Book Festival Talk

LOCAL author, Dee Gordon, will be speaking about Famous Essex Authors, You Have Never Heard Of at the ‘Essex – A County of Contrasts’ event.

The event is part of Metal’s Essex Writers House, partnered by the Essex Book Festival at Chalkwell Hall, Chalkwell Park, Westcliff on Friday June 14 from 7pm. Other local authors are also featured.

Ms Gordon says she is looking forward to meeting all those interested in Essex and its literary history, although the event also caters for other literary tastes.

As an adopted Southender, she has been researching the area for forty years, and is particularly delighted to have found so many successful authors in and around Southend, Leigh and Basildon, ending up with enough to fill a book: Famous Essex Authors You Have Never Heard Of.

Ms Gordon said: “You can see the location of all these authors in the pull out map at the rear of the book.”

One such happens to be one of her own favourite authors, who she had not realised to be so local (R.D.Wingfield from Basildon), she was a fan of the Frost book series long before the television series with David Jason hit the television screen.

She added: “and who knew that Leigh had produced someone who gave Barbara Cartland a run for her money (Violet Winspear) with 70 successful Mills and Boon novels, set in exotic locations which she never visited, and who caused a storm when quoted as saying in 1970 that her heroes should come across as being ‘capable of rape.’

“H.G.Wells’ mistress and son spent time in Leigh, and Thackeray’s wife died there, so both get a mention.

“There will be some you have heard of e.g. Leigh’s John Fowles (French Lieutenant’s Woman) but they could hardly be omitted, especially as it is difficult to ascertain which people readers might or might not know.

“Current local authors are not included because information on them becomes dated by the time a book hits the shops.”

Full details and ticket booking can be found at: essex100.com/essex-a-county-of-contrasts-event.

Picture: Dee Gordon

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