'One November evening in 1925, two young women from London arrived at the village of Chaldon, in Dorset. They brought with them two suitcases, a gramophone, and a wooden boxful of records; the bare necessities. Both wore trousers and had Eton-cropped hair. The taller of the two, Mrs Turpin, had come to the country to recover from a recent operation to remove her hymen.' Mrs Turpin was Valentine Ackland, on the run from her recent disastrous marriage. She was soon to meet the love of her life, Sylvia Townsend Warner, already a celebrity for her dashing debut novel Lolly Willowes. They would live in Dorset together in a passionate relationship until Valentine's death in 1969. Valentine was a dedicated poet, deeply involved with Communism during the 1930s, and an environmentalist and peace campaigner. Recently released MI5 files show that she was blacklisted for confidential work during the Second World War, and remained under long-term surveillance. Despite her commitment to Sylvia, Valentine had many affairs with women who fell for her androgynous beauty and her masterful conduct of an amour. She also struggled with alcoholism, but the relationship with Sylvia survived all challenges. Frances Bingham has written the definitive biography of this remarkable cross-dressing woman, poet and activist, recovering an important part of British lesbian history and creating a testament to queerness and gender identity in Valentine's transgressive life.
Frances Bingham has written the definitive biography of Valentine Ackland, a remarkable cross-dressing woman, poet and activist, recovering an important part of British lesbian history and creating a testament to queerness and gender identity in Valentine's transgressive life. Her biography was published on what would have been Valentine's 115th birthday. Frances writes for live performance and her work often references plays, especially Shakespeare. Alongside writing she has worked in a variety of jobs, including; studio assistant in a country pottery; contemporary ceramics curator and London gallery front-of-house manager, exhibition installer, arts journalist, theatrical script editor, journal-writing workshop tutor. With her partner Liz Mathews she runs Potters' Yard Arts in London; among other projects they collaborate on joint text/image projects, including artist's books which sometimes set Frances' words, and making artists' films (Riversoup, Paper Wings, The Moment That Holds You - shown at Arnolfini Bristol, turnthepage Norwich and Fruitmarket Gallery Edinburgh, among other venues).
Title: Valentine Ackland: A Transgressive Life: 4 (Handheld Research)
Author: Bingham, Frances
ISBN: 9781912766406
Binding:
Publisher: Handheld Press
Publication Date: 2021-05-20
Number of Pages: 270
Weight: 0.4371 kg
Describing her subject as a complex, mercurial human being, Bingham prompts the reader to keep turning the pages of this well-researched, idiosyncratic, and fascinating biography ... Bingham brings Ackland, a complicated and complex woman, and her poetry, to a new audience. - New York Journal of Books
A new biography of Ackland . . . is to reveal the level of secret service confusion about this unconventional pair of writers at the beginning of the long period during which they were both objects of state scrutiny. All their correspondence was stopped and read by MI5 officers without their knowledge, and Ackland's later attempts to enlist for significant war work were blocked. - The Observer
Frances Bingham is a doughty champion and a good biographer. - The Oldie
The cross-dressing Communist lesbian, her closet gay husband ... and a love story like no other. - The Daily Mail
Ackland was a powerhouse in facing up to what she saw as an unfair world for women and workers and with this new biography Bingham reminds us what an amazingly modern woman Ackland was. - The Morning Star
Bingham has given us an admirable biography about a complex subject who was as beautiful to look at as she was difficult to love - Gay and Lesbian Review
Frances Bingham has penned a definitive biography of an important poet of the early 20th century, which includes an incisive analysis of gender roles of the era. Impeccably researched and vividly detailed, the book is also an indelible achievement to queer literature. Ultimately A Transgressive Life is a testament to Valentine's courage and loyalty on all fronts. - EDGE Media Network