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Before Diana Mitford's disgrace as a social pariah, she was a
celebrated member of the Bright Young Things, moving at the centre
of 1920s and '30s London high society. She was a muse to many:
Helleu painted her, James Lees-Milne worshipped her, Evelyn Waugh
dedicated a book to her and Winston Churchill nicknamed her
'Dina-mite'. As the young wife of Bryan Guinness, heir to the
Guinness brewing empire, she lived a gilded life until fascist
leader Sir Oswald Mosley turned her head. Unpublished letters,
diaries and archives bring an unknown Diana to life, creating a
portrait of a beautiful woman whose charm and personality
enthralled all who met her, but the discourse of her life would
ultimately act as a cautionary tale. This groundbreaking biography
reveals the woman behind the myth.
Maria Callas (1923-77) was the greatest opera diva of all time.
Despite a career that remains unmatched by any prima donna, much of
her life was overshadowed by her fiery relationship with Aristotle
Onassis, who broke her heart when he left her for Jacqueline
Kennedy, and her legendary tantrums on and off the stage. However,
little is known about the woman behind the diva. She was a girl
brought up between New York and Greece, who was forced to sing by
her emotionally abusive mother and who left her family behind in
Greece for an international career. Feted by royalty and Hollywood
stars, she fought sexism to rise to the top, but there was one
thing she wanted but could not have - a happy private life. In Cast
a Diva, bestselling author Lyndsy Spence draws on previously unseen
documents to reveal the raw, tragic story of a true icon.
History has seen many women make their mark by defying the limits
set against them, stepping out of the boxes they had been put in
and forging their own path.She Who Dares is a collection of pen
portraits of ten extraordinary women who dared to defy the norm:
Mariga Guinness, Enid Lindeman, Sylvia Ashley, Joan Wyndham,
Venetia Montagu, Irene Curzon, Sylvia Brooke, Sydney Redesdale,
Hazel Lavery and Jean Massereene. They were often witnesses to or
participants in key events in the last 100 years, including
abdications, the rise of fascism and two world wars. Their lives
were dramatic and vibrant, usually involving tangled webs of
relationships, heartbreak and scandal. From influencing politics to
being accused of witchcraft, from glamorous society beauties to
nonconformist tom-boys, each of these women deserves to be
described as trailblazing.
The plot could have been inspired by Evelyn Waugh's Vile Bodies,
but unlike Waugh's novel - which parodies the era of the 'Bright
Young Things' - The Mistress of Mayfair is a real-life story of
scandal, greed, corruption and promiscuity at the heart of 1920s
and '30s high society, focusing on the wily, wilful socialite Doris
Delevingne and her doomed relationship with the gossip columnist
Valentine Browne, Viscount Castlerosse. Marrying each other in
pursuit of the finer things in life, their unlikely union was
tempestuous from the off, rocked by affairs (with a whole host of
society figures, including Cecil Beaton, Diana Mitford and Winston
Churchill, to name but a few) on both sides, and eventually
degenerated into one of London's bitterest, and most talked about,
divorce battles. In The Mistress of Mayfair, Lyndsy Spence follows
the rise and fall of their relationship, exploring their decadent
society lives in revelatory detail and offering new insight into
some of the mid-twentieth century's most prominent figures.
The six Mitford girls were blessed with beauty, wit and talent, yet
they led very distinct, cultural lives and not one sister, except
for Diana and Unity, shared the same opinion or ideology. Nancy
Mitford was the ultimate tease and her talent for mockery reformed
the publishing industry in the 1930s and ‘40s. Indeed, the
Mitford girls’ popularity provoked Jessica to label it ‘The
Mitford Industry’. As individuals they exploited their attributes
to the best of their abilities, and through difficult times they
used laughter as their remedy. Their life experiences, although
sometimes maddening, are a lesson to us all. How would the Mitford
girls cope with the pressures and turmoil of modern life? Whether
it is Pamela’s guide to throwing a jubilee party, Nancy's guide
to fashion or Diana’s tips on how to stay young, this quirky and
fact-filled book draws on rare and unpublished interviews and
information to answer that question.
The plot could have been inspired by Evelyn Waugh's Vile Bodies,
but unlike Waugh's novel - which parodies the era of the 'Bright
Young Things' - The Mistress of Mayfair is a real-life story of
scandal, greed, corruption and promiscuity at the heart of 1920s
and '30s high society, focusing on the wily, willful socialite
Doris Delevingne and her doomed relationship with the gossip
columnist Valentine Browne, Viscount Castlerosse. Marrying each
other in pursuit of the finer things in life, their unlikely union
was tempestuous from the off, rocked by affairs (with a whole host
of society figures, including Cecil Beaton, Diana Mitford and
Winston Churchill, amongst others) on both sides, and degenerated
into one of London's bitterest, and most talked about, divorce
battles. In this compelling new book, Lyndsy Spence follows the
rise and fall of their relationship, exploring their decadent
society lives in revelatory detail and offering new insight into
some of the mid twentieth century's most prominent figures.
Celebrate all things Mitford with the debut of The Mitford
Society's annual, packed with articles, features, personal
recollections, stories, interviews and the fictional Mitford themed
newspaper from Mitfords Eve. Contributors include: The Lady's
astrologer Victor Olliver; The Evelyn Waugh Society; Complete Works
of Evelyn Waugh; Meredith Whitford; David Platzer; Deanna Raybourn;
Judith Kinghorn; The Fertile Fact; Charles Twigger; Stephen
Kennedy; Debbie Catling; Rebecca McWattie; Chiara Martinelli; Meems
Ellenberg; Emma Reilly; Terence Towles Canote; Natalie Tilbury;
Mark Beynon; David Ronneburg; Willie Orr; The Amy Grimehouse; Tessa
Arlen; Benjamin Treuhaft.
MARGARET, DUCHESS OF ARGYLL was an international celebrity in her
youth, adored and observed by millions. But in 1963 the 11th Duke
of Argyll shocked the country when he alleged that his adulterous
wife had slept with over eighty men behind his back. As his
evidence, he produced a set of sexually explicit Polaroid
photographs and explosive love letters, helping to win his divorce
and affecting Margaret's life forever. On the verge of financial
destitution, she fell from grace and was abandoned by most of her
friends prior to her death in a nursing home in Pimlico in 1993. In
this meticulously researched biography Lyndsy Spence tells a tragic
story of the life and downfall of this fascinatingly complex woman,
and shows how she fell victim to a cruel husband, harsh social
mores and an unforgiving class.
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