting cover song videos for a while but I felt people needed cheering up and I ended up writing my first ever song called “ I really want a llama. “ I decided to include some funny clips to play alongside me singing and it was really popular and was entered into an online competition and that made me think that maybe I could write my own songs, after that I write a few more comedy songs. I then branched out into more serious songs reflecting what was happening in and around my life. I had always been told that I would get on better in competitions if I was able to write my own songs and since then I’ve been writing lots of songs. One of my most recent original songs called “This Is Not Goodbye”  has reached the semi finals of a major worldwide online songwriting competition, which I still can’t believe.
Going back to my childhood I use a lot of film score sounds in my songs too as I love a song with an orchestral backing.

Music notes clip art free clipart images

4. Who is your favourite singer/band of all time and why?

I have a lot of artists I like equally but one artist stands out and that is Celine Dion. She has an amazing voice and some if earlier work is incredible! She is someone I would love to see in concert but I’ve not made it any yet sadly. I also love The Carpenters , Josh Groban, Michael Buble and Tom Odell is another favourite of mine.

                                           Music notes symbols clip art free clipart images 5  Music notes symbols clip art free clipart images 5

5. What was the most recent gig you’ve attended?

Nigel pic 1I’ve been to a lot of musicals this year which I love going to and have seen shows this year including Mary Poppins, Back to the Future and The Phantom of the Opera; but the most memorable recent concert was a live concert of Jeff Wayne’s musical of War of the Worlds at the O2 in London, that is my all time favourite album and the concert was incredible. I will never forget it! On a smaller scale the last show I saw was a tribute to Karen Carpenter in Bury St Edmonds, it was such an emotional evening as it was like I was seeing a live Carpenters show. The lady singing sounded just like her it was amazing!

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6. You like to read. What is your favourite book and what are you reading just now?

The books I read would probably not be what other people would enjoy reading. I’m a big horror story fan and I’ve read a lot of books by an author called Dean Koontz who is my favourite writer. It’s one of his books which is my all time favourite, it’s called Watchers and is such an amazing story. I never thought a book could capture your emotions quite the way this book did. I was captivated from the first page to the last, and yes it is a horror story but it’s also very character driven and you really feel and care for the characters. There is only one book which comes close to matching this amazing novel and that’s Phantoms, again written by Dean Koontz. It was the first book I read of his and it absolute terrified me. Who knew a book could be so scary? 

Pet Sematary


I don’t currently have a book I’m reading at this time as I haven’t really had time recently with my songwriting etc, but I have also enjoyed Stephen Kings Pet Sematary and Bram Stokers Dracula, is another favourite of mine.

Pix for music notes border a good thread sewing cliparts

7. Where can people find your music and is it all online or do you sing in venues too?

Apart from the odd karaoke I haven’t sung live for a very long time; the area I live don’t hire solo artists like myself. That’s really why I started showcasing my singing online as I thought it was the only way I could reach audiences around the world. 

I have a You Tube channel where I upload all my videos first. I currently only have 257 subscribers but that to me is amazing but you can find my channel here:-

https://youtube.com/user/nigel20

My main place for my videos these days is tik tok ,it started slowly but is slowly growing each week ,I have nearly 5000 followers and one of my most recent cover songs has over 105,000 views which is insane. I get comments from all around the world and it really has given me the motivation to carry on. My channel is here:-

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMNfMKypC/

I’m also on instagram but that is quite a quiet channel for me but it’s another way of finding me ,And you can find me on there here:-

http://www.instagram.com/nigel_craft_uk

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#Interview By Lou with the Secretary of The Oscar Wilde Society about the society, Oscar Wilde and a new book @VanessaHeron @GylesB1 @OscarWildeUK @stephenfry #OscarWilde #OscarWildeSociety #Playwright #Theatre #Films #Books

Interview with the Secretary of The Oscar Wilde Society
– Vanessa Heron
Conducted By Louise (Lou)

Oscar Wilde, a playwright so many have heard of, created and watched his plays and films inspired by his works. I myself have enjoyed The Importance of Being Ernest in play and film. I have also learnt a lot and very much liked De Profundis, a one-man play by Simon Callow about the later part of Oscar Wilde’s life, who is said to have a passion for Oscar Wilde’s works, to name but a few.
A great opportunity presented itself after coming across the society that gave me the idea to ask Vanessa Heron, the Secretary of the Oscar Wilde Society, to interview her. Thankfully she agreed to answer my 5 questions.

There is a book about Constance Wilde’s autograph book, available soon. The interview leads to this after a bit about the Oscar Wilde Society, how it began and how Vanessa Heron became involved. You will also discover how to join the society and what the secretary’s favourite Oscar Wilde play is. I am delighted to reveal many photos, some with some very well-known people, who the society have had the good fortune and pleasure to rub shoulders with, and also the website. This isn’t a group that always sits or stands still. They go places and they do things.
Thanks first to Vanessa Heron for agreeing to the interview and for providing such fascinating answers. Without further ado, meet the society and discover that there’s more to them that meets the eye in the fascinating, insightful and sometimes humorous answers.

Vanessa Heron and the Madame Tussaud’s Oscar Wilde model at a Birthday Dinner at the Cadogan Hotel soon after Vanessa Heron - Secretary, joined the Society
Vanessa Heron – Society Secretary and the Madame Tussaud’s Oscar Wilde model
at a Birthday Dinner at the Cadogan Hotel soon after she joined.

1. How and when did the Oscar Wilde Society come into existence?

The Oscar Wilde Society was founded in September 1990, by a small group of enthusiasts for Wilde and his works, gathered in the Queensberry Room at the Cafe Royal. This was a very appropriate venue. Here Oscar often entertained his guests, including his lover ‘Bosie’ – Lord Alfred Douglas -and here Bosie’s father, the Marquess of Queensberry, objected violently to his son’s association with Wilde.

The original plan was to hold an Oscar Wilde Costume Ball, which never happened. 

The Society evolved and today we have members in the U.K., Europe, America and Canada, and as far afield as Australia and South Africa. Our members range from general readers and enthusiasts those who’ve just discovered Wilde to actors, book collectors, students, writers and academics. Anyone interested in Oscar Wilde is welcome to join. We are chatty and friendly at events if you’re lucky enough to be able to come to them, and everyone has a different interest in Oscar and his world, whether it’s his poetry, the Society plays, the picture of Dorian Gray, the fairy stories or the fashion, books and literature of the 1890s more generally.

Oscar Wilde Return to the Cadogan Hotel earlier this year. Society members and a special guest.

Oscar Wilde Return to the Cadogan Hotel earlier this year. Society members and a special guest (2)

Some members of the society.
To the right, honorary patron – Stephen Fry
The Cadogan Hotel, London.

It’s a hotel with a past and many stories to tell. It is also rather apt for a meeting place on occassion. It was quite the playground for socialites and bohemians like Oscar Wilde.

2. What sparked your interest in Oscar Wilde and how did you become involved as the Secretary?

Looking back I had read the fairy stories in a paperback from a jumble sale when I was a small child. I also envied the other English set at School who read the Importance of Being Earnest. We were reading something rather dull, and this sounded much more fun. But it was at University when I fell in love with a tall dark handsome Rupert Everett look alike who was a fan of Freddie Mercury and used to quote Oscar Wilde in the pub when he was drunk. To try to impress him, I borrowed books from the library to read and to find out more about this Oscar Wilde chap. Of course the chap, Phill turned out to be gay, but I got to read Oscar Wilde’s letters and just fell in love with that voice on the page. The letters are the nearest we will get to hearing Oscar’s voice. Whether he’s being chatty, business-like, self indulgent or charming and kind to his friends, he was a Lord of language eloquent and to the point with flowery interludes and I was hooked. I can’t recommend his letters enough. 

I found a mention of the Oscar Wilde Society in the Evening Standard in about 1994 (or it might have been 1996.) I joined straight away and my first event was an AGM at Chelsea Arts Club a couple of months later. I was welcomed by Don Mead, a perfect gentleman who’s still the Chairman and I helped him to put out chairs in the garden for the meeting. I loved the people, the chat and the atmosphere at events. I’d found my friends, indeed my people and have been involved ever since. 

Don Mead conned me into joining the committee very quickly and I ended up at various times being Secretary and Treasurer. It was joked early in the history of the Society that we had ‘an illiterate Secretary and an innumerate Treasurer. I’m saying nothing about which I was or who was meant. 

About 10 years later I was handed the job of Secretary for a second stint and Don Mead conned me yet again (in the nicest possible way) into editing Intentions, our more trivial journal. Don had decided, in his eighties, that editing both journals was a bit much and it was time for a rest so I got the job. Intentions comes out four times a year and features Society events, reviews, articles, notices of new books and a fair smattering of trivia. Basically anything Wilde which might be of interest to our members. I enjoy following up articles, blogs and people I read on Twitter and persuading them to write articles for Intentions. Choosing the pictures for the cover is one of my not so secret guilty pleasures and I’m very proud of it. It’s an excellent read if I say so myself. 

We also have an academic peer reviewed journal edited by theatre historian Robert Whelan which is published and sent out to members twice a year, and an e-newsletter with no limit on space, edited by Aaron Eames. Previous editions of The Wildean are available on Jstor, (the digital academic library) for academics, researchers and students to access. 

3. Do you have a favourite play by Oscar Wilde and why?

Intentions cover
‘Intentions’ the magazine of the  Oscar Wilde society with Paul Doust as Lady Bracknell  on the cover.

Out of the plays ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ never stales. How can you beat gossip, secret lives, bitching girls, silliness and cucumber sandwiches? I’ve seen rather a lot of productions and the script is so well written they all have something worth seeing.

 I confess, though that I have a particular liking for and   interest  in one man and one woman shows based on Wilde   characters, both real and fictional. Society Patron and friend   Neil Titley performed as Oscar in his play ‘Work is the Curse   of the Drinking Classes’ for 40 years, which was a class act   performed to the Society in a London pub years ago, and   more recently Gerard Logan performed a wonderful take on   Oscar in ’Wilde Without the Boy.’ 

Lexie Wolfe does a dramatic and sad show as Constance Wilde in ‘Mrs Oscar Wilde.’ There are also shows about the whole Wilde story including ‘Vengeance’ a recent musical about Oscar’s downfall, by John and Danielle Merrigan which will hopefully be touring again soon. There’s even a play where Lady Bracknell tells her story, written and played by Paul Doust called ‘Lady Bracknell’s Confinement, which was so entertaining I tracked down and interviewed Paul Doust, the writer and actor and made his Lady Bracknell my cover girl.

4. There is a very special book – Constance Wilde’s autograph book that you will be publishing this autumn. How did you discover this? What stand-out names and information can people expect from it? Where can people buy the book?

There are still some people who are surprised that Oscar Wilde was married, and who have only heard about his scandalous affair with Lord Alfred Douglas and his trials and imprisonment for gross indecency. But Oscar was many things apart from a lover of men, including a critic, a poet, a women’s magazine editor, and a socialist and Irish Nationalist. He was also a husband and father of two sons, Cyril and Vyvyan. 

Constance Wilde, his wife was a fascinating woman. Irish, beautiful, interested in Liberal politics, dress reform and the occult and they lived in Chelsea in the ‘House Beautiful’ in Tite Street. Constance Wilde kept a visitors book which was signed by celebrities of the day who she admired, including writers, actors such as Henry Irving, Sarah Bernhardt, artists such as Ricketts and Shannon, who drew pictures and a poem to Constance from her husband. Other signatories include Walter Pater, Robert Browning, George Meredith, James McNeill, George Grossmith, G. F. Watts, Mark Twain, Marie Corelli, John Ruskin and Vernon Lee. The book is in the British Library and we hope it will be of interest to everyone interested in the late Victorians. 

Our Society Patron, author Eleanor Fitzsimons who wrote a book called ‘Wilde’s Women’ has written about it in her usual eloquent style and I’m not a writer, I’m an art teacher, so I shall simply quote her:

‘What an absolute joy it is to have Constance Wilde’s fascinating autograph book available to us all in such a lovely, wonderfully curated edition. In his introductory essay, Dr Devon Cox does a magnificent job of illuminating and contextualizing Constance’s intriguing life, lifting her free of her husband’s orbit. She is revealed as a progressive woman with a keen interest in literature and music, and a curiosity about the occult. Anyone who is fascinated by Oscar Wilde will welcome this extensively annotated reproduction, which gives us a fascinating portal into the lives of this extraordinary couple and their vibrant circle. Comprehensive profiles of each signatory, and details of the circumstances in which they added their contributions, make it accessible to scholars and interested readers alike. A beautiful book, a wonderful gift, it breathes new life into Constance Wilde’s friendships, interests and accomplishments. An enthralling and valuable resource, it will be treasured for generations to come. ‘ 

The book will be available for pre-order on the Oscar Wilde Society website soon, and we look forward to launching it in the autumn with a special event for members. 

5. How do people join the Oscar Wilde Society and what stand-out features can people expect when they do join up?

You can join the Society on our website at https://oscarwildesociety.co.uk/membership/ Many members particularly those outside the U.K. simply read the journals and interact with us on Facebook and Twitter and you can expect a warm welcome from our membership Secretary Veronika Binoeder. Other members, including some from France, Switzerland, Belgium and even Australia come to events including our annual Birthday Dinner in London and the Summer Magdalen College Lunch, which is sold out for this year. We also have smaller scale more intimate events such authors lunches, lectures and talks and a recent visit to Bedford to look for the aesthetic ‘Patience’ teapot and to hear about aesthetic art and design from an Art historian member, Dr Anne Anderson. Members were thrilled recently to visit the ground floor flat in Tite Street which was part of Oscar and Constance Wilde’s house and to read prose and poetry in what was Oscar’s study where he wrote many of his works. We go to lovely places and do lovely things. 

Oscar Wilde The committee and our President meet a very special guest who knows her Wilde

We have delightful Society Patrons, and our President – Gyles Brandreth is both supportive and involved. If I have wetted your appetite to learn more I recommend you read ‘Oscar’ by Matthew Sturgis which is a beautifully researched biography which reads like a novel. Or of course you could join the Society. 

The committee and our President meet
a very special guest who knows her Wilde.

You can expect lots of friendly chat at events from all sorts of members and the ‘congenial appreciation of Oscar Wilde’ mentioned on the website generally extends to a pub or bar after an event for a more informal chat and a drink. We like to think Oscar Wilde would approve and we look forward to welcoming new members. 

You can contact me or any of the other committee members via our Website and I’d be delighted to answer questions from any prospective members.