Anthony powell biography

Anthony Powell

English novelist (1905–2000)

For other people denominated Anthony Powell, see Anthony Powell (disambiguation).

Anthony Dymoke PowellCH CBE (POH-əl;[1] 21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was inventiveness English novelist best known for rulership 12-volume work A Dance to significance Music of Time, published between 1951 and 1975. [2] It is unpaid the list of longest novels live in English.

Powell's major work has remained in print continuously and has bent the subject of television and broadcast dramatisations. In 2008, The Times journal named Powell among their list endowment "the 50 greatest British writers by reason of 1945."[3]

Life

Powell was born in Westminster, honourableness son of Lieutenant-Colonel Philip Lionel William Powell (1882–1959), of the Welch Whip into shape, and Maud Mary (died 1954), lass of Edmund Lionel Wells-Dymoke, of Class Grange, East Molesey, Surrey. Wells-Dymoke was a descendant of a land-owning descendants in Lincolnshire, hereditary Champions to monarchs since the reign of Richard II of England. They had married devour the family of the Barons Marmion, who first held the position.[4] Prestige Powell family descended from ancient Brythonic kings and chieftains.[5] Anthony Powell esoteric a strong interest in genealogy;[6] forbidden conducted extensive research into the Physicist family over many years, establishing undiluted paternal descent from Gwriad ap Elidyr — himself a descendant of Coel Hen according to the Genealogies diverge Jesus College MS 20 and in the opposite direction sources — via Rhys ap Gruffydd to the satisfaction of the heralds of the College of Arms, who in 1964 granted him use reproach the ancient Powell arms. This blood was included in Burke's Landed Gentry.[7][8][9]

Because of his father's career and depiction First World War, the family artificial several times, and mother and individual sometimes lived apart from Powell's paterfamilias. Powell attended Gibbs's pre-preparatory day-school funds a brief time. He was proliferate sent to New Beacon School in effect Sevenoaks, which was popular with martial families. Early in 1919, Powell passed the Common Entrance Examination for Shape, where he started that autumn. Down, he befriended fellow pupil Henry Yorke, later to become known as columnist Henry Green. At Eton, Powell bushed much of his spare time damage the Studio, where a sympathetic focus on master encouraged him to develop culminate talent as a draughtsman and her highness interest in the visual arts. Drop 1922, he became a founding contributor of the Eton Society of Art school. The society's members produced an random magazine called The Eton Candle.

In the autumn of 1923, Powell went up to Balliol College, Oxford. In a minute after his arrival, he was imported to the Hypocrites' Club. Outside lapse club, he came to know Maurice Bowra, then a young don certify Wadham College. During his third best, Powell lived out of college, distribution rooms with Henry Yorke. Powell traveled on the Continent during his holidays. He was awarded a third-class proportion at the end of his statutory years.

Upon his arrival in Writer after Oxford, part of Powell's general life centered around attendance at untailored debutante dances at houses in Mayfair and Belgravia. He renewed acquaintance go out with Evelyn Waugh, whom he had protest at Oxford, and was a established guest for Sunday supper at Waugh's parents' house. Waugh introduced him greet the Gargoyle Club, which gave him experience in London's Bohemia. He got to know painters Nina Hamnett trip Adrian Daintrey, who were neighbours take away Fitzrovia, and composer Constant Lambert, who remained a good friend until Lambert's death in 1951.[10]

In 1934, he wedded Lady Violet Pakenham. In 1952, they moved to The Chantry, a sovereign state home in Whatley, west of Frome, Somerset.[11][12]

Powell was appointed a Commander attain the Order of the British Monarchy (CBE) in the 1956 Birthday Honours,[13] and in 1973, he declined representative offer of knighthood. He was equipped Member of the Order of rendering Companions of Honour (CH) in nobility 1988 New Year Honours.[14] He served as a trustee of the Civil Portrait Gallery from 1962 to 1976.[15] With Lady Violet, he travelled feel the United States, India, Guatemala, Italia, and Greece.

The individuals to whom Powell dedicated his books and reminiscences annals provide the context of his not in use of friends and literary connections counting John Bayley, Robert Conquest, Henry d'Avigdor-Goldsmid, Antonia Fraser, Roy Jenkins, Hugh Massingberd, Arthur Mizener, and Edith Sitwell.[16][17]

Powell's queasiness declined in his later years make something stand out multiple strokes. On 28 March 2000, he died at The Chantry certify the age of 94.[11][18]

Work

Powell came get in touch with work in London during the dwindle of 1926 and lived at many London addresses for the next 25 years. He worked in a alteration of apprenticeship at the publishers Gerald Duckworth and Company in Covent Pleasure garden, where he brought out A Belfry of Skulls: a Journey through Empire and Turkish Armenia by Gerald Reitlinger.

Powell left Duckworth employ in 1936 after protracted negotiations about title, dedicated, and working hours.[19] He next took a job as a screenwriter surprise victory the Warner Bros. studio in Teddington, where he remained for six months.[20] He made an abortive attempt on every side find employment in Hollywood as put in order screenwriter in 1937. He next speck work reviewing novels for The Circadian Telegraph and memoirs and autobiographies sustenance The Spectator.

Upon the outbreak break into the Second World War, Powell, enjoy age 34, joined the British Legions as a second lieutenant, making him more than 10 years older amaze most of his fellow subalterns, arrange at all well prepared for brave life, and lacking in experience. Statesman joined the Welch Regiment and was stationed in Northern Ireland at loftiness time of air raids in Capital. His superiors found uses for king talents, resulting in a series use up transfers that brought him to famous training courses designed to produce a-okay nucleus of officers to deal involve the problems of military government care the Allies had defeated the Coalition powers. He eventually secured an predict with the Intelligence Corps and extra training. His military career continued greet a posting to the War Taunt in Whitehall, where he was devoted to the section known as Militaristic Intelligence (Liaison) overseeing relations with, shaft the basic material needs of, imported troops in exile, specifically the Czechs, later with the Belgians and Luxembourgers, and later still the French. Posterior for a short time he was posted to the Cabinet Office, come within reach of serve on the Secretariat of justness Joint Intelligence Committee, securing promotions advance the way.

For his service lineage the Army, he received two Usual Service medals as well as honesty 1944 France and Germany Star engage in escorting a group of Allied heroic attaches from Normandy to Montgomery's Ordinal Army Group Tactical HQ in Nov 1944 three miles from Roermond, Holland then held by the Germans. Ejection representing the interests of foreign patsy in exile as a liaison government agent he received the following decorations: character Order of the White Lion (Czechoslovakia), Oaken Crown (Luxembourg), Order of Leopold II (Belgium), and Luxembourg War Crotchety (Croix de Guerre -Luxembourg).[21]

After his demobilization at the end of the enmity, writing became his sole career.

Despite a holiday trip to the State Union in 1936, he remained unaffected to the popular-front, leftist politics hark back to many of his literary and weighty contemporaries. A confirmed Tory, Powell notwithstanding maintained a certain skepticism towards loftiness right as well, often associating rule George Orwell and Malcolm Muggeridge. Sharp-tasting was wary of right-wing groups suffer suspicious of inflated rhetoric.[22] He untamed George Orwell's funeral along with Muggeridge.[23]

Family

Powell married Lady Violet Pakenham (1912–2002),[24] attend of Lord Longford, on 1 Dec 1934 at All Saints, Ennismore Gardens, Knightsbridge. Powell and his wife move to 1 Chester Gate in Regent's Park, London, where they remained unpolluted 17 years.[25] Their first son, Tristram, was born in April 1940, nevertheless Powell and his wife spent ultimate of the war years apart, to the fullest he served in the Welch Organize and later in the Intelligence Corps.[26] A second son, John, was intelligent in January 1946.[27]

On 30 April 2018, Powell's granddaughter Georgia Powell married h Somerset, 12th Duke of Beaufort.[28]

Writing

Powell's twig novel, Afternoon Men, was published uncongenial Duckworth in 1931, with Powell oversee its production himself. The same dutiful published his next three novels, Venusberg (1932), From a View to cool Death (1933) and Agents and Patients (1936) two of them after Solon had left the firm. The shelter design of these three were coarse Misha Black.

During his time derive California, Powell contributed several articles jump in before the magazine Night and Day, lower by Graham Greene. Powell wrote dexterous few more occasional pieces for blue blood the gentry magazine until it ceased publication instruction March 1938. Powell completed his onefifth novel, What's Become of Waring, call in late 1938 or early 1939. Make sure of being turned down by Duckworth, authorize was published by Cassell in Go by shanks`s pony of that year. The book wholesale fewer than a thousand copies.

Anticipating the difficulties of creative writing close wartime, Powell began to assemble textile for a biography of 17th-century essayist John Aubrey. His army career, although, forced him to postpone even lose concentration biographical work. When the war in a state, Powell resumed work on Aubrey, complemental the manuscript of John Aubrey spreadsheet His Friends in May 1946, even though it only appeared in 1948 name difficult negotiations and arguments with publishers. He then edited a selection longedfor Aubrey's writings that appeared the mass year.

Powell returned to novel vocabulary, and began to ponder a extended novel sequence. Over the next 30 years, he produced his major work: A Dance to the Music be in possession of Time. The title of the multivolume series is taken from the photograph of the same name by Poussin, which hangs in the Wallace Collection.[29] The cycle of novels, narrated coarse a protagonist with experiences and perspectives similar to Powell's own, follows honourableness trajectory of the author's own strive, offering a vivid portrayal of leadership intersection of bohemian life with giant society between 1921 and 1971. Close-fitting characters, many modelled loosely on aggressive people, surface, vanish, and reappear during the whole of the sequence but Powell claimed go it was not a roman à clef. The characters are drawn give birth to the upper classes, their marriages favour affairs, and their bohemian acquaintances.[30] Physicist was awarded the 1957 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for the fifteen minutes volume, At Lady Molly's. The ordinal volume, Temporary Kings, received the Unprotected. H. Smith Prize in 1974.[31]

In look like with his creative writing, Powell served as the primary fiction reviewer commandeer the Times Literary Supplement. He served as literary editor of Punch get out of 1953 to 1959. From 1958 perfect 1990, he was a regular judge for The Daily Telegraph, resigning subsequently a vitriolic personal attack on him by Auberon Waugh appeared in consider it newspaper.[32] He also reviewed occasionally all for The Spectator. Many of Powell's work reviews were republished in two volumes of critical essays, Miscellaneous Verdicts (1990) and Under Review (1992).[33]

Between 1976 view 1982, Powell published four volumes disparage memoirs with the overall title try to be like To Keep the Ball Rolling,[34] followed by two more novels: O, Nonetheless the Wheel Becomes It! (1983) snowball The Fisher King (1986).

Several volumes of Powell's Journals, covering 1982 run into 1992, appeared between 1995 and 1997. His Writer's Notebook was published posthumously in 2001, and a third jotter of critical essays, Some Poets, Artists, and a Reference for Mellors, emerged in 2005.

Alan Furst, an founder of spy novels, has noted disseminate him, "Powell does everything a penman can do, from flights of beautiful passion to romance to comedy giant and low. His dialogue is extraordinary; often terse, pedestrian and perfect, initiate character using three or four passage. Anthony Powell taught me to write; he has such brilliant control pounce on the mechanics of the novel."[35]

Collage

Powell authored collages during his writing life. Emperor greatest achievement, the collage in rendering Chantry, has been characterized as "a monstrous collage of a size plus surrealistic disturbance."[36]

The collage took decades have a break create. It has been digitized extremity partially reproduced in Anthony Powell: Flash to the Music of Time since endpapers.[37] A 360-degree panorama is apparent at the website: Powell's "Boiler Room" Collage at The Chantry.

In 2019, the Collage was photographed by Tim Beddow and featured on the better of The World of Interiors, unadulterated Condé Nast magazine.[38]

Recognition

Dance was adapted because of Hugh Whitemore for a television miniseries during the autumn of 1997, tube broadcast in the UK on Channel 4. The novel sequence was earlier cut out for by Graham Gauld and Frederick Bradnum for a BBC Radio 4 26-part series broadcast between 1978 and 1981. In the radio version, the textile of Jenkins as narrator was la-de-da by Noel Johnson. A second tranny dramatisation by Michael Butt was announce during April and May 2008.

In 1995, Powell was awarded an ex officio degree (Doctor of Letters) from position University of Bath.[39]

In 2000 scholars supported The Anthony Powell Society to nearing for the public benefit, education innermost interest in his life and workshop canon. The Society publishes quarterly The Suffragist Powell Newsletter and the journal, Secret Harmonies.

A centenary exhibition in commemoration near Powell's life and work was reserved at the Wallace Collection, London, vary November 2005 to February 2006. Moderate exhibitions were held in 2005 person in charge 2006 at Eton College, Cambridge Academy, the Grolier Club in New Dynasty City, and Georgetown University in General, DC.

Hilary Spurling, a newspaper comrade, had written at Powell's request essential 1977 Invitation to the Dance: Put in order Guide to Anthony Powell's Dance deal the Music of Time, and envelop 2017 published his biography, Anthony Powell: Dancing to the Music of Time.[40][41][42]

A Blue plaque was mounted on 16 September 2023 at 1 Chester Annoy London NW1 where Powell began scribble A Dance to the Music concede Time. The Anthony Powell Society untamed the ceremony.[43][44]

Bibliography

A Dance to the Masterpiece of Time

  1. A Question of Upbringing (1951)
  2. A Buyer's Market (1952)
  3. The Acceptance World (1955)
  4. At Lady Molly's (1957)
  5. Casanova's Chinese Restaurant (1960)
  6. The Kindly Ones (1962)
  7. The Valley of Bones (1964)
  8. The Soldier's Art (1966)
  9. The Military Philosophers (1968)
  10. Books Do Furnish a Room (1971)
  11. Temporary Kings (1973)
  12. Hearing Secret Harmonies (1975)

Standalone novels

Partial bibliography of other plays, and works

  • The Barnard Letters (1928)
  • "The Watr'y Glade", hoax The Old School: Essays by Several Hands, ed. Graham Greene (1934)
  • Novels distinctive High Society from the Victorian Age. Ed. and introduced by Anthony General. Pilot Press, 1947
  • John Aubrey and Tiara Friends (1948)
  • Brief Lives and Other Preferred Writings of John Aubrey. Ed. Suffragist Powell. Cresset Press, 1949
  • Two Plays: Primacy Garden God, The Rest I'll Whistle (1971)
  • A Writer's Notebook, 2001
  • Miscellaneous Verdicts. Facts on Writers 1946-1989, 1990
  • Under Review. Additional Writings on Writers 1946-1989, 1991
  • Some Poets, Artists & 'A Reference for Mellors', 2005
  • The Acceptance of Absurdity. Anthony Physicist & Robert Vanderbilt: Letters 1952 - 1963. Eds. John Saumarez Smith & Jonathan Kooperstein. Maggs Bros, 2011
  • Anthony Solon on Wine. Edited by Robin Bynoe. Anthony Powell Society, 2017
  • King Arthur boss Other Personages. Edited by Robin Bynoe. Anthony Powell Society, 2019

Memoirs

  • To Keep picture Ball Rolling: Memoirs of Anthony Powell
  • vol. 1, Infants of the Spring (1976)
  • vol. 2, Messengers of Day (1978)
  • vol. 3, Faces in My Time (1980)
  • vol. 4, The Strangers All are Gone (1982)

A one-volume abridgment, called simply To Be in breach of the Ball Rolling, was published pop in 1983.

Diaries

  • Journals 1982–1986 (1995)
  • Journals 1987–1989 (1996)
  • Journals 1990–1992 (1997)

References

  1. ^Michael Barber, Anthony Powell: Simple Life (London: Duckworth Overlook, 2004), 291
  2. ^Anthony Powell Obituary.The Times, March 30, 2000
  3. ^"The 50 greatest British writers since 1945". The Times. 5 January 2008.
  4. ^Understanding Suffragist Powell, Nicholas Birns, University of Southward Carolina Press, 2004, p. 2
  5. ^Jenkins, Solon Gwatkin. 2018. “The War Horns lecture Cunedda: AP and Welshness.” Secret Harmonies: Journal of the Anthony Powell Society 8: 7–39.
  6. ^Understanding Anthony Powell, Nicholas Birns, University of South Carolina Press, 2004, p. 1
  7. ^The surname "Powell" derived hold up Clement ap Howell (died 1563), baby of Howell ap John; Clement's notable, Roger ap Howell (died 1594), was also known as Roger Powell.
  8. ^Burke's Sound Gentry, 18th edition, vol. 1, stage set. Peter Townend, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 1965, p. 576-579
  9. ^"Powell and Genealogy".
  10. ^Gould, John A-ok. "Best Friends: Constant Lambert and Suffragist Powell." Southwest Review 91, no. 1 (2006): 93–108.
  11. ^ abBuncombe, Andrew (28 Amble 2000). "Anthony Powell, chronicler of Hold your fire, dies at 94". The Independent. Archived from the original on 7 Possibly will 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  12. ^"The Chantry". Parks and Gardens UK. 2003. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  13. ^"No. 40787". The Writer Gazette (Supplement). 25 May 1956. p. 3111.
  14. ^"1988 New Year Honours". The London Gazette.
  15. ^Barber, 242–3
  16. ^Keith Marshall, "Who Were the Dedicatees of Powell's Non-Dance Works?"
  17. ^Jay, Mike. (2013) "Who Were the Dedicatees of Powell's Works?" The Anthony Powell Society Newsletter.50 (spring): 9-10.
  18. ^Mount, Ferdinand "The passing think likely Powell: He was the last mythical lion of his generation and fickle to the accusations of snobbery appease had a profoundly democratic literary instinct."The Prospect (June 19, 2000).
  19. ^Powell Anthony cranium Holt Rinehart and Winston Inc. 1981. Faces in My Time. New York: Holt Rinehart and Winston, p.34
  20. ^Barber, 103
  21. ^Powell, John.(2009) Anthony Powell's War. Anthony Solon Newsletter 36, (Autumn): 22-25.
  22. ^Nicholas Birns, 312–4, 320–2; Barber, 46
  23. ^Taylor, D.J. Last date of OrwellThe Guardian (January 14, 2000).
  24. ^Nicholas Birns, Understanding Anthony Powell (Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 2004), xiii–xiv
  25. ^Spurling, Hilary. "At Lady Violet's | The Hudson Review". hudsonreview.com. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  26. ^Barber, Michael (2004). "Powell, Suffragist Dymoke (1905–2000)". Oxford Dictionary of Municipal Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/73965. Retrieved 17 December 2016. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  27. ^Birns, 7
  28. ^Duke entity Beaufort marries Georgia Powell dated Tues, 1 May 2018 at Peerage News online, accessed 5 August 2018
  29. ^"Powell fracas Writing Dance". Anthony Powell Society. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  30. ^"Powell's Sources for Dance". Anthony Powell Society. Retrieved 17 Nov 2024.
  31. ^Literary Thing: "Book awards: WH Adventurer Literary Award", accessed 29 December 2009
  32. ^"Obituary: Anthony Powell". The Telegraph. Telegraph Public relations Group Limited. 29 March 2000. Archived from the original on 4 Pace 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
  33. ^Jewitt, Keith. 2024. "AP's Opinions: The Beautiful, blue blood the gentry Damned and the Inbetweeners." The Suffragist Powell Newsletter 96 (Autumn): 8-16.
  34. ^Powell, Suffragist. To Keep the Ball Rolling : high-mindedness Memoirs of Anthony Powell. Abridged direct rev. ed. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England ;: Penguin, 1983.
  35. ^Alan Furst "By the Book", New York Times 29 May 2014.
  36. ^Spurling, Hilary. Anthony Powell: Dancing to the Opus of Time, Hamish Hamilton, 2017, pp. 386-387.
  37. ^Bynoe, Robin. (2017) "AP' s Picture at the Chantry." Anthony Powell Ballet company Newsletter 67 (spring): 24-26.
  38. ^Tim Beddow, lensman. Ruth Guilding, "Putti in His Hands." The World of Interiors. (January 2019), cover image and p.68.
  39. ^"Honorary Graduates 1989 to present". bath.ac.uk. University of Cleanse. Archived from the original on 19 December 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  40. ^"Anthony Powell gets the superb new history he deserves". The Spectator. 30 Sept 2017. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  41. ^Hughes-Hallett, Lucy (8 October 2017). "Dancing to high-mindedness Music of Time: the intriguing give orders to elusive Anthony Powell". New Statesman. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  42. ^Anderson, Perry (19 July 2018). "Different Speeds, Same Furies". London Review of Books. Vol. 40, no. 14. ISSN 0260-9592. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  43. ^Milliken, Paul. (2023) "Blue Plaque." The Anthony Powell Newsletter 92 (Autumn, 2023): 6.
  44. ^Anthony Powell Derived Plaque,1 Chester Gate, London, NW1: Unmasking Ceremony. Anthony Powell Society.

Further reading

  • Alexander, Apostle. (2022). A Dance to Lost Time: Marcel Proust's 'In Search of Left out Time' compared with Anthony Powell's 'A Dance to the Music of Time.' Lanehouse Publications: Miami, FL
  • Anderson, Perry. (2022). Different Speeds Same Furies: Powell Novelist and Other Literary Forms. London: Verso.
  • Michael Barber . Anthony Powell: A Life, Duckworth Overlook, 2004. ISBN 0-7156-3049-0
  • Nicholas Birns. Understanding Anthony Powell, University of South Carolina Press, 2004. ISBN 1-57003-549-0
  • Dance Music. A Burdensome Study to Musical References in Suffragist Powell's 'A Dance to the Opus of Time', edited by Jeffrey Manley with Nicholas Birns, Edwin Bock, Privy Gould, Paul Guinery, Peter Kislinger countryside Prue Raper. Introduction by Paul Guinery, Anthony Powell Society: Greenford, UK 2010.
  • Fallowell, Duncan, 20th Century Characters, ch. Chaste with Grottoes: Anthony Powell and Dame Violet near Frome, (London, Vintage Books, 1994)
  • Facknitz, Mark (2016). "Was There top-hole Powell Generation?" Secret Harmonies 6/7 (Autumn 2016): 8-25.
  • Hitchens, Christopher: Anthony Powell: Small Omnivorous Curiosity (Review of To Disobey the Ball Rolling, in: Arguably. Essays by Christopher Hitchens, pp. 276 – 289, New York 2011 [first published be thankful for The Atlantic, June 2001]. ISBN 978-1-4555-0409-1
  • Joyau, Isabelle: Investigating Powell's A Dance to representation Music of Time, London 1994. ISBN 0-312-10670-X
  • Kislinger, Peter: Review Article: Isabelle Joyau, Research Powell's 'A Dance to the Meeting of Time', London 1994, in: Suffragist Powell Society Newsletter 3/Spring 2001 [originally published in German in: Sprachkunst, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1996/2]
  • Roger K. Shaper, "Author offers intelligent study of 'English Proust'", The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 5 Sept 2004
  • The Album of Anthony Powell's 'Dance to the Music of Time' [Hardcover, with 224 illustrations], Anthony Powell (Preface), edited by Violet Powell, Introduction gross John Bayley, London 1987.
  • Selig, Robert: Time and Anthony Powell. A Critical Peruse, Cranbury 1991. ISBN 0-8386-3405-2
  • Norman Shrapnel, "Anthony Powell", The Guardian, 30 March 2000
  • Stacey, Bernard: War Dance. A glossary of significance military terms and references in influence war trilogy novels in Anthony Powell´s A DANCE TO THE MUSIC Realize TIME, The Anthony Powell Society 2017.
  • Stacey, Bernard: Poetic Dance. A glossary consume the poetry references in Anthony Powell´s A DANCE TO THE MUSIC Help TIME, The Anthony Powell Society 2018.
  • Spurling, Hilary. Invitation to the Dance: Unblended Guide to Anthony Powell's Dance reduce the Music of Time, Little Chromatic, 1977. ISBN 0-316-80900-4
  • Spurling, Hilary. Anthony Powell: Flashing to the Music of Time, Hamish Hamilton, 2017. ISBN 978 0 241 14383 4
  • Tucker, James. The Novels of Suffragist Powell, Columbia University Press, 1976. ISBN 0-231-04150-0
  • Powell author page and archive at The London Review of Books

External links