The Anthony Powell Society Newsletter Issue 36, Autumn 2009 ISSN 1743-0976 Dance Class American High School students Encounter Dance by John Gould with a Foreword by Dr Nicholas Birns Dance Class offers an extraordinary collection of essays about Anthony Powell’s great comic novel from John’s two courses (2001-2 and 2007-8) teaching Dance to senior high school students. The young authors discuss issues of character, plot and theme; investigate historical background; chart personal relevance; parody characters and situations; even write a treatment for a drama. This book reveals fresh new ways of looking at Dance. Published by iUniverse and being launched at the Washington Conference. Pre-order now from iUniverse.com, Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. Available from the Society from mid-September. ISBN 9781440129032. Cover price $18.95. We are grateful to John for pledging the royalties from this book to the Society. Contents From the Secretary’s Desk … 2 AP and Washington, DC ... 3-9 Michelle Obama ... 9 Lost Scenes from Dance ... 10-11 Obituary: Flossie Lane ... 12 REVIEW: Lees-Milne Diaries ... 13-14 Society News … 15 Dates for Your Diary ... 16-17 Local Group News … 18 Commodious Monkeys ... 19-21 Anthony Powell’s War ... 22-25 Cuttings ... 26-29 Merchandise & Membership … 30-32 AGM Papers ... centrefold Anthony Powell Annual Lecture – see page 16 Anthony Powell Society Newsletter #36 The Anthony Powell Society From the Secretary’s Desk Registered Charity No. 1096873 Odd. That’s the only way I can describe it. The Anthony Powell Society is a charitable Odd. Eccentric. Even strange. literary society devoted to the life and works Have you ever found that sometimes when of the English author Anthony Dymoke you do a piece of work it feels perfectly Powell, 1905-2000. normal and straightforward. But very occasionally the result is something other; Officers & Executive Committee something odd? That’s rather how I feel Patron: John MA Powell about this edition of the Newsletter. President: Simon Russell Beale, CBE No, I don’t know why. This edition just feels different, somehow maybe more Hon. Vice-Presidents: Julian Allason eclectic; more eccentric (in the literal sense Patric Dickinson, LVO of being off-centre or unbalanced). Mrs Erdleigh would undoubtedly divine that *Chairman: Dr Christine Berberich there is some strange juxtaposition in the *Hon. Secretary: Dr Keith C Marshall heavens – Deimos and Phobos crossing *Hon. Treasurer: Dr Derek WJ Miles Aldebaran perhaps? Or maybe, as I’m *Committee Members: writing this on the evening of 12 August, it Dr Nicholas Birns (USA) is something to do with the Perseid meteor Stephen Holden shower which supposedly peaks tonight. Jeffrey Manley (USA) Tony Robinson Indeed there are some more than usually Elwin Taylor eccentric, curious, even whacky, articles in Membership & Merchandise Officers: this edition – although as always there is an Graham & Dorothy Davie AP connection in every one. And for some reason there seems to have been a recent Newsletter & Journal Editor: spate of AP references in the media, which Stephen Holden Hon. Archivist: Noreen Marshall is in part at least why this issue feels so PR/Media Adviser: Julian Allason eccentric and eclectic: we always try to include these where we can. All correspondence should be sent to: This issue also contains two important Hon. Secretary, Anthony Powell Society items. First the announcement of this 76 Ennismore Avenue, Greenford year’s Anthony Powell Lecture at The Middlesex, UB6 0JW, UK Wallace Collection on 28 November which Phone: +44 (0) 20 8864 4095 Fax: +44 (0) 20 8864 6109 is to be given by the historian David Email: [email protected] Kynaston. Details are on page 16. You will have noticed the second important item on the front cover: John Gould’s book * Members of the Executive Committee and the of his students’ essays from his two courses Society’s legal trustees. All trustees are resident in England or Wales unless stated. teaching Dance in high school. This has been in gestation for a long time: I recall walking through Oxford during the Balliol Cover photograph © John S Monagan 1984 conference in April 2003 discussing ideas and reproduced by kind permission. © The Anthony Powell Society, 2009 and the for this book with John. And here it is, individual authors named. All rights reserved. being launched at the Washington Published by The Anthony Powell Society. conference which is itself almost upon us.■ Printed and distributed by Express Printing, Wellingborough, UK. 2 Anthony Powell Society Newsletter #36 Anthony Powell and Washington, DC by Jeff Manley Washington, DC is noted more for its parties, and in a beat-up-Chevy, historical and political sites than for its hamburger-joint kind of way they associations with US literary history. showed us something very American: Because of the transient nature of its what a good time non-well-off people population, however, many writers have could have. [Kingsley Amis, passed through Washington and left Memoirs, Penguin, 1991, 202-3] records of their impressions. While Anthony Powell leaves no record so far Isaiah Berlin (1909- 1997). Philosopher, published of any visit to Washington, he writer, Oxford professor has left comments on many of the writers and administrator, and and others of note who do have friend and admirer of the Washington associations. In view of the great and the good. His Biennial Conference in September at time as a student at Georgetown University, I have put Oxford (1928-32) did together the following survey of at least not overlap with that of Powell (1923-26) some of those writers and others with but they certainly were known to each Washington connections on whom Powell other and shared mutual friends, including has left comments. Maurice Bowra and Evangeline Bruce. Kingsley Amis (1922- Briefly mentioned in Powell’s memoirs 1995). Novelist, poet, [Strangers, 173] and more frequently in literary critic, friend and the Journals, most notably when he sent a correspondent of Powell congratulatory note upon announcement of from 1953. In October the bestowal of Powell’s Companion of 1958, while teaching at Honour by the Queen. Berlin lived in or Princeton, he made a trip near Georgetown during much of WWII. to Washington during The first visit took place in 1940 when he which he and his family stayed with his arrived in the US on what he hoped would Aunt Gladys Case, his father’s sister, who be a trip to Moscow arranged and lived there with her second husband Virgil accompanied by Guy (“Uncle Virg”). As described by Amis, Burgess (who at the time worked – or claimed to The house was on S Street – just that; work – for the British strange that a people so fond of Intelligence Service) where colour and tolerant of a bit of faking Berlin was to be appointed should have given streets in major Press Attaché with the cities mere numbers and letters … It support of Harold was a small house and not a Nicholson and Gladwyn Jebb. The FO prosperous household … There was a either in Washington or London thought rather dreadful prole-style parlour better of that venture, in particular because with heavy furniture and no drinks in of the inherently unreliable Burgess’s it or anywhere else on normal involvement in it, and sent Burgess occasions. But they had their sun straight back to London, leaving Berlin porch and rumpus room and plenty of 3 Anthony Powell Society Newsletter #36 somewhat stranded in the US where he Evangeline Bruce (née picked up work from the British Bell) (1914-1995). Information Office which at the time was Friend of the Powells actively promoting entry of the US into the and frequent visitor to war [1]. Based on his success in the The Chantry. Daughter Information Office and after a brief trip of American father (Ned back to London then in the midst of the Bell, diplomat) and blitz, Berlin was reposted to Washington in English mother (Etelka 1941. On this visit, which extended to Surtees, whose forebears were Tory 1945, when he finally was able to make a politicians, writers, actors); lived at the trip to Moscow, he lived during part of the Georgetown house purchased before time in two interesting Georgetown WWII by her husband, US diplomat David situations ... KE Bruce (1898-1977). Evangeline married Bruce The first was in the house of a somewhat in 1945 a few weeks after eccentric Englishwoman, Anne his divorce from Ailsa Fremantle (née Jackson), whom he knew Mellon, daughter of from Oxford and who was a writer of Andrew Mellon, Pittsburgh books about religion but at the time was banking and manufacturing working in the Indian Section of the tycoon. She is mentioned British Embassy. Berlin described briefly in Hearing Secret Harmonies [197- Georgetown to his parents as 198] in the context of discussion by Susan the most charming possible suburb of Cutts of Fiona’s recent marriage to Russell Washington, at the tip of which is the Gwinnett: “‘I wish Evangeline were still British Embassy itself … The whole here,’ said Susan. ‘She might know thing … has a strong Oxford flavour something about the Gwinnetts …’” … which I prefer to the grandeur of Powell comments on both Evangeline and life in towns. [2] her husband several times in his Journals. He met her at a party at Pamela Berry’s in In September 1943 Berlin moved to 1963/64 when her husband was another Georgetown location on a hill Ambassador to the Court of St James and “overlooking the River Potomac on one got on well from the start (“a beauty, well side and the gardens of Georgetown on the dressed, intelligent, funny, slightly other”.