A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
2135
This collection is a fascinating record of the life and career of writer Kate O’Brien, providing not only a cross-section of her literary output, but also an insight into the private world of one of Limerick’s most prolific daughters. This body of material is an extremely valuable source for researchers in Ireland and abroad. It contains many personal items such as O’Brien’s correspondence with family, friends and admirers, diaries recording appointments and other news, and material relating to her financial affairs. Her long-term relationship with artist Mary O’Neill is reflected in a number of cards and postcards exchanged between the two women from the late 1940s until the year of O’Brien’s death. Letters from José M. De Areilza, one of O’Brien’s former students in Bilbao, suggest how living and working in Spain influenced the writer. De Areilza states the following in a letter dated 26 May 1952, ‘…this year I went to London for a short trip… and found at last the famous “Mary Lavelle” which I was looking for since years ago. You can imagine with what a tremendous anxiety I went through that pages and the vivid scenes of life in “Casa-Pilar” at Cabantes, Altorno. The book is really fascinating. And for me it was still more, because a whole world which slept in my memories, for years, woke up and dreamt again as in the golden times of adolescence. Thank you, Miss Kitty, for bringing to life that dear shadows of my youth!’ (P12/1/2/2/5).
O'Brien’s diaries, dating from the early 1960s and covering just over a decade, record the writer’s daily activities, appointments, travel plans, financial dealings and occasionally more personal information such as the state of her health or mood. The collection also provides insights into O’Brien’s financial affairs. A letter to the Collector of Taxes in London dated 5 June 1963 reveals her on-going struggle to control her finances, ‘…I am not resident in the British Isles. It is my intention to live there, but since I sold my house in Ireland three and a half years ago I have been in very bad circumstances; have been living as the guest of friends and relatives in Ireland or in Spain, am unable to pay rent anywhere, and earn only pittances… I cannot afford to rent even a bed-sitting room’ (P12/1/4/2/5).
The component of O’Brien’s literary work is mostly in draft format and often contains handwritten amendments. It consists of travelogues, articles, essays and short stories, lectures, biographies, novels, and material for radio and film. Essays and short stories in draft format include ‘Singapore has fallen’ (1942), ‘On Ballycottin Strand’ (1945), ‘Old Balls MacSweeney’ (1956), ‘Boney Fidey’ (1956) and ‘Manna’ (1962). Two drafts of ‘Presentation Parlour’, the author’s reminiscences of her aunts, are contained in the collection. One of these documents reveals a selection of possible titles for the final publication including ‘Presentation Parlour’, ‘Five Aunts’ or ‘My Aunts’ (P12/2/1/4/2/1). One of the most interesting components, however, is the body of material relating to O’Brien’s last novel, ‘Constancy’, which remained incomplete at the time of her death. The collection holds both handwritten and typescript drafts of book one and two of the novel, each containing their own amendments. O’Brien’s interest in poetry is also reflected in two handwritten drafts of a poem about Haverstock Hill executed by the author in 1964.
The collection also illuminates O’Brien’s dealings with her literary agents and publishers and includes publishing contracts outlining conditions relating to copyright, royalties, publishing rights and payments, as well as financial material and correspondence. The author’s involvement with broadcasting bodies such as British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Radio Éireann and Radio Telefís Éireann (RTE) is also represented. A letter from Guy Vaesen from the Script Unit of the BBC dated 12 October 1973 refers to the script for ‘Pray for the Wanderer’, stating ‘It has not been the easiest novel in the world to dramatize and this final version is the fourth’ (P12/2/3/1/2).
Also of interest are mostly typescript drafts of articles produced by O’Brien from her home in Kent as part of the ‘Long Distance’ series for the Irish Times, addressing a variety of issues from Northern Ireland to Charles de Gaulle. There are also drafts of lectures for different audiences including the Europea degli Scrittori, Sir William Gibb School for Girls in Faversham, Canterbury College of Art, and Association of Professional and Business Women. Of additional interest is O’Brien’s involvement with educational projects such as the Catholic Youth Encyclopaedia, Irish Week in the University of Valladolid in Madrid, Spain, and the Canadian Association for Irish Studies in McGill University in Montreal, Canada.
Media coverage of Kate O’Brien includes reviews and articles relating to the author’s work dating from the 1920s to the middle of the 1980s, a scrapbook of press-cuttings from 1927 to 1934, and a number of articles on other subjects including the death of actress Katherine Cornell, the Burren in county Clare and politician Cecelia Lynch. There are also press cuttings relating to the death of O’Brien in 1974 in the Irish and British Press. Publications and other printed matter in the collection include works by Kathleen Cunningham, copies of two of O’Brien’s novels, ‘Without My Cloak’ (which contains the signature of Mary O'Neill's sister, Elizabeth Hall), and ‘Mary Lavelle’, a programme of a bullfight at Plaza de Toros de Madrid, and of the play ‘That Lady’ performed at Dipson’s Erlanger Theatre in October 1949. An essay by O’Brien entitled ‘As to University Life’ includes a handwritten note on the cover of the volume which reads ‘This may amuse you, pet – frightful misprints and all! It is causing uproar in the Governing Body of UCD – which was my hope & purpose in writing it’ (P12/4/7).
The photographic component provides a valuable record of O’Brien’s family life growing up in county Limerick, school days in Laurel Hill Convent, graduation from University College Dublin, close relationship with her sister Nance, travels to Spain and other locations, brief marriage to Gustaff Renier, literary commitments, life at The Fort in Roundstone, county Galway, move to Kent, England, and passion for cats. Some of the more memorable images in the collection include a black and white photograph of O’Brien’s mother Catherine as a beautiful young woman prior to her premature death from cancer (P12/5/1/1), two black and white images of schoolgirls from Laurel Hill Convent, some of the studio portraits of O’Brien (P12/5/2/1/1-17), and an image of O’Brien’s husband, Gustaff Renier (P12/5/1/31).
The collection also documents the sickness and subsequent death of Kate O’Brien in August 1974, and includes documentation from Canterbury Hospital relating to her personal possessions, copies of her death certificate, and correspondence between family and friends. The administration of the writer’s estate is also addressed, and significant documents include O’Brien’s last will and testament, a codicil of will, and material relating to Mary O’Neill’s dealings in her capacity as O’Brien’s Literary Executrix.
The collection has been arranged thematically into six main series. Series 1 addresses Kate O’Brien’s personal life and contains her birth and marriage certificates, passports, personal diaries and correspondence, including that relating to her financial affairs. Series 2 addresses O’Brien’s literary life, covering her literary work and dealings with literary agents, publishers and literary organisations as well as her involvement with various educational projects. Series 3 focuses on media coverage of Kate O’Brien in Irish and British newspapers, magazines and periodicals. Series 4 addresses publications and other printed matter by and concerning Kate O’Brien. The photographic component of the collection is contained in Series 5, while Series 6 addresses Kate O’Brien’s final illness and death and the administration of her estate. Within each series, documents have been sub-divided by type or source and arranged chronologically by date.
Paper documents and photographs in good condition.
All records have been retained.
Donated by Austin Hall, godson of Kate O’Brien and nephew of her long-term friend Mary O’Neill, on 27 June 2002.
No accruals are expected.
Papers arranged and described by Róisin Berry in June 2003 and revised in May 2021. The following sources were used in the compilation of the finding aid: Dalsimer, A.M., *Kate O’Brien, A Critical Study*, Dublin, 1990; Hogan, R., *Dictionary of Irish Literature*; London, 1996; Liddy, J. (ed.) & Jordan, J. (guest ed.), *The Stony Thursday Book*, no. 7; Logan, J. (ed.), *With Warmest Love, Lectures for Kate O’Brien 1984-1993*; Limerick 1994; O’Toole, M., *Portrait of the Artist as a Young Lady*, UCD Connections, no. 1, Spring/Summer, 1997, pp. 43-45; and Reynolds, L., *Kate O’Brien, A Literary Portrait*, New Jersey 1987.
Some 650 letters from Kate O’Brien to her sisters and press cuttings and other items relating to her career can be found in the O’Mara Papers (P40) in the Special Collections and Archives Department, Glucksman Library, University of Limerick. The Lorna Reynolds Papers (P74) also contain several hundred letters from Kate O’Brien and some manuscript material. Further material relating to Kate O’Brien is held at the McCormick Library of Special Collections, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA, donated by a Chicago bookseller in 1970. This includes both manuscripts and published material, consisting of novels, plays, short stories, articles, talks and letters. In addition, the National Library of Ireland holds drafts of some of Kate O’Brien’s plays and short stories with related correspondence.
Unrestricted access to all items.
Standard copyright regulations apply to all items. For photocopying or reproducing material, please consult with the staff.
The following publications to date have utilised the Kate O’Brien Papers (P12): *Kate O’Brien: A Writing Life* by Éibhear Walshe (Dublin, 2006); *Kate O’Brien and the Fiction of Identity* by Aintzane L. Mentxaka (Jefferson, NC, 2011); *The Postcolonial Traveller: Kate O’Brien and the Basques* by Aintzane L. Mentxaka (Palo Alto, CA, 2016); *Kate O’Brien and Spanish Literary Culture* by Jane Davison (Syracuse, NY, 2017); *That Limerick Lady: Exploring the Relationship Between Kate O’Brien and Her City* by Margaret O’Neill, in Deirdre Flynn and Maria Beville (eds.), *Irish Urban Fictions* (Cham, 2018); and Vol. 48, Issue 1 (May 2018) of *Irish University Review*, the entire issue of which was dedicated to Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series contains Kate O'Brien's birth and marriage certificates, passports and personal diaries and correspondence, including that relating to her financial affairs.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains copies of Kate O'Brien's birth and marriage certificates.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Four copies of birth certificate of Kathleen Louie Mary O’Brien, daughter of horse-dealer, Tom O’Brien, and Catherine O’Brien (née Thornhill), born on 3 December 1918 at Boru House, Mulgrave Street, Limerick. Outsize.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Three copies of marriage certificate of Kathleen Louie O’Brien, aged 25 years, of 36 Belsize Avenue, spinster and journalist, and daughter of Thomas O’Brien (deceased), horse dealer, and her husband, Gustaff Johannes Petrus Renier, aged 30 years, of Beulah Hall, Atkins Road, Clapham, bachelor and journalist, and son of Petrus Paulus Renier, pilot master, on 17 May 1923, from General Register Office, Somerset House, London. Outsize.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence with and mortuary cards of Kate O'Brien's family and friends.
The material is arranged into two sub-series by type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains mortuary cards of Kate O'Brien's family members and friends.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mortuary cards of family members and friends consisting of a photograph of the deceased, date of death and a prayer. Includes O’Brien’s aunts, Clare Thornhill and Margaret Mary Thornhill of Presentation Convent Limerick, and Annie McCarthy of Walker’s Hill, Fermoy, county Cork. In addition, O’Brien’s brothers, Michael and Gerry, and sister, Clare O’Brien. Also includes O’Brien’s brother-in law, Stephen O’Mara, and friend, Father Vincent Philips of The Abbey, Galway City.
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's personal correspondence with family members, friends and admirers
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mostly letters from Anna Wickham, Parliament Hill, Hamstead, London, to O’Brien, at 33 Great James Street, Bloomsbury, Hampstead, and Crown Inn, Groombridge, Kent, concerning her own literary work, and includes handwritten poetry with the following titles, ‘Curve on the Category’, (23 May 1938), ‘Lusus Naturac’, (27 May 1938), ‘Fairy Wife’, (1 June 1938), Solution in Sensation’, (6 June 1938), ‘The Brothers’, and ‘Inquest’ (21 June 1938). Also includes letter from Wickham about a dose of pneumonia, stating ‘I feel very bitter & my soul in the corner like a sick bat because you are in the country with a routine of breakfast – fresh air & friendly conversation with a pneumonia case who was only on the danger list for 2 day: I am a pneumonia case for a fortnight & no one supplies me with any routine whatsoever – but my life is one anguish of effort after another’ (17 June 1938).
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly letters from Kate O’Brien, End Farm, North Leigh, Witney, Oxon, 10 Buckingham Street, Adelphi, W.C. 2, The Fort, Roundstone, Galway, Hotel Jardin, Avila, Spain, and Strand House, Limerick, to Elizabeth and Austin Hall at Illington Hall, Thetford, Norfolk, 34 Twisden Road, London, University College Hospital and Gowe[r] Street, London, referring to Christmas gifts, Austin’s education at Oxford, property, and health matters. Includes a letter from End Farm in Oxon, noting, ‘This place is lonely, simple and pleasant. I am about 35 minutes from Oxford on an infrequent bus. It is lovely country, and the old house I am in is shabby and warm and very easy on the eye. My landlady is an angel about fires, and rough comfort generally, but she thinks hot water and washing are mainly nonsense’ (28 December 1939). In addition, a letter from Strand House thanking Elizabeth (Betty) for a received gift, stating the following: ‘“Uninspired” you say. For Heaven’s sake anything but, a most, most welcome. Thank you very, very much. A great deal of whiskey could be got for such a present – but it won’t be here, when in my sister’s house life is rather teetotal. Good for me, for a change, I’m sure’ (7 December 1973). In addition, includes letters and postcards to Betty from a number of sources including a postcard from Mary O’Neill addressed to Summerhill, Leiston, Suffolk, from Roundstone, county Galway noting, ‘I am having an absolutely marvellous time here but it is too cold to draw or paint outdoors… Kate has two cats – a black & a little female tabby which growls when it plays’ (11 December 1950).
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten document by writer, Enid Starkie, 41 Saint Giles, Oxford, England, relating to her affairs after her death, noting that the bank guarantee and all O’Brien’s I.O.U.’s to Starkie be sent to O’Brien carer of the National Bank Limited in Whitehall, London, stating ‘I desire also that the sum of the guarantee to the bank be paid to the manager of The National Bank Ltd… on behalf of Miss O’Brien. This is in addition to any other provisions I may have made in my will.’
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mostly postcards between Kate O’Brien and Mary O’Neill, from locations including Paris, Madrid, Belgium, London, Kent, Limerick and Kilkee, referring to purchase of art supplies, marking examination papers, domestic chores, Spanish theatre, accommodation and weather in Spain, and work with Radio Éireann. Includes a postcard from O’Neill in Paris addressed to the Hotel Bellerive in Zurich, stating ‘I have bought 2 sketch books up at the Luxembourg gdns… Also a nice piece of Indian red chalk. They actually sell it by the piece – they wouldn’t in England’ (19 August 1949). Also gives an account of a burglary in her flat, in a postcard from London addressed to O’Brien in New Strand House, Limerick, noting ‘My flat was burgled on Tuesday when I was out giving a class… The record player, sewing machine, mother’s clock, the nice navy blue holdall – masses of records + 3 cameras are all gone. Added to everything else they took my sheepskin lined gloves!’ (28 January 1960). Includes also a postcard from O’Brien referring to a trip to the theatre in Madrid, stating ‘Did I tell you I saw Esperando a Godot in the theatre last week? Very interesting & lively. But kept rather monotonous in [farcical] mood’ (21 May 1967). Also contains a postcard to O’Neill in London from O’Brien and the two cats, Clover and Kelly, with birthday wishes (14 August 1973).
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from José M. De Areilza, Castellana, 39, Madrid, former pupil of O’Brien’s during her time in Spain, to ‘Miss Kitty’ at Strand House, Limerick, regarding her work, noting ‘…this year I went to London for a short trip… and found at last the famous “Mary Lavelle” which I was looking for since years ago. You can imagine with what a tremendous anxiety I went through that pages and the vivid scenes of life in “Casa-Pilar” at Cabantes, Altorno. The book is really fascinating. And for me it was still more, because a whole world which slept in my memories, for years, woke up and dreamt again as in the golden times of adolescence. Thank you, Miss Kitty, for bringing to life that dear shadows of my youth!’ Also includes information on his life to date stating ‘I finished my studies… Then went into politics and got mixed in the tremendous civil war. I was condemned to death by the Reds and saved life by miracle’. Also gives an account of becoming Mayor of Bilbao, Under-secretary of industry and Ambassador in Buenes Aires, and family life.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from José M. De Areilza, Ambassador of Spain, Washington D.C., to O’Brien, Strand House, county Limerick, regarding the English language and contacting the Head of Cultural Relations Office in Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Notes ‘I am now in my sixth year as Ambassador in Washington and I have become quite familiar not only with the English language, but with the American as well, which is a different lingo altogether. In my frequent speeches around the country when I am congratulated on my good accent I always mention you as the person who not only taught me the language but also the good taste in choosing my favourite authors in your excellent literature.’ Also states the following about his home country, ‘I would love to see you again if you go to old Spain where, as you know, everyone is warmly received always, those who visit us and write about us, even if the author’s viewpoints are somewhat critical’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from José M. De Areilza, Ambassador of Spain in Paris, to O’Brien, Brussels, referring to enclosure of information for her story.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mostly postcards from two of Kate O’Brien’s sisters, Clare and May, including postcards from Clare in Le Howald, Belgium, and Kussnacht and Lucerne, Switzerland, noting the sights and accommodation. Also contains postcard from May in Killaloe, county Clare, noting that her sister, Nance, and the ‘Corbally folk’ are looking well (8 June 1961), and card from Kate O’Brien to her sister Anne, discussing the novel, *Doctor Zhivago*.
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Frieda Lurie, Moscow, to O’Brien thanking her for her letters and books, and referring to a trip to Russia by John Steinback noting ‘About those who remember you, and who are your friends… Sergei Zalygin, Helen Romanova, Ann Elistratova, Rita Rait and others were delighted to know that you are well… John Steinbeck is coming to our country in a few days… Most likely I shall be touring the country with him…’. In addition, Lurie transcribes a letter to O’Brien from writer, Sergei Zalygin, which refers to his work, stating ‘Right now I am going through a difficult period: I am beginning a new novel, one of the most complex in my experience’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Frieda Lurie, Moscow, to O’Brien referring to O’Brien’s article on her trip to Russia, her health and her friends in Russia, stating ‘Today I received the magazine with your article about your trip to our country. I was deeply touched by the warm words you said about “your interpreter”. Thank you ever so much. As for your impressions of Moscow I am afraid they don’t coincide with mine. To one who is born and brought up in this city everything is so dear and so much part of yourself that, perhaps, one can’t be objective but the fact remains – to me the Red Square and St. Basil’s are beautiful. May be it is so because our history, traditions and lives are so closely tied-up with it.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Postcard from Frieda Lurie, Moscow, to O’Brien regarding her planned trip to Russia and books from Sergei Zalygin.
Published
Card from Frieda Lurie wishing O’Brien seasonal greetings.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly letters and postcards to O’Brien from friends and admirers from Ireland, England, Poland, Russia, Spain, Canada and the United States, including literary friends, Brendan and Beatrice Behan, Willie and Nora Moloney and Antonio White. Also contains material from Rupert Hart-Davis, Pat Speakman of Montreal, Canada, Irma Hitschfield, Joseph O’Donnell of Limerick, Eleanor Kapp, Katherine Cornell, and Paul Potts of London. Includes Christmas cards from novelist, Antonio White (1967), Willie and Nora Moloney (1967) and actress Catherine Cornell or ‘Kit’. In addition, a postcard from Beatrice and Brendan Behan from New York addressed to O’Brien carer of Salkeld, 43 Morehampton Road, Donnybrook, Dublin, and signed by Brendan ‘Love to Kate, Father Fox’ (9 May 1963). Also contains a postcard addressed to 177 The Street, Boughton, Kent, from ‘Bimbo’ [Eleanor Kapp, actress] and Margaret in Siena, Italy, with brief account of their travel plans, and a letter from Sandra L. Velvick, 35 Fawe Park Road, Putney, S.W. 15, London, addressed to O’Brien in Kent, describing herself as ‘your fan!’ and accompanied by a musical composition inspired by novel *As Music and Splendour* (9 November 1967).
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's passports, diaries and address book.
The material is arranged into three sub-series by type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
This sub-series contains passports issued to Kate O'Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Irish passport issued to Kate O’Brien, signed and containing a passport number, photograph and personal details including name, profession, place and date of birth, domicile, height, colour of eyes, colour of hair, face and special peculiarities. Also includes dates of expiry and renewal, and visa stamps from various locations including Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Canada, America and Russia.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Irish passport issued to Kate O’Brien, signed and containing a passport number, photograph and personal details including name, profession, place and date of birth, domicile, height, colour of eyes, colour of hair, face and special peculiarities. Also includes dates of expiry and renewal, and visa stamps from various locations including Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Canada, America and Russia.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Irish passport issued to Kate O’Brien, signed and containing a passport number, photograph and personal details including name, profession, place and date of birth, domicile, height, colour of eyes, colour of hair, face and special peculiarities. Also includes dates of expiry and renewal, and visa stamps from various locations including Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Canada, America and Russia.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains diaries kept by Kate O'Brien of her appointments and social engagements.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, weather, travel arrangements, health matters, correspondence received and other events of the day. Notes the following on Friday 31 March, ‘Clare’s birthday. Took her to dine at “Bella Napoli’’’, her move to the Minerva club on Tuesday 18 April, and her response to Maeve McGarry’s death stating on Monday 15 May, ‘Read of M. McGarry’s death in Irish Times. Greatly distressed.’ In relation to ‘My Aunts’ she notes on Wednesday 6 September, ‘Settled with David. To accept Dwyer’s mean offer on “My Aunts”’. Also records her travels in Spain. Volume is indexed by month and contains notes at the rear. Also includes the following enclosures, a 2-pias Spanish stamp, and a newspaper clipping from a Spanish paper advertising Hotel Suizo. Includes O’Brien’s personal details at the front.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, weather, financial matters, lectures, health matters, work on the house, her cats and meetings of the International Congress of Comunitá Europea degli Scrittori. Regarding accommodation, O’Brien notes on Monday 10 February, ‘To Boughton Street to see cottage – very pleased with it’, receiving keys from a Miss Miles on Friday 15 May. Records her luck with the horses on Tuesday 19 May and day out with her sisters, ‘Lunch with May & Clare. Brought May to tea at Lady Thompson’s’ on Sunday 28 June. Notes on Thursday 26 November, ‘Evening – very good party at Princess Romanov’s, near [Faversham]. Marvellous. Very old house.’ Includes personal details at front and notes at the rear.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles and lectures, weather, domestic matters and financial matters and trip to Rome and Paris. Notes on 8 January, ‘Lecture on “Spain” at R.D.S. 3 p.m. Large crowd – very dull affair’. On 10 January records an evening in the home of Beatrice and Brendan Behan, ‘Supper at Béatrice’s – saw Blánaid Behan (aged 14 months).’ Also notes visit to Roundstone, county Galway, on 25 January, ‘To Galway & Roundstone. Staying Miss McGlynn’s – to see Mrs Connolly’. After a brief illness, O’Brien records of Kelly her cat, ‘8 am Kelly sails in, in superb form & very hungry!! Naughty little cat. Enchanted to see her. So is Clover’, on 15 August. On 27 November notes ‘Very bad news, (a) from Toronto [View], (b) from Texas. Greatly depressed – & most acutely embarrassed! Don’t know what to do. Talk with W. Moloney. Also with Mary’, and the following day states ‘After long bad night of thought, decided to write to Nance. Have done so’. Quiet sad day.’ Includes notes at the rear.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, weather, travel arrangements, lectures and articles, health matters, correspondence and domestic matters. Notes on 5 January, ‘Not feeling well – heart is troublesome’; this is followed on 17 January by a cold spell, noting ‘Freeze. Housebound. No water. Very cold’. On 21 August notes, ‘Started unpacking books in shed!! Fearful work.’ Includes O’Brien’s personal details and in addition, notes at the front and rear.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, weather, travel arrangements, domestic matters, dealings with the bank, health matters, and work with Radio Éireann and *Irish Times*. Notes on 16 February: ‘National Library. Lunch with Mary. Fairly mild weather. Unicorn Maeve Binchy & P.P. Maguire – 7.30’. On 31 March notes her first payment from the Civil List, and on 1 April ‘Received letter & Maintenance Grant cheque from Arts Council. Greatly astounded & pleased.’ Notes travels to Vigo, Santiago and Madrid in Spain, stating on 5 May, ‘Explored Vigo through succession of rainstorms. Uninteresting town. Got soaked through twice’, and on 6 May, ‘Railway journey to Santiago. 2½ hours. Absolutely lovely… did a lot of exploring. Remember the town well’. The weather continues bad during her visit to Madrid. On 20 May she records her impressions of a bullfight, ‘6 O’C. Corrida. Very high seat – too high, but good view. Wonderful faenas. El Viti (Santiago Martin) superb with both bulls… Sanchez Bejarano (alternativa) very good with 2 difficult bulls…’ Records problems with the bank, stating on 26 May, ‘No news from Bank… Very anxious indeed. Down to 12/6”. Called on Mr. Oliver. He was very kind – took a cheque for £10 & gave me 1600 odd pesetas.’ Includes some of O’Brien’s personal details, notes at the rear and an enclosed appointment card for the dentist.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles and lectures, health matters, and trip to Rome. Includes notes at rear of volume.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles and lectures, weather, travel, arrangements, domestic matters, ill health and trip to Rome. Notes on 21 March, ‘Went to Chilvers 2.30pm. Fainted on their doorstep 10.30pm. Doctor etc.’ Also notes visit from her sisters, May and Clare, stating on 2 April, ‘May & Clare left for London. Felt very sad & flat after their departure.’ Notes on 5 June ‘Shocking news of Senator Robert Kennedy’. Also makes reference to holidays in Galway, Offaly and Limerick in entry dated 13 July, which she actually notes as being an inaccurate date, ‘Picnic to the Shannon Weir at Meelick. Lovely, lazy hours by the water. On to Birr for shopping – called on Fanning’s. Goodbye to Eyrecourt.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, lectures and articles, weather, travel arrangements, health matters, Radio Éireann, and trip to counties Galway and Clare. Notes the following on 19 April, ‘Listened to “Without My Cloak” on Radio 4, B.B.C. Very good’. Includes notes and names and addresses at rear of volume.
Published
Volume with entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles and lectures, wedding in, Glasgow, other travel arrangements and health matters. Notes on 8 September, ‘Mary & Kitou back to London – 2 O’C. train. House very lonely.’ Includes notes at rear of volume.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements. Includes reference to Radio Éireann recordings at 2.30 on 25 February.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles, weather, health matters, finances and trip to France. Notes on 2 May, ‘Saw film “Women In Love” in Canterbury. Well acted. Disliked it very much’. Describes an interesting visitor, noting ‘Dr. J. Schwartz arrived 4pm – to examine my manuscripts etc. – for purchase. Very nice man, very intelligent. And we did very good business’, and notes the following day, ‘Dr. J. Schwartz… he left with large cartons at 12.30pm’. Of a visit to Paris, notes on Sunday 31 May, ‘Sung mass in Notre Dame, 11a.m. Afterwards explored all round cathedral – drank aperitifs… Lunched well in Rue Petit Pont. Walked in Luxembourg. Rested – wrote postcards, visited Louvre Gallery: Palais Royal, Café du Louvre etc.’ Includes personal details at front and other notes at rear of volume.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two volumes with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, lectures, health matters and travel arrangements. First volume refers to opening of Valladolid week in Spain on Monday 29 November with lecture on Thursday 2 December. Includes notes at rear and an enclosure of a newspaper cutting. Second volume contains one entry dated 23 February regarding a social engagement.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with small number of entries, referring to articles, appointments and social engagements, conversion to gas, travel arrangements and health matters. Notes the following on 6 January, ‘My Spanish article in Irish Times. Annoyingly cut’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with daily entries recording appointments and social engagements, articles, and trip to Montreal, Canada. Notes on 19 January, ‘Part of “Without My Cloak” on Radio Éireann. (Repeat)’. Includes notes at rear of volume and an enclosed newspaper clipping with handwritten notes.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's address book and related notes and a collection of mostly blank postcards.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Volume with names, addresses and telephone numbers of family, friends, acquaintances and other contacts. Volume is indexed alphabetically by surname and contains a number of enclosures.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mostly notes on scraps of paper containing names, addresses and telephone numbers of friends and other contacts at home and abroad, including Creation Property & Printing Limited, the International Copyright Bureau Limited, journalists from the Kent Messenger, Michael and Mollie Hardwick, Oksana Kuugeusky of Writers Union, Moscow, and Guy and Sylvia Chilver, Kent. In addition, a serviette with details of Valladolid University in Spain. Also includes invitations, letters, a telephone message in connection with the visit to Valladolid University, Spain, and a bill from Hotel Suecia, Madrid, Spain.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Collection of mostly blank postcards with reproductions of art works, depicting religious scenes, portraits, and landscapes, and also images of locations in Ireland, France, Spain, Italy and Russia. Includes portrait of O’Brien as a young girl, images of the Madonna and Child, an image of Santa Teresa De Jesus, reproductions of works by Velasquez and Goya, the Casa de los Deanes at Avila, and views of Rome, Assisi and Santiago. In addition, contains images of locations in Ireland such counties Galway, Clare and Offaly, and of Boughton, Kent. Also includes a 1916 Commemoration Souvenir postcard with an image of the first Dáil.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence and bank statements concerning property and Kate O'Brien's financial affairs.
The material is arranged into two sub-series by subject matter.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence mainly concerning Kate O'Brien's departure from Roundstone, county Galway and her attempts to purchase a property in Boughton under Blean near Faversham in Kent.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from P.A. Self, Suffolk Cottage Preservation, The Butterfly, Great Finborough, Stowmarket, Suffolk, to Kate O’Brien at Minerva Club, 28 A Brunswick Square, W.C. 1, noting particulars of a number of cottages in the area although stating ‘I think these cottages will be too far from London for you’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from [Friede] Harris, 3634 Upton Street NW, Washington DC, United States of America, to Kate O’Brien, The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, with address amended to read 24A Steele’s Road, London, NW 3, enquiring about the rental of The Fort.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from P. J. Shevlin, Road Freight Supervisor, Córas Iompair Éireann, Road Freight Section, Transport House, Dublin 1, Removal and Storage Service, to Kate O’Brien, 13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, regarding an inventory of her goods in storage. Also attached is the warehouse contract noting the package and removal of household furniture and effects amounting to half a vanload from a private residence in Galway to storage in Dublin, with an estimated warehousing charge of £1 per month and 5 shillings per £100 value per annum extra for fire insurance.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from P.J. Shevlin, Road Freight Supervisor, Córas Iompair Éireann, Road Freight Section, Transport House, Dublin 1, Removal and Storage Service, to Kate O’Brien, 13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, with invoice for outstanding sum of £42 and half a shilling and two copies of inventory of ‘Miss Kate O’Brien’s effects in store’ attached, the latter of which includes furniture, record cases, books, pictures, rugs and other material.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two letters written by Blacket Gill & Small, Solicitors, 9 Staple Inn, Holborn, London, W.C. 1, to Burrows & Company, Solicitor, 39/41 Bank street, Ashford, Kent, regarding the purchase of the Boughton property noting an offer by their client, Kate O’Brien, for £1100, subject to Burrows & Company being able to arrange a mortgage of £900 and a satisfactory report from Rentokil.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Eight letters from Blacket Gill & Small, Solicitors, 9 Staple Inn, Holborn, London, W.C. 1, to Kate O’Brien, 39 Steele’s Road, London, N.W.3, regarding the purchase of the Boughton property noting the need to find a mortgage, inspecting the roof, report by Rentokil, exchange of contracts, the deposit, death of Mrs. Miles (property owner), fire insurance, and title deeds. Letter dated 16 April notes ‘We are sorry to say that… Mrs. Miles died early today. We have, of course, exchanged Contracts so this will not affect your purchase of the cottage… Tassell & Son feel sure that the Executrices will be agreeable to your moving in on the 15th May’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains mainly correspondence and bank statements relating to Kate O'Brien's financial affairs.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Receipt from Ace Typewriting Bureau, 4a Bloomsbury Square, London, WC1, for typing manuscripts containing approximately 37,000 words.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Arthur Cox, solicitor, 58 Upper Mount Street (and 42/43 St.Stephen’s Green, Dublin), to Kate O’Brien, carer of The Manager, National Bank, 15, Whitehall, London, S.W. 1. Refers to Electricity Supply Board account whereby charges of £16.17.9 remain unpaid.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Account statement from M.K. Kendall (Travel) Limited, Travel Agents, 15 Fetter Lane, London, E.C. 4, in the name of Kate O’Brien care of The Sunday Telegraph, Fleet Street, E.C. 4, noting overdue sum of £42.10.7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Terence de Vere White, Mc Cann, White & Fitzgerald, Solicitors, 72 St. Stephen’s Green, South, Dublin, to Kate O’Brien, Minerva Club, 28a Brunswick Square, London W.C.1, regarding her financial affairs, ‘It was awfully good of you to send me your cheque so promptly. I was miserable about it because I might have anticipated and provided for it. The Bank let us deduct the scale fee of the sale and that fully discharges all your liabilities. Anything done in the past was done for love. I hear very good reports about you from various friends and am hoping that with this burden off your shoulders you will have one of your great successes’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of a letter from Kate O’Brien, 8 Mespil Flats, Sussex Road, Dublin, to The Collector of Taxes, London 46 Collection, 120 Finchley Road, London N.W.3, regarding income tax for tax year 1962 to 1963, noting ‘…as I have written to your colleagues repeatedly, I am not resident in the British Isles. It is my intention to live there, but since I sold my house in Ireland three and a half years ago I have been in very bad circumstances; have been living as the guest of friends and relatives in Ireland or in Spain, am unable to pay rent anywhere, and earn only pittances. Until my circumstances improve I am unable to take up residence in England, as I cannot afford to rent even a bed-sitting room. I use the address, 24a Steele’s Road N.W.3 – which is the flat of a friend – for correspondence… As soon as I am able to take up residence in or near London I shall naturally make income tax returns like everyone else.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Bank account statement for Kate O’Brien from The National Bank Limited, 15 Whitehall, London, S.W.1, recording date, particulars, debit, credit and balance from 3 January to 29 December 1967.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
National Bank Limited cheque from Whitehall Branch, London, made out to Millar’s Connemara Tweeds Limited for sum of £22-1-0, signed by Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Summons from Petty Sessional Division of Faversham, Kent, addressed to Kate O’Brien at 177 The Street, Boughton, Kent, regarding complaint from Rating Authority for Rural District of Swale in connection with outstanding payment of £13.42, plus £1.10 in costs amounting to £14.52, and with instruction to appear on Wednesday 20 March 1974 before the Magistrates’ Court sitting at the Guildhall, Faversham. Letter is annotated in O’Brien’s handwriting noting the following, ‘9 March, ’74. Dear Sirs, Sorry about this, but I have been ill, and away from home for a long Time. I enclose my cheque for £14.52. Kate O’Brien’. Attached to the letter is a receipt for £14.52 dated 11 March 1974.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Account statement from S. H. Webb, Commission Agent, 104a King Henry’s Road, Hampstead, N.W.3, with date, amount invested, name of horse, amount won and lost.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series includes drafts of Kate O'Brien's literary works; her research notes and membership cards for various organisations; her professional correspondence with literary agents, publishers, broadcasting bodies and literary organisations; material relating to her involvement in educational projects; and correspondence relating to her civil list pension.
The material is divided into six sub-series by type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series includes drafts of Kate O'Brien's literary works, her research notes and membership cards for various organisations.
The material is divided into ten sub-series by type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to travelogues written by Kate O'Brien.
The material is divided into two files by travelogue.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of chapter two from publication *My Ireland* which begins ‘In a long recent drive over part of County Clare I found myself wondering about Palestine’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of introduction to Kate O’Brien’s travelogue by Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, published by Virago Press Limited in 1985, which begins: ‘When in 1922 Kate O’Brien, aged twenty four, travelled to BILBAO in the northern province of VIZCAYA in Spain…’. Paginated and contains amendments.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts of articles and some printed articles written by Kate O'Brien for various newspapers.
The material is arranged into five sub-series by column or newspaper.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts and some printed versions of Kate O'Brien's articles published in the 'Long Distance' series with the *Irish Times*.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Since I came to live in Kent – nearly three years ago now – new acquaintances sometimes ask me…’. Some pagination and amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I have just returned from golden October days in Rome where – whether or not they know or like the idea – I have been representing Irish men and women of letters…’. Contains handwritten amendments with some words crossed out. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article entitled ‘Exile and detachment in Kentish pastures’, which begins: ‘Since I came to live in Kent – nearly three years ago – new acquaintances sometimes ask me…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘It is always interesting to return home after travel…’. Paginated. Also see 2/1/2/1/5.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article entitled ‘Strawberries and Plums in Abundance – But Gentle Grousing Goes On’, which begins: ‘It is always interesting to return home after travel…’. Also see 2/1/2/1/4.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘It had always seemed to me that noise is much noisier in fine weather than in bad’. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article which begins: ‘Out of the climax of the last Bank Holiday of the year we look towards autumn now…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Suddenly as I write we have entered Lent.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘There sounds like a wild buzz on all the lines…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘From a world tormented by immeasurable troubles…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘This is a bad, boring time. Everywhere you look, all round the world, long and short distance…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘February at last, thank God. I hear people cursing February…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Easter, at last; and even a few daffodils. Has ever a feast seemed so slack about turning up?’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘A week or so ago, accompanied by a friend more high-spirited than I now am…’. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘As I write it is very late on May Eve…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘From long or short distance most of the world is still looking towards Ireland…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Those of us who are fanatical lovers of South Connemara…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘When all you good citizens of Ireland are reading your Irish Times on Monday morning…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘June went out surprisingly in flames, rose-smothered; and July, even more garlanded…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘With the sun fighting hard and marvellously for our attention, not to say, our gratitude’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Lately, in spite of the many lures, disturbances and bad and good news from pleasures and palaces all round…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Glasgow’s on my mind. I have just come back from a few days there’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘One’s thoughts are nowadays very much on Northern Ireland…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘The Peace Line across Belfast is a troubling idea…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I have been thinking just no[w], as I collect my impressions for discourse with you…’. Paginated and incomplete.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Last night I had a happy experience.’ Paginated and incomplete. Contains pencil markings and also a note by Mary O’Neill on reverse of page three which reads ‘I first travelled to Spain with Kate O’Brien in 1935. From Aruna & Santiago de Compostela we made our way through Castile to Segovia, Salamanca, Avila & Toledo.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘So, in miserable weather, we slough off the old year…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘We are all, everywhere, overclouded now by Nigeria, by dead Biafra.’ Paginated. Also see 2/1/2/1/29.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article entitled ‘Human Disaster’, which begins: ‘We are all, everywhere, overclouded now by Nigeria, by dead Biafra.’ Also see 2/1/2/1/28.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Candlemas Day. The Purification of Our Lady. And then, grafted on to all that – rather oddly? – Saint Bridget.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Snowed in. Blown in. A wet and glacial wind is blowing wet snow non-stop…’. Paginated. Also see 2/1/2/1/32.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article which begins: ‘Snowed in. Blown in. A wet and glacial wind is blowing wet snow non-stop…’. Also see 2/1/2/1/31.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘The days stretch in light, and the daffodils are showing their nervous awareness that March is in control.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I am wondering these days what Swift would have to say about Pollution’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘In a drearnighted April I have just come back from registering my Council vote.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Some nights ago I was listening to Professor Stanford of Trinity College, Dublin…’. Paginated and amended in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Into our sad, increasingly distressful world summer has at least had the decency to turn up…’. Paginated. Also see 2/1/2/1/38.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed newspaper article which begins: ‘Into our sad, increasingly distressful world summer has at least had the decency to turn up…’. Also see 2/1/2/1/37.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘It is surprising how surprised people one meets round here seem to be about our impending General Election…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘This morning I had a letter from a friend who has just returned from Ireland’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I happen just now to be at not such a long distance as usual from Ireland as I generally am...’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘In terms of time I am not a very long distance from Ireland…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Being ill is not a condition with which I am familiar…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘That extraordinary Bank Strike of yours seems still in curious strength?’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I have been interested, and reassured, lately…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I listened this morning, with most of the world, I suppose, to the Requiem Mass sung for Charles de Gaulle…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘I am typing by candlelight – and my goodness, what bad light that is!’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘The long silence faded off some days ago. I mean the Postal Strike.’ Some pagination and handwritten from pages two to seven.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘We got over the Census last weekend. Nothing simpler.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘The weather here has transformed itself marvellously in the last few days…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘The other day someone in the village showed me – trailing his coat, of course – headline…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘July is heavy upon us now – less wet than poor old June…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘Two things are of burning interest to everyone over here now – (a) our holidays and (b) the Common Market…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘A gentle reader of this column of mine has reproached me, in a very kind letter…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘When you, my long-lost long distancers – or should I say, if any of you read me during next week…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘It was sad to open The Times the other morning and read an Obituary of Padraig Colum.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which begins: ‘A weekend ago I was in bed with some uncertified form of ‘Flu…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article which is missing the first page. The first paragraph of page two begins: ‘I hope to be over there in some early day of September. This time I am going to sail into Cork on the Inisfallon’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of page seven of an article, the rest of which is missing. Begins: ‘student trouble made it necessary to shut the universities before the end of term.’ Paginated and incomplete.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts of other articles by Kate O'Brien published in the *Irish Times*.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Luba Kaftannikoff’, which begins: ‘I have just heard that Luba Kaftannikoff died on the first day of this month.’ Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Tussy’, which reviews a publication *Eleanor Marx. Volume I – Family Life, 1855-1883*, by Yvonne Kapp. The article begins: ‘I wish I knew by which end to bring on all I want to say about this distinguished and engrossing book.’ Paginated and page four is missing.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains an article in the 'Did It Happen' series in the *Evening Standard*.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Sister Lucy’s Remedy’ which begins: ‘What I am about to tell you took place at home, in my father’s house….’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts and some printed versions of Kate O'Brien's articles published in the 'Creation' series.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed article entitled ‘A Window for Christmas’ which begins: ‘In winter, in the early mornings and when the night was bending down…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Religion – Then and Now’ which begins: ‘All the religions of which we have any records at all have been of great social importance…’. Paginated. Also see P12/2/1/2/4/3.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed article entitled ‘Religion – Then and Now’ which begins: ‘All the religions of which we have any record at all have been of great social importance…’. Paginated. Also see P12/2/1/2/4/2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘The Grand Canal’, which begins: ‘Someone was saying to me the other day that she doesn’t at all mind all this building high for domestic architecture…’. Entitled, dated and paginated in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘How about This Divorce Reform?’ which begins: ‘The British House of Lords has been struggling in lively fashion these last weeks with the Commons’ new Divorce Reform Bill.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘De Gaulle’, which begins: ‘I have never seen General De Gaulle, nor have I ever heard his voice save on discs or tapes.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Whenas in Silks’, and which begins: ‘By beginning to quote Herrick at you about his Julia, I may be leading possible feminine readers to expect some flattering and seductive chatter...’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Square Roots’ which begins: ‘I am being forced in these times to accept the probability that all my roots were square.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Women – so Far?’ which begins: ‘It is awful how journalists fall back again and again for copy to the tired word “women”.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Bells and Decibels’, which begins: ‘When we were kids long ago at home our sister May used to play her violin in an amateur string orchestra…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains mainly drafts of other articles by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of a printed newspaper article entitled ‘Why the Rage for French Films?’ for *The Star*, which begins: ‘Anyone wanting to go to a movie in London at present will be hard put to it to avoid going to a French movie.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article containing one handwritten page entitled ‘Now – Moscow!’ which begins: ‘We were given our choice about going from Leningrad to Moscow by plane or train…’. Contains handwritten amendments with some lines crossed out. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article on a trip to Russia, which begins: ‘I had a trip to Russia lately. I represent Ireland on the Council of the European Community of Writers…’. Contains handwritten amendments with some lines crossed out.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article for the *R.T.E. Guide*, entitled ‘Miceal MacLiammoir’, which begins: ‘Miceal MacLiammor is going to be seventy years old within the next few days.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of article entitled ‘Spain’ for *Hibernia*, which begins: ‘For years it has been unnecessary to suggest to holiday-makers that they visit Spain.’ Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a paper for G. Almansi, editor of *Twentieth Century Studies*, Elliot College, University of Kent at Canterbury, Canterbury, which begins: ‘The problem in say these last two decades of how in faction to treat sexual events troubles me no more than it has always troubled the novelist…’. Paginated and includes address at 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an article entitled ‘Ireland 8. (For John K. Clear Esq., 6 Waterloo Road, Dublin 4, Clare, Limerick) Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary’. Begins: ‘Newcomers to Ireland, after various divagations, may seek our south-western country.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains essays and short stories written by Kate O'Brien.
The material is divided into eight sub-series by title and the sub-series arranged by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains an article entitled ‘Singapore Has Fallen’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Printed article from *The Spectator* entitled ‘Singapore Has Fallen’, which begins: ‘The clock chimed four, and an elderly gentleman entered the lounge.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a draft of a short story entitled ‘On Ballycottin Strand’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a short story entitled ‘On Ballycottin Strand’, which begins: ‘“Ah, sure there it is, the bloody auld siren.” He stumbled up the garden.’ Paginated and dated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a draft of an essay entitled ‘Old Balls MacSweeney’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an essay entitled ‘Old Balls MacSweeney’, which begins: ‘We lived on the skirt of Limerick City, in a fine and large brick house.’ Paginated and records address at The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a draft of an essay entitled ‘Boney Fidey’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an essay entitled ‘Boney Fidey’, which begins ‘When we were small, my brothers and I, they used to hire a person to Look after us during the holidays.’ Paginated and dated, with address at The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts of Kate O'Brien's short story 'Manna'.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of short story entitled ‘Manna’, which begins ‘When the cousins played about the streets they had plenty of room.’ Paginated and contains amendments in ink and stamp of David Higham Associates Limited, 76 Dean Street, Soho, London, W.1.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of short story entitled ‘Manna’, which begins ‘When the cousins played about the streets they had plenty of room.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a draft of Kate O'Brien's article 'Three Russian Houses' and a related letter.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of article entitled ‘Three Russian Houses’, which begins: ‘New Moscow, Soviet Moscow, of which the old Kremlin so vigorously partakes….’. Contains handwritten amendments with some lines crossed out, and stamp which reads ‘David Higham Associates Ltd. 76, Dean Street, Soho, London, W.1‘. Paginated. Page seven is missing.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Hilton Ambler, of David Higham Associates Limited, Author’s Agents, 76 Dean Street, Soho, London, W. C.1, to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, enclosing a typescript of draft of an essay which begins: ‘New Moscow, Soviet Moscow, of which the old Kremlin so vigorously partakes…’ and is paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a draft of an essay entitled ‘Half-Forgotten’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of an essay in a notebook and prologue, which begins: ‘I do not remember that short period of my life in which I could not read…’. Contains amendments in pencil and ink. A handwritten heading on the cover reads ‘Manuscript Half-Forgotten by Kate O’Brien.’ In addition, there is a sticker with the address of Mary O’Neill at 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains untitled essays by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of an essay in a notebook which begins: ‘I do not remember the Time when I could not read.’ Contains amendment. A handwritten heading on the cover reads ‘Kate O’Brien (13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin) Radio Éireann – April 1959. (Ask Dan the exact meaning of the word Pentecost – K. Also – the gifts & the prints – 7 & 12).’ Unpaginated. Also see P12/2/1/3/7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of an essay, which begins: ‘“Do ye see that big fellah scratchin’ himself above in the corner?” said one Dublin lady to another…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts of lectures by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of a lecture entitled ‘Burial of a Poet’, which begins with quote from William Butler Yeats: ‘Much did I rage when young, Being by the world oppressed’. Some pagination.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of lecture given in Leningrad, which begins: ‘I shall be brief. The novelist’s responsibility is immense – since his intention is to be read – by millions!’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of a lecture for Comunità Europea degli Scrittori on back of agenda for the 10th meeting of council of directors, which begins ‘Hélas pour des raisons compliqués la delegation Irlandaise…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture with some handwritten notes for the Sir William Gibb School for Girls in Faversham, Kent, which begins: ‘I believe I’m to talk to you about my work. Well – as I’ve been working, earning my living, all my adult life…’. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of a lecture with some typescript inserts, entitled ‘Ireland & Avantgardisme’ which begins: ‘Etc. etc. I am honoured & glad to be here, & to know that your Association saw fit to invite me…’. Paginated and contains some amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture entitled ‘Ireland and Avant-Gardisme’ which begins: ‘Etc. etc. It’s a great honour to be here – not only to be talking to all you great people, but to find myself a part of a series…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture for Ramsgate Arts Society entitled ‘Ivan Turgenev’ which begins: ‘The subject of this talk tonight, Ivan Turgenev, was one of the greatest of all novelists…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture entitled ‘James Joyce: the Spoilt Priest’ which begins: ‘In 1933, when he was only eight years from his death, and deep lost in the flowing and overwhelming inspiration of Finnegans Wake…’. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture with some handwritten pages, entitled ‘James Joyce: the Spoilt Priest’ and begins: ‘In 1933, when he was only eight years from his death, and deep lost in the flowing and overwhelming inspiration of Finnegans Wake…’. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of a lecture in French on headed paper of Comunità Europea degli Scrittori which begins: ‘M. le President, MM. les Vice-Présidents, chers collégues – Il n’est jamais facile de parler avec precision à la fois…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture entitled ‘Young Wives’ [given in Faversham, Kent] which begins: ‘Thank you for asking me to talk to you.’ Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture for Canterbury College of Art entitled ‘James Joyce and Ulysses’, which begins: ‘You are all young, and long before any of you now there in front of me were born James Joyce was asleep in his grave…’. Paginated with amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of typescript of a lecture in English for University of Valladolid, Spain, entitled ‘The Writing of Imaginative Prose in Ireland Since 1800’ and which begins: ‘Ladies and Gentlemen, (There will be here an eloquent passage in Spanish. so as correctly to salute whatever prelates and professors, etc., may be my hosts and introducers.)’ Paginated with amendments in ink. Also see P12/2/1/4/14.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture in Spanish for University of Valladolid, Spain, entitled ‘La Prosa Imaginativa o Ficcional en Irlanda a Partir de 1800’ which begins: ‘Señoras y caballeros, Me siento sumamente honrada por la invitación de dirigírme a ustedes esta noche…’. Paginated with amendments in ink. Also see P12/2/1/4/13.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture for Association of Professional and Business Women, Canterbury, which begins: ‘Ladies, I have thought that you might like to hear some talk of Spain.’ Paginated with ink amendments.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a lecture for the Visual Arts Society, University College, Galway entitled ‘Some memories of Student Life Long Ago’, which begins: ‘It is very good of you to want me to talk to you this evening…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Loose sheets from a handwritten draft of a lecture which begins: ‘The problem in say these last two decades of how in fiction to treat sexual events troubles me no more than it has always troubled the novelist.’ Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to biographies written by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged into two sub-series by publication.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's biography *Teresa of Avila*, first published in 1951.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Galley proof (early proof of printed text) of the biography *Teresa of Avila*. Introduction begins: ‘Let no reader suppose that in the few pages here set before him he will find either the life or, miraculously trapped, the spirit of Teresa of Avila.’ Paginated with some pages missing.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's biography *Presentation Parlour*, published in 1963.
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of *Presentation Parlour*, entitled ‘My Aunts’, and the introduction begins: ‘I had five aunts. So had my brothers and sisters, the same five in name and place’. Paginated and contains number of amendments in ink and pencil. In addition, a cardboard folder with note in ink which reads ‘Topcopy’, and Kate O’Brien’s address in Dublin at 87 Mespil Flats, Sussex Road.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Ania Corless, assistant to Bruce Hunter of David Higham Associates Limited, Author’s Agent, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London W1R 4HA to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, enclosing a typescript draft of a biographical sketch entitled ‘Presentation Parlour or Five Aunts or My Aunts by Kate O’Brien’. The introduction begins: ‘I had five aunts. So had my brothers and sisters, the same five in name and place’. Paginated and contains stamp of David Higham Associates Ltd, 76 Dean Street, Soho, London W.1 on cover page, and note in pencil which reads, ‘Return to Mary O’Neill’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to novels written by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged into two sub-series by publication.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's unfinished novel, *Constancy*.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of *Constancy* in a folder including prologue and chapters one, two and three of book one, and prologue begins: ‘Catherine laid the five written postcards on the seat beside her.’ Contains amendments and pagination. Handwritten heading on the cover reads ‘Manuscript. Constancy a Novel by Kate O’Brien. Prologue. Book One Chapters I, II & III’, and contains sticker with the address of Mary O’Neill at 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of *Constancy* in a folder including prologue and chapters one, two and three of book one, and prologue begins: ‘Catherine laid the five written postcards on the seat beside her’. Handwritten heading on the cover reads ‘Constancy a Novel by Kate O’Brien. Book One Chapters I, II & III & Prologue’, and contains a sticker with the address of Mary O’Neill at 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of *Constancy* in folder including prologue and chapters one, two and three of book one, and prologue begins: ‘Catherine laid the five written postcards on the seat beside her’. Contains amendments in ink and a handwritten heading on the cover which reads ‘Constancy a Novel by Kate O’Brien. Book One Chapters I, II & III & Prologue’. In addition, there is a sticker with the address of Mary O’Neill at 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE. Paginated and contains amendments in ink and pencil.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of novel including prologue and chapters one, two and three of book one, and prologue begins: ‘Catherine laid the five written postcards on the seat beside her’. Paginated and contains amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of novel in two notebooks including chapters one, two and three of book two. The first chapter of book two begins: ‘“I’m sorry… This’ll have to do. I’ll bring you back something...”’. Contains amendments in ink. Handwritten heading on the cover of the first volume reads ‘Book 2’. One sheet of the first notebook is loose and the back cover is missing. The cover of the second volume states the following: ‘Manuscript Constancy a Novel by Kate O’Brien. Book Two Chapters I, II & III’. In addition, there is a sticker with the address of Mary O’Neill at 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's novel, *Without My Cloak*, published in 1931.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of a typescript draft of introduction to Kate O’Brien’s novel *Without My Cloak* by Desmond Hogan, which begins: ‘It has always seemed to me that there are two languages in Irish literature…’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts of poems written by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of poem which begins: ‘Lovely are the seats on Haverstock Hill.’ Also see P12/2/1/6/2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of poem which begins: ‘Lovely they are, the seats on Haverstock Hill.’ Also see P12/2/1/6/1.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's radio productions.
The material is divided into two sub-series by programme type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to the 'Between Ourselves’ Series on Radio Éireann.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a script entitled ‘Out of Store’, which begins: ‘When your earthly goods have been in store for ages and at last they arrive, in a sunburst…’. Paginated with amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of script entitled ‘Living with Cats Again’, which begins: ‘About five weeks ago I sold myself back into slavery.’ Paginated with amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of script entitled ‘Christmas and Happy New Year’, which begins ‘Well, here we are once again, plunged in those last festive and exhausting days of the exhausted old year.’ Paginated with amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of script entitled ‘Moving Back into Village Life’, which begins: ‘love has been a mover all my life. Not exactly by choice…’. Paginated with amendments in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to the radio adaptation of ‘Pray for the Wanderer’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of script for *The Monday Play*, adapted and produced by Guy Vaesen, including information regarding the studio, rehearsal, recording, transmission, editing and cast. Begins: ‘(A town in the west of Ireland is the setting for this romance of the nineteenthirties)’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Kate O'Brien's film productions.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Typescript draft of a script, *A Broken Song*, for sound-film scenario with information regarding cast, and begins: ‘Scenes: 1. A beer-garden in Munich on a summer evening.’ Title page contains sticker which reads ‘Mary Henderson from Elizabeth Marbury International Authors’ Agent 234 West 44th Street New York Room 702’. The script is contained in folder which has the following title: ‘A Broken Song Sound-Film Scenario by Kate O’Brien 37 Gordon Sq. London W.C.1’. Paginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains research notes compiled by Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
File containing mostly letters in English, French and Italian relating to the family of William Monsell, Baron of Emly, including a letter from Monsell’s father-in-law, the Comte de Martigny [30 November 1857], and a letter from Monsell to his wife Berthe (28 June 1880) to be opened on his death. Also includes information from the *Handbook of the Court, Peerage, and House of Commons* on Monsell. In addition, a cover note to Kate O’Brien [from her friend, Mary Hanley] referring to the enclosure of some letters, noting ‘I found the famous letter carefully put away in my “Emly” letter wallet. Also one written by Berthe’s father…’ (11 May 1960). The document contains the family crest of the Monsell (Monesale) family of Tervoe on the reverse.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing handwritten research notes including references to sources and notes on canals in southern Ireland and The Limerick Navigation. Also includes appointments and shopping list. Unpaginated. One page is loose.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing handwritten travel details. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing a list of references from the *Spectator* dating from 1937 to 1946. Two of pages are loose. Includes an enclosure of a page of handwritten dialogue in pencil which begins: ‘“Happy, we all say.” “Is there any hope for him?”
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing handwritten research notes for the novel *That Lady*, including references and related notes, details regarding Kate O’Brien’s financial account with her sister Nance, the structure of book three of *The Land of Spices*, and of part three of *That Lady*, and draft of an [introduction] to *That Lady*. In addition, further references to sources and financial calculations are contained at the back of the book. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing on two pages handwritten addresses in Ireland and England. The rest of the notebook is blank. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing handwritten research notes for the travelogue *My Ireland* including chapter structure and related notes, and financial calculations. The notebook begins with an incomplete draft of the structure: ‘Foreword. 1. Hesitations. 2. Holy Places.’ The following is recorded about the Burren in county Clare: ‘…alkaline limestone. Carboniferous, ledged, shelved – in plateau formation. Small flowers… Shelter in crevices.’ Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notebook containing a handwritten essay on the art of writing which begins: ‘The art of writing – the art – is that which stands a long way back from the idea of writing.’ Also handwritten research notes for the unpublished novel, *Constancy*, including chapter structure and character sketches. Unpaginated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains other literary material concerning Kate O'Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly membership cards for various organisations including the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid; Irish Club in London; Pike Theatre Club; Holborn Public Libraries: Hampstead Public Libraries: Comunitá Europea degli Scrittori: Irish Federation of University Women; and Irish PEN (Dublin Centre). Also included is a letter from Radmore, curator of Cowper and Newton Museum, Gilpin House, Olney, Buckinghamshire, to Kate O’Brien at Minerva Club, 28A Brunswick Square, London, WC. 1, referring to the position of curator with museum, and loose sheets of paper recording train times, quotations from various sources, telephone numbers, and references to publications. Also includes a handwritten poem in Irish entitled ‘Maidin I mbéara’, and a handwritten lecture by Willie J. Moloney for the Classical Association Conference in Reading on 6 April 1967.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series includes Kate O'Brien's contracts and correspondence with literary agents and publishers.
The material is divided into two sub-series by type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's contracts with publishers and some related correspondence.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien, care of Ann Watkins, Incorporated, 77 Park Avenue, New York City, New York (author), and Doubleday, Doran & Company Incorporated (publishers), regarding the publishing rights of *The Summer’s Flower* and *A Spanish Novel*, noting conditions relating to copyright, royalties, publishing rights, and advancing the author $1250 on *The Summer’s Flower*, payable in six equal monthly instalments on receipt of signed contract, and the sum of $1250 on publication date of *A Spanish Novel* or two-thirds of the amount earned on *The Summer’s Flower* by publication date of *A Spanish Novel* or whichever sum is greater. Includes some passages crossed out in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien (author), and [M. Turner], general editor of the series ‘Britain in Pictures’, Rocks Farm, Withyham, Sussex, for the author to undertake a contribution of approximately 14,000 words in length on the subject of English diaries and journals to be included in the series, with a payment of £50 to the author for world rights, to be paid within 14 days of date of publication. Signed by Turner.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien, care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Messieurs William Heinemann Limited, 99 Great Russell Street, London W.C.1 (publishers), regarding the next three novels to be produced by the author, referring to publishing rights and copyright.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien, care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and United Authors Limited, 1, Craven house, Kingsway, London, W.C.2 (publishers), granting the licence to translate and publish *The Last of Summer*, in volume form in French, noting conditions regarding royalties, payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes that a royalty of 5% of the published price of all copies sold and a sum of £75 payable on signature of the agreement by both parties, in advance for royalties and percentages. Amended in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien, care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and United Authors Limited, 1, Craven house, Kingsway, London, W.C.2 (publishers), granting the licence to translate and publish *The Last of Summer*, in volume form in German, noting conditions regarding royalties, payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes that a royalty of 5% of the published price of all copies sold and a sum of £100 payable on signature of the agreement by both parties, in advance for royalties and percentages. Amended in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Mr. Saturnino Calleja, Madrid, Spain (publishers), granting publishers licence to translate and publish *Without My Cloak* in volume form in Spanish, subject to conditions regarding translation of work, publishing rights and royalties. Also gives the publisher the first option to publish the author’s next two full length works, and to publish all of her earlier works as yet unpublished in the Spanish language. Notes payment of £75 as to one-half upon signature of agreement and the other half to be paid upon publication of work or within twelve months of agreement, whichever date is earlier, for an edition of five thousand copies, and a sum of £20 payable upon printing each subsequent edition of one thousand copies.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and A. B. Ljus Forlag, Stockholm, Sweden (publishers), granting publishers licence to translate and publish *The Last of Summer* in volume form in Swedish, subject to conditions regarding royalties and payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes payment of royalty of 7.5 % of the published price of all copies sold up to three thousand, and of 10% of the published price of all copies sold beyond three thousand, and a sum of £40 payable on signature of agreement, in advance of royalties and percentages.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between O’Brien care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Mr. Saturnino Calleja, Madrid, Spain (publishers), granting publishers licence to translate and publish *The Anteroom* in volume form in Spanish, subject to conditions regarding royalties and payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes payment of £75 as to one-half upon signature of agreement and the other half to be paid upon publication of work or within twelve months of agreement, whichever date is earlier, for an edition of five thousand copies, and a sum of £20 payable upon printing each subsequent edition of one thousand copies.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between O’Brien care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Mr. Saturnino Calleja, Madrid, Spain (publishers), granting publishers licence to translate and publish *The Last of Summer* in volume form in Spanish, subject to conditions regarding royalties and payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes payment of £75 as to one-half upon signature of agreement and the other half to be paid upon publication of work or within twelve months of agreement, whichever date is earlier, for an edition of five thousand copies, and a sum of £20 payable upon printing each subsequent edition of one thousand copies.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien care of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited, 39/40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Messieurs Hallwag Verlag of Berne, Switzerland (publishers), granting publishers licence to translate and publish *Mary Lavelle* and *The Land of Spices* in volume form in German, subject to conditions regarding royalties and payment of monies, translation of work and publishing rights. Notes royalty of 7.5% of the published price of all copies sold up to three thousand, and 10% of the published price of all copies sold beyond three thousand, sum of £50 payable on each of works upon signature of the agreement in advance of royalties and percentages.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from David [Higham], Managing Director of David Higham & Associates Limited, Authors’ Agents, 76, Dean Street, Soho, London W.1 to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent (22 October 1964) referring to her new house and the enclosed signed memorandum of agreement (2 October 1964), between O’Brien care of David Higham & Associates, Ltd, Grantor, and Penguin Books Limited, publishers, granting publishers exclusive right and licence to produce and publish *That Lady*, subject to conditions regarding copyright, royalties and payment of monies, and publishing rights. Notes royalty of 7.5% on all copies sold calculated on the United Kingdom published price, and after three years from date of first publication, the Grantor shall be paid 10% of the net amount received except copies sold at cost price or less no royalty shall be payable. A sum of £100 will be payable on signature of the agreement and the second half to be paid on first publication of said book.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Signed memorandum of agreement between Kate O’Brien care of David Higham, Associates Limited, 39-49 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2 (author), and Messieurs William Heinemann Limited, 15-16 Queen Street, Mayfair, London, W.1 (publishers), relating to an untitled autobiography, noting conditions relating to copyright, extent of the publication, royalties, Book Society, sub-licences, and payment of monies. States that the author shall deliver a work of about sixty thousand words no later than 31 December 1965, with royalties of 15% on all copies sold to seven thousand five hundred, 17.5% on all copies sold thereafter, with provisions for copies sold overseas or in Great Britain for purposes of export and for cheaper editions. Also states that a sum of £350, of which £100 was already paid to author, is payable on delivery of complete typescript of work for publication. Includes amendments in ink and some lines crossed out.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Elizabeth Bird, David Higham & Associates Limited, Authors’ Agents, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London W1R 4HA, to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, dated 10 October, stating ‘I’m so glad you’re pleased Chivers want to do a Large Print edition of *Without My Cloak*’, and enclosing the memorandum of agreement dated 5 October, between Cedric Chivers Limited, Portway, Bath, Somerset, and David Higham & Associates Limited, granting to publishers an exclusive licence to publish an edition of *Without My Cloak* in hard cover volume form for persons with impaired vision printed in large type not less than 15 point for a period of three years from date of agreement, on behalf of the London and Home Counties Branch of the Library Association in the English language throughout the world. Notes conditions relating to royalties, copyright and publishing rights. Royalty of 10% of published price on all copies of the licensed edition sold, wherever sold, with certain provisions. Also grants sum of £50 upon signature of agreement by both parties being in advance and on account of all royalties and percentages.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters from publishers and translators, mainly on financial matters.
The material is divided into five sub-series by correspondent and arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains receipts and invoices from publishers.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly receipts including one from Samuel French Limited, Publishers, for copy of *The Distinguished Villa* and postage, sent to Vivian H.S. Mercier, a royalty invoice from Cedric Chivers Limited, Publishers, Booksellers, Bookbinders, Portway, Bath, BA1 3NF, addressed to David Higham Associates Limited, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London, W1R 4HA, listing titles, number of copies sold, price, total sale and royalties, and a receipt from the Irish Times Limited addressed to Kate O’Brien, The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, for sum of £21 for review. In addition, includes cheque for £20 from E.A. Hopkinson.
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains a letter from Fernando Calleja to Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Calleja, Ediciones ‘La Nave’, Madrid, to Kate O’Brien, having secured the Spanish world rights for three novels, *Without My Cloak*, *The Ante-room*, and *The Last of Summer*, and expressing interest in other works. He requests a number of items for publicity including a photograph of O’Brien, relevant press cuttings, and a short letter about her work. He notes, ‘I was enormously struck by “Without My Cloak”. I liked your lovely novel so much that I was loth to entrust its translation to anybody for fear they might not give enough attention to its many beauties, and although very short of time, I decided in consequence to translate it myself. I daresay better translators could be found but I am positive that nobody could give to the translation as much loving care. This is one of the most pleasant jobs that have come my way for a good many years.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence from Pearn, Pollinger & Higham Limited.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two letters from Y. Muller, secretary to Mr. Laurence Pollinger, of Pearn, Pollinger & Higham, Literary, Film and Dramatic Agents, of 39-40 Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C. 2, to Kate O’Brien, care of Miss E. M. Deladield, Croyle, Cullompton, Devon, referring to Spanish translation rights of *The Last of Summer* and *The Anteroom* and an enquiry from Alfred Scherz of Switzerland for copies of O’Brien’s novels free for translation into Italian. The first letter includes comment ‘Messrs. Saturnino Calleja offers for the Spanish translation rights of *The Last of Summer* and *The Anteroom* the same terms as for *Without My Cloak*, namely: A sum of £75 payable as to half upon signature of the agreement by both parties, and half on publication for an edition of 5,000 copies and a sum of £20 payable upon printing of each subsequent edition of 1,000 copies’.
Material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters from David Higham Associates Limited concerning financial matters.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 24a Steele’s Road, London, N.W. 3 from [David Higham], Authors’ Agents, 76, Dean Street, Soho, London, W.1, with an extract from a letter from Dwye[r] regarding a debt of £114, which states ‘I do want to help in any way I can but there seems very little security. The present position is that she owes us £114. There is always a trickle of royalty to be set against her debt, but it is difficult to know when we could expect a new book from her.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 117, The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from A. J. Crouch, Secretary of David Higham Associates Limited, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London, W1R 4HA, referring to an enclosure of a cheque amounting to £108.67 received from British Broadcasting Corporation in payment for the broadcast of *That Lady* in ‘Woman’s Hour’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters from the Irish University Press mainly concerning paperback rights.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Gerard O’Flaherty, Irish University Press, 81 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, referring to enclosed letter from Bruce Hunter, director of David Higham Associates Limited, which notes that *The Land of Spices* is not available for Irish University Press to include in their paperback series.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Compliment slip from Gerard O’Flaherty of Irish University Press, 81 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, to Kate O’Brien enclosing a letter from Bruce Hunter, director of David Higham Associates Limited, to Gerard Flaherty, which refers to paperback rights and royalties, noting that there may be ‘special circumstances’ in the case of Irish University Press.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series includes Kate O'Brien's correspondence with broadcasting bodies.
The material is divided into three sub-series by correspondent.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's correspondence with the British Broadcasting Corporation.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, care of Messieurs A. D. Peters, 10 Buckingham Street, London, W.C. 2, from Programme Contracts Department, British Broadcasting Corporation, Broadcasting House, London, W.1, referring to recording of a talk in English and French entitled ‘Ireland’ for French and Belgian Section of London Transcription Service, with date of recording on Saturday 10 October 1944 at Bedford College, and a fee of 10 guineas to cover script and recording.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Guy Vaesen, Script Unit, Drama, Radio, British Broadcasting Corporation, Broadcasting House, London, W1A 1AA, referring to the script of *Pray for the Wanderer* stating the following, ‘It has not been the easiest novel in the world to dramatise and this final version is the fourth. I do hope you will approve of what I have done… At least I feel confident that the cast will meet with your pleasure’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to John Rush of David Higham & Associates Limited, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, W1R 4HA, from Alannah Hensler, Copyright Departmen, British Broadcasting Corporation, Broadcasting House, London, W1A 1AA, noting that ‘Woman’s Hour’ hoped to broadcast Kate O’Brien’s book, *That Lady* in fourteen episodes from 11 to 28 October.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters to Kate O'Brien from Radio Éireann.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Three letters from Hilton Edward, Head of Drama, October Television in Radio Éireann, 34-37 Clarendon Street, Dublin 2, to Kate O’Brien, requesting material suitable for television plays or for the talks department, and her services as ‘Permanent Reader’ for October Television, the establishment of a panel of freelance readers and organising a lunch appointment. The first letter includes the comment ‘There is another function that might interest you but I think you would really hate it… I am setting up some Permanent readers who would have the tedious job of reading all material and would be situated in an office here. This, I think, would drive you mad and would be a waste of your creative ability’.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's correspondence with Radio Telefís Éireann.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Sean Walsh, Radio Telefís Éireann, Henry Street, Dublin 1, offering a broadcasting engagement on a programme entitled ‘My Kind of Poetry’ to be recorded on 7 October 1971, in studio at number 5 Henry Street, with fee amounting to £30. Refers to timekeeping, rules and regulations, copyright information, and liability of Radio Telefís Éireann.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Patrick [---], Radio Telefís Éireann, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, asking if she believes £100 plus half this amount for the repeat an acceptable fee for a production of Guy Vaesen’s adaptation of *Pray for The Wanderer*. In addition, he enquires about possibility of a 25-minute script about Teresa of Avila for the Treasure House series.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Sean Walsh, Drama and Variety, Radio Telefís Éireann, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, regarding her participation in the programme, ‘Personal Choice’, commencing on 7 October. Includes notes in ink recording names and contact details of two individuals.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Tom McGurk, Radio Telefís Éireann, Henry Street, Dublin 1, requesting that she be a guest on the third series of ‘One Man’s/Woman’s Ireland’, involving a 30-to-40-minute pre-recorded interview to be recorded on Sunday nights in May, noting a fee of 20 guineas.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Sean Walsh, Drama and Variety, Radio Telefís Éireann, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, making arrangements for the recording of programme for series ‘Personal Choice’ in the new Radio Centre in Donnybrook, stating ‘I understand that you are rather unwell at present and certainly I wouldn’t want to annoy you with petty details, so let’s just say we’ll record you when you are feeling better’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series includes Kate O'Brien's correspondence with literary organisations.
The material is grouped by organisation.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien from Stanley Foster, Honorary Secretary of Irish P.E.N., Belfast Centre, 14 Ashley Gardens, Belfast 15, with invitation to annual dinner to be held on Saturday 18 October. Note in ink stating ‘Accepted 18.2.61’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two letters to Kate O’Brien from David Carver, General Secretary of International P.E.N., Glebe House, 62 to 63 Glebe Place, Chelsea, London, S.W.3, noting her election as president of Irish P.E.N., status in relation to Executive Council of Comunità Europea degli Scrittori, and an invitation to a dinner discussion at the Cock Tavern in October 1964 entitled ‘The Changing Novel’.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly correspondence relating to business of the council, including details regarding meetings of the council director, notes, interpreter charges, discussion topics such as the role of the writer in Europe, payment of annual contribution, list of delegates and newly elected presidency and council. Includes a letter in French to Kate O’Brien in Dublin from the secretary of Comunità Europea degli Scrittori, Clelia Guala, noting the following about her handwriting, ‘Giancarlo Vigorelli m’a prié de taper à la machine le texte de votre intervention, dont je vous remets ci-joint la photocopie. Malheureusement après la première page j’ai dû m’arrêter car je n’arrivai pas à comprendre votre écriture’ [‘Giancarlo Vigorelli asked me to type the text of your intervention, a photocopy of which I am sending you herewith. Unfortunately after the first page I had to stop because I couldn't understand your writing’] (3 September 1963). In addition, a letter from Kate O’Brien, 13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, to Clelia Guala stating ‘I have not been able to deliver those to lectures about our COMES doings, because I have been awaiting data from you, and did not dare report the Leningrad dialogue from memory: I have written some light articles, of cheerful but vague propaganda – not worth sending on to you. I am sending you an entirely irrelevant piece, about Moscow, which is in the current New Statesman – but only just to amuse you. It has nothing to do with COMES’ (7 January 1964). Also contains list of delegates attending assembly in Rome in October 1965, noting the following for Ireland, Patrick Kavanagh, Eileen MacCarvill, Kate O’Brien, Robert O’Driscoll, Desmond O’Grady and Lorna Reynolds, and a list of newly elected presidency and council of organisation in October 1965, with Kate O’Brien representing Ireland.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
File containing letters to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, regarding eligibility for a pension under the Royal Literary Fund. Includes a letter from Victor Bonham-Carter, Secretary of Royal Literary Fund, 11, Ludgate Hill, London, E.C. 4, which announces ‘I am glad to be able to inform you that at its Meeting today my Committee decided to award you a pension of £400 a year for five years’ (13 January 1971). One letter is torn in to pieces and remains in its envelope (26 November 1970).
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Mainly letters to Kate O’Brien from a range of bodies including The Alpha Club, Belfast; Artists and Writers’ Cookbook, Los Angeles; Cività Delle Macchine, Rome; Irish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament; Salvat Editores, S.A., Barcelona; La Real Academia de la Historia, Madrid; Society of Authors, London; Edwards-Mac Liammóir, Dublin Gate Theatre Productions Limited; and Irish Academy of Letters. Includes letter from Dorothy Evans, Honorary Secretary of The Alpha Club, 14 Donegal Square West, Belfast, to Kate O’Brien, Strand House, Limerick, with details on talk to be delivered by her, stating ‘You ask what type of audience. The majority are married women with varied interests and some quite intellectual, very rarely any men’ (1 June 1960). Also a letter to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from Dalmiro de la Válgoma Díaz-Valera, La Real Academia de la Historia, Léon 21, Madrid 14, Spain, noting a forthcoming publication based on opinions of foreigners about Santiago de Compostela, and requesting permission to include a number of passages from *Farewell Spain*, and also to reproduce Mary O’Neill’s drawing of the Hospital de Santiago (9 December 1970). Also a letter from Micheál Mac Liammóir, director of Edwards-Mac Liammóir, Dublin Gate Theatre Productions Limited, 4 Harcourt Terrace, Dublin 2, referring to his own health: ‘…I am always thinking of you. Even when weighed down by the most depressing bug ever known to man or woman since Pandora opened that box – a sorting of creeping compromise between a plain foul cold in the head and what I strongly suspect of being leprosy’ (22 December 1973).
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series includes Kate O'Brien's correspondence concerning educational projects, mainly to do with Irish studies.
The material is divided into four sub-series by correspondent.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains mainly correspondence relating to Kate O'Brien's participation in the sixth annual conference of the Canadian Association for Irish Studies.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Eight letters from Joseph Ronsley, Chairman of McGill University, Department of English, McGill University, P.O. Box 6070, Montreal, Canada, to Kate O’Brien, care of Lorna Reynolds, Parke Cottage, Eyre Court, Galway, and also at 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, referring to Canadian Association for Irish Studies seminar, and details about lecture and travel arrangements. The first letter encloses a letter from Lorna Reynolds, Parke Cottage, Eyrecourt, Galway.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Professor Norman H. MacKenzie, Buswell’s Hotel, Dublin, Canadian Association for Irish Studies to Kate O’Brien, regarding the title of her lecture.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Colour poster for the sixth annual conference of Canadian Association for Irish Studies, McGill University, listing a number of participants including Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to other educational programmes in which Kate O'Brien was involved.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two letters from Gary Mac Eoin, Senior Staff Editor of Catholic Youth Encyclopaedia, 487 Park Avenue, New York 22, New York, to Kate O’Brien, The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, requesting a summary of the life and spirit of Saint Teresa of Avila in a thousand words that would be suitable for young people aged between 12 and 18 years, outlining requirements, payment, and lecturing opportunities.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Paul [P. Hempsey], Secretary of Cultural Relations Committee of Department of Foreign Affairs, Dublin 2, to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, in connection with Irish week in University of Valladolid, Madrid, in October or November 1971.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Sharon Mallar, Administrative Assistant, Exploring Human Nature Project, Educational Development Centre, 15 Mifflin Place, Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Kate O’Brien, care of David Higham Associates, 76 Dean Street, London, W 1, requesting permission to reproduce image from *My Ireland*.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence concerning Kate O'Brien's entitlement for the Civil List Pension.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letters from Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street, Whitehall, London, to Kate O’Brien, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, regarding her eligibility for the Civil List Pension, noting her status as a British subject, financial position, supplementary Civil List Pensions, income tax position, and review of list. Includes a letter from John Hewitt, stating ‘I am desired by the Prime Minister to inform you that, on his recommendation, The Queen has been pleased to award you a Civil List Pension of £250, in recognition of your services to literature’ (1 March 1967).
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series contains press cuttings relating to Kate O'Brien, including her newspaper columns, published poems and reviews of her books. Also included in this series are press cuttings on various subjects collected by Kate O'Brien and obituaries and other related press cuttings published after her death.
The material is divided into four sub-series by subject matter.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains press cuttings relating to Kate O'Brien, reviews of her books and other press cuttings on various subjects mostly collected by Kate O'Brien or touching on subjects relevant to her life and career.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
File containing mainly press cuttings with articles on the work of Kate O’Brien in the *Yorkshire Post*, *Sunday Independent Magazine*, *Irish Times*, *Irish Press*, *Irish Illustrated* and *Ham and High*, together with a series of images of Kate O’Brien. Includes a photocopy of an article by Tamsin Hargreaves dated 1983 entitled ‘Kate O’Brien’ with handwritten amendments.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Scrapbook containing press cuttings of mainly reviews of Kate O’Brien’s work including the novels *Without My Cloak* and *The Ante-Room* and her play *The Bridge*. Also an article by Kate O’Brien in *The Daily Mirror* entitled ‘Have Music-Halls Been ‘Killed’?’ (7 July 1928), and a number of articles on her winning the Hawthornden Prize. In addition, articles by other writers such as ‘The Settee’ by Mary Rynne (13 October 1928) and reviews of works by other authors such as *Beside the Sea* edited by Yvonne Cloud (1 August 1934). Paginated and most articles are dated.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
File containing press cuttings with reviews of a number of works by Kate O’Brien including *Mary Lavelle*, *The Ante-Room*, *That Lady*, *Presentation Parlour*, *Farewell Spain* and *My Ireland* in *Time and Tide*, *Sunday Independent*, *Daily Telegraph*, *Guardian*, *Birmingham Post*, *The Times*, *Sunday Times*, *Irish Times*, *Catholic Herald*, *Sphere*, *Evening Standard*, *Yorkshire Post*, *Evening Times*, *The Listener*, *Irish Press*, *Irish Independent*, *Books and Bookmen*, *Books of the Month*, *Punch*, *Cork Examiner*, *New Statesman*, *The Tablet*, *Glasgow Herald*, *Tatler*, *Lady*, *Country Life*, *Month*, *Hibernia*, *Spectator* and *The Tribune*. Includes some photocopies.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
File containing press cuttings with articles on various subjects [some of which were collected by Kate O’Brien] in the *Spectator*, *Irish Times*, *Observer*, *Tempo*, *Irish Press*, *New York Times* and *The Times*, addressing holiday destinations, pensions, the death of the actress Katherine Cornell, work of the writer Mary Vaughan, the historian Professor F. S. L. Lyons, the Burren in county Clare, and the politician Cecelia Lynch. Also a photograph of Drama Critics Circle, a series of three articles by John A. Jackson entitled ‘The Irish Immigrant in England’, a poem by Philip Larkin entitled ‘Home is so sad’, a signed poem by John Hewitt and work by Hilaire Belloc, Denis Devlin and Mary Oliver.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains press cuttings relating to Kate O'Brien's death.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Press cuttings on the death of Kate O’Brien in the *Evening Press*, *Daily Telegraph*, *Irish Times*, *Faversham Times*, *Kentish Gazette* and *Faversham News*.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series contains books and offprints of articles written by Kate O'Brien and publications collected by or associated with her, including theatre programmes, exhibition catalogues and posters.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two publications by Kathleen Cunningham, the first entitled *Schiller und die Franzosische Klassik*, published in 1930 (Kurt Schroeder/ Verlag/ Bonn) and the second consisting of an essay entitled *Paul Ernst’s Theory of the Novelle*. The two volumes are enclosed with a number of documents relating to Cunningham including a brief biography, references from individuals including P. Mansell Jones of University College of North Wales; Professor of French and Romance Philology, Mary M. Macken of University College Dublin; Acting Professor of German, and Oskar Walzel of University of Bonn, late Professor of German Language and Literature. Also lists of publications and reviews of work including a lecture given by Cunningham in a newspaper article entitled ‘Reinhardt’s Ideas of Stage Reform. German Lecture in Newcastle’, which begins ‘Herr Max Reinhardt’s ideas and ideals of stage reform formed the subject of an illustrated lecture given in German…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Programme of the play *That Lady* produced by *The Playgoer Magazine* entitled ‘Katharine Cornell Presents That Lady a new play by Kate O'Brien’, performed at Dipson’s Erlanger Theatre between 18 and 22 October 1949. Contains a handwritten note by Kate O’Brien on the cover which reads ‘Don’t let all the tripe in the red book frighten you, or any of the photographs. The production really will look lovely – however the play goes. The sets are very good. And we are always [improving] Kit’s clothes. By New York we’ll have her looking lovely.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication by Kate O’Brien entitled *Without My Cloak* with the subheading ‘In this chronicle of the family founded by John Considine, masterful, self-made Irishman, are brilliantly revealed the ambitions and passions which governed this turbulent breed. This book was awarded the Hawthornden Prize in 1932’. The book was first published in 1931 and then in 1949 by Penguin Books. Contains the signature of Elizabeth Hall on the first page.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication by Kate O’Brien entitled *Mary Lavelle*. First published in 1936 and then published by Penguin Books in 1951.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication entitled *Threshold*, vol. 1, no. 2, which includes a short story by Kate O’Brien entitled *A Bus from Tivoli*, which begins: ‘In the hot weather Marian liked to take, at random, one or other of the many buses that left the Piazza Termini…’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Programme of a play entitled *The Hostage* by Brendan Behan, presented by Theatre Workshop at Theatre Royal, Angel Lane, Stratford, England.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Offprint of an article entitled ‘As to University Life’ by Kate O’Brien, originally dated 21 June 1955 and published in the autumn issue of *University Review*. Contains a handwritten note by Kate O’Brien on the cover, which reads ‘This may amuse you, pet – frightful misprints and all! It is causing uproar in the Governing Body of U.C.D. – which was my hope & purpose in writing it. God bless you – Love from K.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Offprint of a piece entitled entitled ‘The Tomb of Michael Collins’ by Denis Devlin, reprinted from the October issue of *The Sewanee Review*, 1956. Contains a handwritten note on the inside cover, which states ‘to Kate O’Brien with best regards from Denis Devlin Rome, December 1956.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication entitled *P.E.N. News*, with the subheading ‘the bulletin of the English Centre of International P.E.N.’, no. 202, produced at Glebe House, Glebe Place, London, S.W. 3. Contains a note on the cover in pencil which reads ‘No apparent ref. to Kate’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Programme of a bullfight at Plaza de Toros de Madrid from 13 to 28 May 1967 with marks in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Catalogue of an exhibition entitled ‘15 exposición de primavera al aire libre’ at Plaza de las Cortes [Madrid, Spain] between 14 and 28 May [1967]. Some images are marked in ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Flyer promoting Samuel Beckett’s play *Esperando A Godot* (*Waiting for Godot*), performed in the Teatro Beatriz Nacional de Cámara y Ensayo in Spain.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication entitled *University Review*, vol. 3, no. 4, containing an essay by Kate O’Brien entitled ‘The Art of Writing’, which begins: ‘In one of his early books, “The Sense of Beauty”, George Santayana says this…’ The essay was based on a lecture originally delivered to the Graduates’ Association on 2 May 1963.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Parish newsletter entitled ‘Saint Germain Des Prés’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Booklet entitled *Enid Mary Starkie 1897-1970* by Sir Maurice Bowra, which contains an address given in the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford at the memorial service for Starkie on 28 May 1970. Includes a handwritten note on the cover which states ‘Send this on to May – who might then return it to me?’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Booklet entitled *Post Office Subscriber Trunk Dialling Dialling Instructions and Call Charges …Boughton*, which contains handwritten names and phone numbers on the cover.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from James Laver, Flat 4, 10 The Glebe, Blackheath, S.E. 3, to Kate O’Brien referring to an enclosure of a copy of his booklet of poetry entitled *A Chaplet of Verses for Veronica*, privately printed in 1972.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Publication entitled *The Stony Thursday Book*, issue no. 7, which contains a series of articles on the work of Kate O’Brien, edited by John Liddy and guest editor John Jordan. Some lines are marked and highlighted and correspond with handwritten notes in ink by Mary O’Neill on the back cover.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Sample of a design for the dustjacket of Kate O'Brien's novel *Mary Lavelle*, part of Virago Modern Classics Series.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Poster for The Kate O’Brien Weekend, entitled ‘The writer and a sense of place’ at Limerick City Gallery of Art, Pery Square, Limerick, from 22 to 24 February 1991.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series contains photographs associated with Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged into five sub-series by subject matter.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of Kate O'Brien and her family and friends.
The material is arranged in an approximate chronological order by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white three-quarter length studio portrait (135 x 85 mm) of Kate O'Brien's mother Catherine O’Brien née Thornhill dressed in black with her left arm leaning on the back of a carved wooden chair as she looks away from the camera.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white positive image on copper plate (105 x 78 mm) consisting of group portrait with Catherine O’Brien and her six children dressed in their finery.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white studio portrait (70 x 50 mm) of Catherine O’Brien seated with two of her children, Kate and her brother, Michael. Kate stands on a chair beside her mother, and Michael sits on his mother’s lap. A note written on the back in ink by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Mother, Michael & K.O.B. 1902.’ The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 100 mm) of [Clare, Jack, May and Tom O’Brien] standing at the end of a flight of stairs [at Boru House, county Limerick].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (58 x 85 mm) of some of the O’Brien children playing on the beach at Kilkee, county Clare, with a note on the back by Kate O’Brien which reads ‘Kilkee 1906. Michael, Gerry, K. & Eric. (Brownie photo – May got a prize of 5/- for it.)’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white group photograph (66 x 90 mm) of [Kate O’Brien’s class at Laurel Hill Convent, Limerick] seated at their desks.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white group photograph (73 x 99 mm) of [O’Brien and other schoolgirls from Laurel Hill Convent, county Limerick]. Originally attached to P12/5/5/1.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 85 mm) of Kate O’Brien holding a puppy with [her brother Thomas in Kilkee, county Clare]. Note on the back in pencil by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B with puppy’ and another by O’Brien which states ‘£7 £1 in French Aug 12th.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 73 mm) of O’Brien sitting on a bench with her hair in two plaits, and a large tree in the background.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (81 x 34 mm) of Kate O’Brien with her hair tied back wearing a blouse and skirt and smiling at the camera. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (62 x 89 mm) of Kate O’Brien wearing black and in a seated position with her left arm outstretched on a striped seat behind her.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (72 x 87 mm) of Kate O’Brien, her two sisters [Clare and Nance, and her brother Michael] on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. O’Brien is holding a walking stick and is seated beside Nance. Similar to P12/5/1/13-14.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (108 x 82 mm) of Michael, Nance, Clare and Kate O’Brien on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick, with Clare seated and Kate holding a walking stick. Similar to P12/5/1/12 and 14.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (102 x 74 mm) of Clare, Nance, Kate and Michael O’Brien arranged on the steps of a statue of Christ on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. Similar to P12/5/1/12-13.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (55 x 113 mm) of Mary Rynne, and Kate and Nance O’Brien sitting on garden chairs with their tennis rackets on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. Similar to P12/5/1/16.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (64 x 80 mm) of Mary Rynne, and Kate and Nance O’Brien standing on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick, with their tennis rackets. With a duplicate. Similar to P12/5/1/15.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white studio group portrait (140 x 192 mm) of Kate O’Brien and her B.A. class in University College Dublin on their conferral.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 83 mm) of trees [on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick]. With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (89 x 63 mm) of [Kate O’Brien walking in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (63 x 88 mm) of Kate O’Brien and [her sister May] seated in the garden drinking tea with a white dog beside them. With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (37 x 45 mm) of Kate O’Brien’s flat at 33 Great James Street, W.C., London, with a view of bookshelves. A note on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K. O’B’s flat at 33 Great James St WC’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (47 x 49 mm) of Kate O’Brien’s flat at 33 Great James Street, W.C., London, with a view of a fireplace. A note on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K. O’B’s flat at 33 Great James St Bloomsbury WC’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (84 x 65 mm) of Kate O’Brien in her flat at 66 Great Ormond Street, London, seated on the arm of a chair with a newspaper on her lap and framed pictures in the background. The image is cropped. Similar to P12/5/1/24.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 87 mm) of [Nance, Kate and May O’Brien] in Kate's flat at 66 Great Ormond Street, London, sitting on a chair with pictures in the background. Similar to P12/5/1/23.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 81 mm) of O’Brien and [her sister Nance] at flat at 66 Great Ormond Street, London, seated facing each-other and joining hands.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (135 x 80 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing outside a brick house in the snow, holding a snowball.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 89 mm) of [Kate O’Brien’s sister Nance] in profile seated at a balcony with a pile of papers on her lap. A handwritten note on the back reads ‘Nance?’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (125 x 80 mm) of Kate O’Brien’s head and shoulders in profile.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 82 mm) of Kate O’Brien in black descending a staircase with a decorative door-case behind her. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (131 x 69 mm) of Kate O’Brien in white standing with her hands behind her back [on the grounds of Strand House, Limerick].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 103 mm) of Kate O’Brien and her husband Gustaff Renier standing at a window facing each other. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (58 x 82 mm) of Kate O’Brien and Ruth Stephens outside a house. Kate sits on the windowsill smoking a cigarette whilst Ruth is stretched out on a table reading. A note on the back recorded in ink by O’Brien reads ‘K. O’B. & Ruth Stephens. [Sanyathi] – 1928’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien amongst the rocks at the seaside working on a draft of her novel *Without My Cloak*. A handwritten note on back in ink reads ‘Kate O’Brien working on Without My Cloak. Book Society Choice here for December. My choice months ago, and here’s hoping you have as good [going] as you did on Dr. Seracold Grand Hotel, etc. Mary Leonard. Doubleday Doran.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (88 x 20 mm) of Kate O’Brien in the garden with a shovel. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
A group of seven black and white photographs pasted on a single sheet of paper (254 x 206 mm) with images of [Kate O’Brien, Nance and Stephen O’Mara, and their son, Peter O’Mara, on the grounds of Strand House and at the beach in Kilkee, county Clare].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (56 x 83 mm) of Kate O’Brien having tea with Ruth Stephens. A note on the back in pencil by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B Ruth Stephen’s in background (Ruth in childhood)’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (58 x 80 mm) of a brick building and its grounds. A note on the back written by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Foxborough Hill – 1932’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 84 mm) of a brick building and its grounds with motorcar in the foreground with [Kate O’Brien] inside. A note on the back written by Mary O’Neill reads ‘Foxborough Hill (house) in background’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 85 mm) of [Jack, Ida, Kay, Kate, Tom, Gerry and Clare O’Brien outside Mulcair House, county Limerick]. A handwritten note by Kate O’Brien in ink on the back reads ‘Jack & family. Gerry & K. O’B. Summer 1932?’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 65 mm) of [Peter O’Mara] as a baby in a pram.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (62 x 53 mm) of [Peter O’Mara] as a young boy looking back over his right shoulder at the camera. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 56 mm) of Kate O’Brien’s head and shoulders as she looks at the camera, with note on back in her handwriting which reads ‘K. O’B. 1936.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 59 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing with her arms by her sides outside the arched entrance of a stone building. Note on the back records the following in O’Brien’s handwriting: ‘K. O’B. Deal – 1936. (Taken by J.W.)’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (111 x 75 mm) of Peter O’Mara and his aunt, Kate O’Brien, on a beach at Glin, county Limerick, with both figures with their backs to the camera and facing the water. A handwritten note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Glin – July 1935.’ With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (109 x 78 mm) of Kate O’Brien and her nephew, Peter O’Mara at Foynes, county Limerick, with vegetation and water in the background. A handwritten note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Foynes. 1935.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (142 x 85 mm) of Kate O’Brien, and Nance and Peter O’Mara sitting in a garden. Kate is sitting on a step reading a paper, with Nance beside her holding an umbrella, and Peter is on one of a pair of deckchairs to the right of the image.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (94 x 45 mm) of Kate O’Brien sitting with her legs crossed and her hands on her knees in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (77 x 45 mm) of Kate O’Brien sitting with Peter O’Mara standing beside her in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. A note in pencil on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B with Peter O’Mara’. The image is cropped. With a duplicate (84 x 60 mm) with a note on the back by Kate O’Brien which reads ‘Strand House. K. O’B. & Peter O’M. 1935’. Similar to P12/5/1/49-52.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 62 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick, smiling at the camera. A note on the back in pencil by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B’. With two duplicates, one identical in size, the other measuring 95 x 70 mm. Similar to P12/5/1/48 and 50-52.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (95 x 70 mm) of Kate O’Brien in profile standing in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick, with a cigarette in her left hand. Contains a note in pencil by Mary O’Neill which reads ‘K O’B’. Similar to P12/5/1/48-49 and 51-52.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 61 mm) of Kate O’Brien and Peter O’Mara standing in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. A note on the back in ink by Kate O’Brien reads ‘K. O’B. & Peter O’M. Strand House 1935’. The image is cropped. Similar to P12/5/1/48-50 and 52.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (83 x 132 mm) of Kate O’Brien smiling at the camera as she stands with a cigarette in her left hand in the grounds of Strand House, Limerick. A note on the back in ink by Kate O’Brien reads ‘July 1935. Strand House garden.’ With a slightly smaller duplicate measuring 80 x 111 mm and containing note on back also by O’Brien which reads ‘July 1935 at Strand House.’ Similar to P12/5/1/48-51.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 105 mm) of interior with a view of Kate O’Brien and others on the balcony outside. The image is dated on the back in O’Brien’s handwriting.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (61 x 115 mm) of Father Paddy O’Mara or possibly Monsignor Cahill, Nance O'Mara, Kate O’Brien and Stephen O’Mara all seated in the garden at [Strand House, Limerick] with a view of the windows of the house behind them.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (61 x 88 mm) of Peter O’Mara on his bicycle to the left of the image, with Kate O’Brien seated on a chair in the background talking to Stephen O’Mara who is sitting on the pavement outside Strand House, Limerick. A note on the back in Kate O’Brien’s handwriting reads ‘K. O’B, Stephen & Peter – Strand House, ’37?’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (63 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien lying on the ground with her head turned towards the camera and a dog beside her [in the grounds of Strand House, county Limerick].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (58 x 70 mm) of Peter, Nance and Stephen O’Mara sitting in the grounds of Strand House, county Limerick with a black dog.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 60 mm) of Kate O’Brien in [England] sitting against a timber fence with a field in the background, facing the camera. A note on the back in pencil by Mary O’Neill states ‘K O’B’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 64 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing on a beach in [Roundstone, county Galway], with a view of a boat and some bathers in the distance. A note on the back in pencil by Mary O’Neill states ‘K O’B’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (84 x 59 mm) of Kate O’Brien with [Tom, Clare and Kay O’Brien] beside a large haystack. A note in pencil on the back reads ‘TIMES BOOK CLUB!!’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (87 x 60 mm) of Kate O’Brien leaning against a wooden bridge in the countryside and facing the camera. A note on back in pencil by Mary O’Neill states ‘K O’B’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 60 mm) of Nance and Peter O’Mara standing in the garden of a house at Corofin, county Clare. A note on the back in ink by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Corofin. Nance & Peter – 1945.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien with Monsignor Cahill seated in front of a house.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white postcard (140 x 88 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing behind a bench looking straight at the camera holding her handbag and a cigarette in her left hand at [Strand House, county Limerick].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 140 mm) of Kate O’Brien in Oxford Street, London, smiling at the camera as her left hand searches her bag and with a view of a van behind her.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (135 x 85 mm) of Kate O’Brien smiling at the camera and leaning against a glass structure.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 64 mm) of Kate O’Brien in Roundstone, county Galway, leaning against a stone wall with a small kitten resting on her chest. A handwritten note in ink on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘K O’B. Roundstone 1950.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (50 x 75 mm) of Gerry O’Brien with his sister Kate O'Brien standing outside the bay window of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway. A handwritten note in ink on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘K. O’B & Gerry, Roundstone ’52.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (35 x 45 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing in the doorway of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, smiling at the camera with her right hand in her pocket. Similar to P12/5/1/70-73.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (45 x 35 mm) of a boy standing in front of the bay window at The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, smiling at the camera with his hands behind his back. Similar to P12/5/1/69 and 71-73.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (45 x 35 mm) of [Clare] and Kate O’Brien standing in the doorway of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, smiling at the camera. Similar to P12/5/1/69-70 and 72-73.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (45 x 35 mm) of two girls standing in the doorway of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway. Similar to P12/5/1/69-71 and 73.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (35 x 45 mm) of a streetscape with trees and the corner of a building. Similar to P12/5/1/69-72.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of P12/5/1/69.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of P12/5/1/70.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of P12/5/1/71.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of P12/5/1/72.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of P12/5/1/73.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white negative of image consisting of a landscape with trees.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (63 x 65 mm) of May O’Brien in profile sitting on a wall in Roundstone, county Galway, with a view of the sea behind her. A note on back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘M. O’B. Roundstone ’52?’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing in the doorway of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, with her left hand in her pocket as she pulls the door with her right. A note on back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Roundstone – K.O.B. 1953?’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 90 mm) of Gerry, John, Donough and Kate O’Brien posing beside a stone wall in Roundstone, county Galway. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Roundstone ’53? Gerry, John, Donough, K. O’B.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (86 x 59 mm) of a view of Roundstone, county Galway, from Kate O’Brien’s garden in The Fort, consisting of a number of trees, with the sea and some houses in the distance. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Roundstone from my garden – K. O’B.’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (57 x 87 mm) of a view of Roundstone, county Galway, from Kate O’Brien’s garden in The Fort, consisting of the bay and mountains in the distance. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Roundstone – the bays & the Twelve Bens – from my garden. K. O’B.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 110 mm) of three girls standing on a beach in their swimsuits and holding hands as they smile at the camera. A handwritten note on back reads ‘1953’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (88 x 60 mm) of Kate O’Brien dressed in white standing on a balcony with her right hand in her pocket.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (114 x 88 mm) of Kate O’Brien leaning on her walking stick as she stands with actress Joyce Grenfell at Errismore Races, Connemara, county Galway, with an open space behind them. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Kate O’Brien & Joyce Grenfell Errismore Races August 1953.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien with Maggie Knight standing in a barren landscape at Eragh Lough. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Maggie Knight & K. O’ B. Eragh Lough – 1953?’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 117 mm) of Kate O’Brien and two other women in [Clifden, county Galway] with a church and other buildings in the background.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 117 mm) of Kate O’Brien in her cloak and spectacles facing the camera whilst a second woman explores the rocks behind her.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 115 mm) of a group of children joining hands and playing in a garden, with a washing-line and trees in the background.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (115 x 70 mm) of a woman with a child on her lap in a garden.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (138 x 85 mm) of Peter and Mary O’Mara standing with linked arms, Peter carrying his hat in his left hand and Mary carrying a handbag on her left arm as they smile at the camera. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘– On the Way – Feb. 5th. 1957.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (75 x 55 mm) of Peter and Mary O’Mara standing in formal wear and holding hands as they smile at the camera. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Peter & Mary – In Ball.’ The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 63 mm) of the front elevation of The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway, framed by trees. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘June 1959. The Fort, Roundstone.’ The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 100 mm) of Clare and Anne O’Mara playing with their toys on the grounds of Strand House, county Limerick. A note by Kate O’Brien on the back of the image reads ‘at New Strand House Aug. 1961’. Similar to P12/5/1/97-98.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 115 mm) of Clare and Anne O’Mara playing with their toys on the grounds of Strand House, county Limerick. Similar to P12/5/1/96 and 98.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 115 mm) of Clare and Anne O’Mara playing with their toys on the grounds of Strand House, county Limerick. Similar to P12/5/1/96-97.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (85 x 63 mm) of Anne O’Mara in a summer dress carrying a [racket] in her left hand as she smiles at the camera. A note on the back by Kate O’Brien reads ‘Anne about to do some garden-work.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 85 mm) of Mary, Anne and Clare O’Mara inside Strand House, county Limerick, with the children playing on the floor.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (240 x 195 mm) of a group of people gathering at an event at Toor Ballylee, county Galway relating to William Butler Yeats.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (210 x 160 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing with an elderly lady in a summer hat and leaning on two walking sticks, with a garden chair behind them. Copyright of Owen and Moroney Commercial Photographers, Shepherds Bush W. 12. Similar to P12/5/1/103.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (160 x 210 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing with an elderly lady in a summer hat and leaning on two walking sticks, with a garden chair behind them. Copyright of Owen and Moroney Commercial Photographers, Shepherds Bush W. 12. Similar to P12/5/1/102.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Colour photograph (125 x 55 mm) of Kate O’Brien standing in a garden facing the camera, with a brick building behind her. The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (205 x 254) of [José M. De Areilza and his family] posing together in front of a large tapestry.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Colour photograph (90 x 90 mm) of Mary Connolly and her family, Kate O’Brien’s neighbours in Roundstone, county Galway, outside the entrance of a house.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Colour photograph (90 x 125 mm) of Mary Connolly, standing behind the bar at [her public house in Roundstone, county Galway].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 64 mm) of Mary Connolly and her grandson from Roundstone, county Galway, sitting on a bench. Originally attached to P12/5/5/2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (80 x 80 mm) of Mary Connolly’s grandchildren sitting under a Christmas tree. Originally attached to P12/5/5/2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains formal portraits of Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged into three sub-series by portrait type.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains formal studio portraits of Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white portrait (150 x 100 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal view of her seated in University College Dublin graduation garb holding her BA degree. The photograph is mounted on paper. Copyright of Keogh & Brothers Limited, Lower Dorset Street and Stephen’s Green, Dublin.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white three-quarter length portrait (145 x 95 mm) of Kate O’Brien in profile by Lafayette. The subject is leaning against a table and is in casual dress. The image is mounted on paper and is contained within a card with the words ‘With Best Wishes’ on the cover. A note on the back of the photograph reads ‘Miss Kate O’Brien’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (200 x 150 mm) of Kate O’Brien in profile, sitting in a summer dress with her chin resting on her hand. The image is mounted on paper and is signed 'Yevonde'. On the back of the mount is a stamp which reads ‘Madame Yevonde, 100 Victoria St. S.W.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (330 x 255 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal view of the subject in a summer dress. Copyright of Sásha, 7 Suffolk St., Pall Mall, London S.W. 1. With a duplicate, which contains Mary O'Neill's contact details on the back and a note in ink in her hand which reads, ‘Kate O’Brien (1926) (Taken during the rehearsals of her play “Distinguished Villa”’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white portrait (210 x 150 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal, head and shoulders view of the subject. The image is mounted on paper. Copyright of Howard Coster, London. The back of the photograph contains a note in pencil which reads ‘A Kate O’Brien’. With a duplicate containing the letter A on the back. Similar to P12/5/2/1/6-7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white head and shoulders portrait (207 x 140 mm) of Kate O’Brien who is looking away from the camera. Copyright of Howard Coster, London. The back of the photograph contains the letter D in pencil. The image is mounted on paper and the mount contains a handwritten note in ink which reads ‘Kate O’Brien. A’s Godmother’. A handwritten note on the cover reads ‘Kate’. Similar to P12/5/2/1/5 and 7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white head and shoulders portrait (210 x 150 mm) of Kate O’Brien who is looking away from the camera. The image is mounted on paper. Copyright of Howard Coster, London. The back of the photograph contains the letter C in pencil. Similar to P12/5/2/1/5-6.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (205 x 160 mm) of Kate O’Brien in profile in a seated position wearing a suit and gloves. The back of the image contains some handwritten notes including one by Mary O’Neill in ink which identifies O’Brien as the subject and includes O’Neill’s contact details. In addition, further information is supplied in pencil, recording O’Brien as ‘novelist’, providing another address for O’Neill in Illington, Norfolk, and is signed ‘Love from Elizabeth’. Copyright of Howard Coster. With a duplicate measuring 240 x 150 mm and lacking notes on back.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two similar but not identical black and white head and shoulders portraits (240 x 190 mm) of Kate O’Brien with frontal view of the subject. Copyright of Reprograph Studio, 10 Long Acre, W.C. 2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white head and shoulders portrait (240 x 190 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal view of the subject. The image is mounted. Copyright of Blackstone Studios, 20 West 57th Street, New York. With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white head and shoulders portrait (240 x 190 mm) of Kate O’Brien in profile. The image is mounted. Copyright of Blackstone Studios, 20 West 57 Street, New York. With an unmounted duplicate measuring 253 x 203 mm.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length rough proof portrait (175 x 152 mm) of Kate O’Brien dressed in black in a seated position, with her left arm resting on a chair. Copyright of of Howard and Joan Coster.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length rough proof portrait (140 x 95 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal view of her seated at a table with a pen in her hand and a packet of cigarettes beside her. Similar to P12/5/2/1/14-16.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white, half-length rough proof portrait (140 x 95 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a frontal view of her seated at a table with a cigarette in her hand. Similar to P12/5/2/1/13 and 15-16.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white, half-length rough proof portrait (140 x 95 mm) of Kate O’Brien consisting of a frontal view of her seated with a mirror behind her. Similar to P12/5/2/1/13-14 and 16.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white, half-length rough proof portrait (140 x 95 mm) of Kate O’Brien consisting of a frontal view of her seated with a cigarette in her right hand and a mirror behind her. Similar to P12/5/2/1/13-15.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of sketches and painted portraits of Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photograph (200 x 150 mm) of a painted portrait of Kate O’Brien’s head and shoulders signed by Mary O’Neill. Contains a sticker on the back from the National Portrait Gallery, London.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two copies of a black and white photograph (185 x 150 mm) of a signed and dated sketch of Kate O’Brien’s head and shoulders in profile by Mary O’Neill.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photograph (275 x 230 mm) of a framed painted portrait of Kate O’Brien with a book in front of her and holding a cigarette in her left hand. The subject is posing in front of a landscape. Painting by [Mary O’Neill].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains informal portraits of Kate O'Brien.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (145 x 150) of Kate O’Brien in [Roundstone, county Galway] with her hands in her pockets as she looks away from the camera. Contains a handwritten note on the back which says ‘Kate’. Copyright of the Irish News Agency, Dublin. With a duplicate measuring 258 x 203 mm. Similar to P12/5/2/3/2-4.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (258 x 203 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a cigarette in her left hand and seated at desk [in her house in Roundstone, county Galway]. Copyright of the Irish News Agency, Dublin. Similar to P12/5/2/3/1 and 3-4.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (258 x 203 mm) of Kate O’Brien with a black cat in [Roundstone, county Galway]. Copyright of the Irish News Agency, Dublin. Similar to P12/5/2/3/1-2 and 4.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white half-length portrait (258 x 203 mm) of Kate O’Brien with her glasses in her hands as she leans against a stone wall in [Roundstone, county Galway] and looks away from the camera. Copyright of the Irish News Agency, Dublin. With a duplicate. Similar to P12/5/2/3/1-3.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white portrait (216 x 152 mm) of Kate O’Brien seated in [her home in Boughton, Kent] with a cat on her knees and a typewriter behind her.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of Kate O'Brien taken abroad and at her various residences in England and Ireland.
The material is arranged into three sub-series by location.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of Kate O'Brien in France, Spain and Italy.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (84 x 55 mm) of Kate O’Brien sitting on a balcony writing. A note on back written by O’Brien reads ‘KO’B. Sardinero, Santander. 1932.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 50 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking down a street in Madrid, Spain, carrying books and looking away from the camera, with the pillars of a building and people in the background. A handwritten note by O’Brien on the back reads ‘K. O’ B. Madrid 1933.’ Similar to P12/5/3/1/3.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 50 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking down a street in Madrid, Spain, carrying books and looking away from the camera, with the pillars of a building and people in the background. A handwritten note by Kate O’Brien on the back reads ‘K. O’ B. Madrid 1933.’ Similar to P12/5/3/1/2.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 60 mm) of Kate O’Brien in Spain sitting in a café under a striped umbrella smiling at the camera. A note written by O’Brien on the back reads ‘K. O’B. Pasio del Prado, Madrid. Summer, 1933. (Taken by M. O’N.)’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (60 x 90 mm) of El Escorial, Spain, with an open space flanked by buildings and trees. A handwritten note by Kate O’Brien on the back reads ‘El Escorial, Spain. Summer ’34. Taken by M. O’N.’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 50 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking down a street in [Madrid], Spain, carrying a newspaper in her left hand as she looks straight ahead. There are a number of people, trees and buildings in the background. A handwritten note on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B in Spain’. Similar to P12/5/3/1/6-7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 50 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking down a street in [Madrid], Spain, carrying a newspaper in her left hand as she looks straight ahead. There are a number of people, trees and buildings in the background. A handwritten note on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B in Spain’. Similar to P12/5/3/1/5 and 7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (70 x 50 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking down a street in [Madrid], Spain, carrying a newspaper in her left hand as he looks straight ahead. There are a number of people, trees and buildings in the background. A handwritten note on the back by Mary O’Neill reads ‘K O’B in Spain (street photographer)’. Similar to P12/5/3/1/5-6.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 60 mm) of Kate O’Brien in [Paris, France] standing with her right arm leaning on railings as she faces the camera. A handwritten note by Mary O’Neill on the back reads ‘K O’B (in Paris?)’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (45 x 35 mm) of Kate O’Brien in Ostende, Spain, sitting at a table in a café overlooking the street. A handwritten note by Mary O’Neill on the back reads ‘K O’B Ostende’. Similar to P12/5/3/1/11.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (40 x 32 mm) of Kate O’Brien in Ostende, Spain, standing beside a café overlooking the street. A handwritten note by Mary O’Neill on the back reads ‘K O’B Ostende’. Similar to P12/5/3/1/10.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (120 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien walking towards the camera on a street in [Spain], with her handbag in her left hand and her umbrella in her right, and a man standing in the background.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien sitting in a café under an umbrella in [Rome, Italy] looking away from the camera towards the crowd. With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 90 mm) of a busy café on a street in [Rome, Italy] with Kate O’Brien sitting at a table amongst the crowd, looking away from the camera. With a duplicate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien descending from an airplane in [Madrid, Spain], her left hand clutching the rail and with a case in her right hand. The image is contained on a postcard.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of the village of Roundstone, county Galway.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (165 x 185 mm) of a street in Roundstone, county Galway, with people going about their daily business and a bicycle in the left foreground. Copyright of Irish News Agency, Dublin.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (145 x 190 mm) of three men in caps standing at the bridge at Roundstone, county Galway. Copyright of Irish News Agency, Dublin.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (195 x 240 mm) of the bridge in Roundstone, county Galway, with a number of figures (including the three men from P12/440) and a view of some of the houses in the village. Copyright of Irish News Agency, Dublin.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (195 x 240 mm) of a young boy in a timber boat in [Roundstone, county Galway]. There is a second boat behind him with a view of the Twelve Pins in the distance. Copyright of Irish News Agency, Dublin.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains photographs of Kate O'Brien's house in Boughton, Kent.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Seven colour photographs (90 x 90 mm) of Kate O’Brien’s house at 177 The Street, Boughton, Kent, including an image of a woman standing at the entrance and a number of views of the front and back elevations of the property.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Negatives of six images of Kate O’Brien’s house at 177 The Street, Boughton, Kent.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains assorted photographs of mostly unidentified individuals, scenic views, pets and conference gatherings.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (55 x 75 mm) of American theatre director Guthrie McClintic on a beach looking out at the water. Contains a note on back written by Kate O’Brien which reads ‘Guthrie McClintic. Martha’s Vineyard, 1950.’ The image is cropped.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photographs (most measuring 110 x 65 mm) of mostly sites in Clare, Galway and Limerick including the Burren, county Clare; Noughaville Church, county Clare; Neylon’s Tomb in Kilnaboy, county Clare; Kilfenora, county Clare; Pearse’s Cottage, county Galway; and Coole House, county Galway. Also includes an image of the [Hanley family]. Each photograph contains a note by [Mary Hanley] identifying the location of the image and providing some historical information.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white passport-sized photographs (62 x 45 mm) of Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photographs of varying measurements mostly of cats named Kelly and La Grise at The Fort, Roundstone, county Galway. Some images contain handwritten notes by Kate O’Brien on the back.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 65 mm) of two young women with a pram talking to a man accompanied by his donkey.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 65 mm) of two women seated outside a house, one of whom has a baby on her lap and is sitting beside a pram.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (90 x 60 mm) of a nun holding a baby outside a brick building.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Colour photograph (125 x 90 mm) of a wooden chair in a garden with notes in ink on the back relating to measurements of some of Kate O’Brien’s furniture. Also notes her address in Boughton.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (140 x 90 mm) of statue of Saint Anne with Our Lady and the Infant, Jesus, at Aylesford Friary, Kent. Contains a handwritten note on the back by Kate O’Brien which reads ‘Saint Anne (with Our Lady and the Infant Jesus.) … Aylesford Friary. June 2, 1965.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (237 x 180 mm) of the International Congress of Comunitá Europea degli Scrittori in Rome. Kate O’Brien is sitting in the third row from the front with a walking stick in her right hand. Caption at the bottom reads ‘Comes Comunità Europea Degli Scrittori Congresso Internazionale Roma, 6-9 ottobre 1965’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photograph (65 x 65 mm) of a house and its front garden.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Black and white photographs (120 x 180 mm) of Kate O’Brien with colleagues at a dinner organised by University of Madrid. Originally attached to P12/5/5/3.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters from friends and associates enclosing photographs.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from 'Mollie', a school-friend of Nance O’Mara’s, from county Clare, enclosing a photograph of schoolgirls from [Laurel Hill Convent, county Limerick], for which see P12/5/1/7.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Mary E. Connolly, Roundstone, county Galway, to Kate O’Brien, outlining all of her news from Roundstone and enclosing photographs, for which see P12/5/1/108-109.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from P. Cradock, Secretary of Irish Embassy, London, 17, Grosvenor Place, S.W. 1 to Kate O’Brien referring to photographs received by Ambassador to Spain from Professor Sanchez Castañer, Dean of Faculty of Philosophy and Literature at University of Madrid. For the photographs, see P12/5/4/12.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This series includes material relating to Kate O'Brien's illness and death, the administration of her estate, Mary O'Neill's correspondence as Kate O'Brien's literary executrix and notes relating to her life.
The material is arranged into four sub-series by subject matter.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains documents relating to Kate O'Brien's final weeks and her death, which took place on 13 August 1974.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten list of possessions owned by Kate O’Brien, having been transferred to Canterbury Hospital and under the care of Dr. Taylor. Signed by Kate O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter to Kate O’Brien at 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, from the writer Antonia White, referring to health matters.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Deceased Patient’s Effects form in the name of Miss Kathleen O’Brien from Canterbury Group Hospital Management Committee, Kent and Canterbury Hospital, Canterbury, which records the patient’s name, ward, date, and description of articles. The form is signed by Mary O’Neill and witnessed by [E. Binfold].
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Two certified copies of Kate O'Brien's death certificate, recording the date and place of her death as 13 August 1974 at Kent and Canterbury Hospital in Canterbury, occupation as novelist and playwright, and cause of death as being bronchopneumonia, peripheral vascular disease and above knee amputation of left leg. The first copy contains the stamp of Williams & Glyn’s Bank Limited, Whitehall Branch, 15 Whitehall, London, S.W.1.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Card from Nance O’Mara to Elizabeth Hall, in appreciation for sympathy and flowers, stating ‘We shall all miss Kate greatly’.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Nance O’Mara, New Strand House, Limerick, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London, N.W.3 4RE, regarding Kate O’Brien’s leg amputation and arrangements for her funeral, stating ‘Of course I am willing and have never had any other intention but to pay the funeral expenses… at least I am able to deal with any financial problems of Kate’s’. Some lines are underlined in red.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Antonia White, 42D Courtfield Gardens, S.W. 5, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London, N.W.3 4RE, regarding Kate O’Brien’s death, stating ‘I had known her for some forty years and was very, very fond of her and admired her so much, both as a writer & as a person. She had such indomitable courage & humour & such extraordinary charm.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's last will and testament and the valuation and disposal of her estate.
The material is divided into three sub-series according to the aspect to which it relates.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains Kate O'Brien's last will and codicil and a related letter.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of the last will and testament of Kate O’Brien, Minerva Club, 28A Brunswick Square, London, W.C.1, appointing The National Bank Limited, 15 Whitehall, W.W.1 as sole executors of her affairs after her death, and Mary Cecelia O’Neill of 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London, N.W.3 4RE as literary executrix, giving O’Neill sole access to papers, letters and writings after Kate O’Brien’s death. In addition, she bequeaths all possessions including books, furniture and pictures that are in storage with Córas Iompair Éireann (C.I.E.) in Dublin and all other effects of hers to Mary O’Neill. In relation to her estate, she leaves the income from half of the copyrights (novels, dramas, film, radio, sound and television and all translated versions of works) to Mary O’Neill and the other half to her sister Mary O’Brien, 13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, and on Mary’s death, to become the property of two nephews, John and Donough O’Brien, Lanahrone Avenue, Corbally, Limerick, and divides all royalties fifty-fifty between the legatees. O’Brien states that as literary executrix, O’Neill can allow only the publication or reprinting of such writings as have been prepared for publication and expresses her wish that there shall be no publication at any time of her letters. Signed by Kate O’Brien and witnessed by Yvonne Kapp and Margaret Mynett.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Photocopy of a codicil to Kate O'Brien's will dated 14 January 1961 which bequeaths the property at 177 The Street, Boughton near Canterbury, Kent, to her sister Nance (Anne) O’Mara of New Strand House, Limerick, and in the event that her sister predecease her, to Anne’s son, Peter Joseph O’Mara of 25 Lanahrone Avenue, Corbally, Limerick. Signed by Kate O’Brien and witnessed by R. M. [---] and J. F. Vaughan, and contains the stamp of the National Bank Limited, Whitehall Branch.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from D. F. G. Barnes, Assistant Manager of Williams & Glyn’s Trust Company Limited, 13 to 17 Old Broad Street, London EC2N 1DL, to Mary O’Neill, care of 177 The Street, Boughton, North Canterbury, Kent, referring to Kate O’Brien’s estate and their decision to formally renounce the right to a grant of probate.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to the valuation of Kate O'Brien's property in Boughton, Kent.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Postcard with a handwritten note from Marie E. Chilver, Antiques, Oak Lodge, Boughton, North Faversham, Kent, which states ‘Contents of 177 The Street Boughton. Less £20 valuation fee £380.00. Signed by Chilver and by V.H. Ruddock West. Contains a note in pencil on front which reads ‘Books estimated £35-£40’ in the handwriting of Mary O’Neill.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Marie Chilver, Oak Lodge, Boughton, Faversham, Kent ME13 9BH, to Mary O’Neill, referring to an enclosed list of contents of 177 The Street, Boughton, which itemises and prices the contents of each room. The documents contain notes by Mary O’Neill summarising their contents.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence between Anthony Newell, Solicitor, John O'Brien and Mary O’Neill considering the administration of Kate O'Brien's estate.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten letter from John O’Brien, 13 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin 2, to Mary O’Neill, regarding issues including dealings with the firm Anthony Newell, Solicitor, royalties and negotiations with RTE over payment.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Anthony Newell, Solicitor, Kent, to John G. O’Brien, Bridge House, Baggot Street Bridge, Dublin 4, regarding administration of estate, and in particular, O’Brien’s income tax affairs. Also refers to O’Brien’s marriage and birth certificates held in care of Williams & Glyn’s Bank and the enclosure of administration account and statement of firm’s charges.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Anthony Newell, Solicitor, 43 Court Street, Faversham, Kent, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, noting that it had been possible to clear all liabilities of Kate O'Brien's estate and the firm’s costs due to assistance given from the executors of Mrs. [Anne] O’Mara’s estate and a substantial payment from David Higham.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Anthony Newell, Solicitor, Kent, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, regarding the administration account.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains material relating to Mary O'Neill's role as Kate O'Brien's literary executor.
The material is arranged into three sub-series according to the aspect to which it relates.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains letters from David Higham Associates to Mary O'Neill relating to her role as Kate O'Brien's literary executor.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from David Higham, Director of David Higham Associates Limited, Authors’ Agents, 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London, W1R 4HA, to Mary O’Neill, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, regarding the issue of literary executor.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from David Higham, Director of David Higham Associates Limited, London, to Mary O’Neill, 177 The Street, Boughton, Faversham, Kent, regarding some of Kate O’Brien’s material, stating ‘Very sadly, I don’t think that these few pieces have any value either as manuscripts or for publication.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence between Mary O'Neill and Lorna Reynolds mainly relating to Reynolds' book on Kate O'Brien.
The material is listed chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten letter from Lorna Reynolds, 21 Herbert Avenue, Merrion, Dublin 4, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, referring to a trip to Canada to lecture at International Conference of Canadian Association of Irish Studies, Dr. Angeline Hampton and her proposal to work on a critical account of Kate O’Brien, the Stony Thursday Book.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten letter from Lorna Reynolds, Parke Cottage, Eyrecourt, county Galway, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, referring to a reply received from Colin Smythe requesting a monograph on Kate O’Brien for Irish Literary Studies, dealings with Radio Telefís Éireann, dinner with Dr. Hampton and writing a book on O’Brien.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of letter from Mary O’Neill to Lorna Reynolds, commending her on her publication, referring to a review of book in *Irish Times* and to photographs of Kate O’Brien in the archive. She states the following about the book, ‘I am delighted with your book & admire it so much I keep dipping in to it again… You are so very good at bringing back the memory of Kate & her idiosyncraces.’ On the subject of the archive she says ‘…I don’t think the first photo of K with short hair was taken before 1921 or 2. I am almost certain she cut her hair after teaching us in 1921. I would say from the pinched look on her face it could have been taken during her marriage.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains drafts by Mary O'Neill of a biographical account of Kate O'Brien's life for inclusion in the Dictionary of National Biography.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Notes regarding Kate O’Brien’s life and work recorded on separate sheets of paper and on an envelope in the handwriting of Mary O’Neill, listing and dating her works, with some background information.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten draft of article on Kate O’Brien by Mary O’Neill in pencil and ink consisting of numbered points addressing her date and place of birth, family, career, civil and academic distinctions, and other matters. Also contains further information in pencil.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Draft of text in pencil by Mary O’Neill addressing Kate O’Brien’s early life, education, work in England and Spain, marriage to Gustaff Renier, literary work, move to Roundstone, county Galway, and then to Kent, and other travels.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, to the editor of the Dictionary of National Biography, Room 310, Clarendon Building, Bodleian Library, Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BG, referring to a query regarding quotations from Naomi Royde-Smith and Professor Lyons, and enclosing one page of a draft article with amendments in pencil and ink.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
This sub-series contains correspondence regarding aspects of Kate O'Brien's works.
The material is arranged chronologically by date.
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Handwritten letter from Mickey Hanrohan, 40 Wolfe Tone Street, Limerick, and former neighbour of the O’Briens, to Mary O’Neill, care of *Sunday Press*, referring to a work by Kate O’Brien entitled *Memories of a Catholic Education* and how he had lived next door to Boru House, stating, ‘I kept a few Pigons next door and could be seen from O’Briens Nursary. Master Jack Miss May Tom & Kate & Mrs O’ Mara Brought me Pigons from Shanno[n] view Their Uncle Michael’s Home & Stables.’
A pioneer in Irish fiction, Kate O’Brien was born in Limerick on 3 December 1897 to horse-dealer Thomas O’Brien and his wife, Catherine Thornhill O’Brien. One of ten children, O’Brien had three older sisters, Mary, Clare and Nance (or Anne), and six brothers, John (or Jack), Thomas, Eric, Michael, Michael Alphonsus and Gerard William. Tragedy struck the young family in 1903 when Catherine O’Brien died of cancer. Kate O’Brien was just over five years of age at this time and was to become the youngest boarder at Laurel Hill, a French convent school in Limerick. O’Brien’s father passed away in 1916, and in that same year Kate received a county council scholarship to read French and English in University College Dublin.
Kate O’Brien graduated from University College Dublin with a B.A. degree in 1919, moving to England where she worked as a free-lance journalist for The Sphere, followed by a position in the foreign language department of The Manchester Guardian Weekly. In 1921, O’Brien moved to London, and taught at St. Mary’s Convent in Hampstead for approximately six months before travelling to the United States as a companion to her sister Nance and her husband Stephen O’Mara. O’Brien returned from the States in 1922 but this did not mark the end of her travels, moving to Spain that same year to work as a governess in Bilbao. O’Brien taught the children of the Areilza family over a ten-month period, forming a deep attachment to Spain that was to remain with her for the rest of her days. Returning to London in 1923, she married a young Dutchman, Gustaff Renier. However, this union was only to last eleven months before the couple separated.
Spanning nearly fifty years, Kate O’Brien’s literary career commenced in 1926 with the play *Distinguished Villa*. O’Brien’s first work was the result of a bet with a friend that she could write a play within a number of weeks. It was performed at the Aldwych Theatre in London on 2 May 1926 and was met with wide acclaim. Several other plays followed in 1927, including *The Silver Roan*, *The Bridge* and *Set in Platinum*. It was her first novel, *Without My Cloak* (published in 1931), however, that established O’Brien as a significant Irish writer. A chronicle of the Considine family, this work was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 1934, O’Brien produced her second novel, *The Ante-Room*. This was followed two years later by its unsuccessful adaptation for the stage in London’s Queen Theatre, and in addition, the first of two works to be banned by the Censorship of Publications Board in Ireland, a novel entitled *Mary Lavelle*. Also addressing the subject of Spain is the highly personal travelogue *Farewell Spain* published in 1937, largely in response to the events surrounding the Spanish Civil War. This work was subsequently banned in Franco’s Spain and the author was forbidden access to the country until 1957 with the intervention of the Irish Ambassador to Spain. O’Brien’s play *The Schoolroom Window* was performed that same year at the Manuscript Theatre Club in London.
In 1938, O’Brien’s fourth novel, *Pray for the Wanderer* was published, and followed two years later by *The Land of Spices*, her second work to be banned in Ireland. O’Brien spent the early years of the Second World War in Oxford and London, working for the British Ministry of Information. The writer moved to Devon in 1942 boarding in the house of novelist, E.M. Delafield, and over the next year published *The Last of Summer*, which was performed as a play at the Phoenix Theatre in London and the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin between 1944 and 1945. The publication *English Diaries and Journals* was produced in 1943. O’Brien’s seventh novel, *That Lady*, was published in 1946. A great success, this work was published in North America as *For One Sweet Grape*. The novel was adapted for the stage in November 1949, directed by Guthrie McClintic and starring Katherine Cornell as Ana de Mendoza. The play opened in the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, and in 1955, the novel was made into a motion picture.
Kate O’Brien returned to live in Ireland in 1950, buying a handsome property in Roundstone, county Galway. O’Brien continued to be productive in her new surroundings publishing her biographical work *Teresa of Avila* in 1951, followed by her eighth novel, *The Flower of May* in 1953. The writer travelled to Rome in Italy in the early months of 1954 in preparation for what was to become her ninth and final published novel, *As Music and Splendour*. A decade after her move to Roundstone, O’Brien returned to England, settling in Boughton, Kent. Whilst the 1960s did not yield any further fictional work, O'Brien produced another travelogue entitled *My Ireland* in 1962. A collection of reminiscences of her early family life, entitled *Presentation Parlour*, followed in 1963. In addition, the writer produced articles for different publications including her ‘Long Distance’ series in the *Irish Times*. O’Brien was involved with numerous literary organisations during her lifetime including P.E.N. and the Comunità Europea degli Scrittori (where she represented Ireland). Kate O’Brien died in Kent on 13 August 1974, aged 76, leaving behind a body of unfinished work including her memoirs and what would have been her tenth novel, *Constancy*.
Published
Letter from Mary D’Agnese, Copyright Department, Harper & Row, Publishers Incorporated, 10 East 53rd Street, New York, New York 10022, to Mary O’Neill, 24A Steele’s Road, Hampstead, London NW3 4RE, regarding the renewal of copyright for *The Flower of May* by Kate O’Brien.