Subject
kinbotean shades to this fantastic literary hoax?
From
Date
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By KATIE FRETLAND
Associated Press Writer=
LONDON _ A British writer was duped into printing a
fake love letter in his latest biography _ complete with a
coded four-letter insult aimed at him.
Biographer A.N. Wilson thought he had new evidence that
English poet John Betjeman, who publicly lamented his dull
sex life, had a previously unknown extramarital affair.
Wilson included the letter, said to be from the poet to
his mistress, in his book «Betjeman,» published this
month.
He failed to notice that the first letter of each sentence
in one section of the letter spells out «A.N. Wilson is a
s---.»
Wilson's publisher acknowledged the passionate note must
be fake.
«We won't be stopping publication of the book, but when
we reprint it, we will take the letter out,» said Emma
Mitchell, a publicist for publisher Hutchinson. «We're not
panicking about it»
The letter appeared to reveal a lusty romance that
occurred 11 years after the poet married Penelope Chetwode.
Betjeman said in a television interview before his death in
1984 that he wished he had had more sex.
The passionate letter, dated May 1944, was addressed to
writer Honor Tracy, with whom Betjeman worked during World
War II.
Wilson received the letter _ with a French return address
and London postmark _ from an unknown correspondent using
the name Eve de Harben two years ago. Last week, the Sunday
Times newspaper received another letter informing it of the
hoax.
«I should have smelled a rat ... Obviously the letter is
a joke, a hoax,» Wilson told The Sunday Times after a
reporter pointed out the letter's hidden code.
The newspaper suggested that rival Betjeman biographer
Bevis Hillier might have been responsible, reporting that
the envelope came from a stationer in Winchester, the
southern English town where Hillier lives. Hillier denied
involvement, but told the paper he thinks Wilson is
«despicable.»
In a 2002 book review, Wilson said Hillier's biography of
Betjeman was a «hopeless mishmash of a book.»
Betjeman served as Britain's poet laureate from 1972 until
his death, and became a much-loved broadcaster late in
life. Britain is celebrating the centenary of his birth on
Aug. 28, 1906, with events across the country.
*
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View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm
By KATIE FRETLAND
Associated Press Writer=
LONDON _ A British writer was duped into printing a
fake love letter in his latest biography _ complete with a
coded four-letter insult aimed at him.
Biographer A.N. Wilson thought he had new evidence that
English poet John Betjeman, who publicly lamented his dull
sex life, had a previously unknown extramarital affair.
Wilson included the letter, said to be from the poet to
his mistress, in his book «Betjeman,» published this
month.
He failed to notice that the first letter of each sentence
in one section of the letter spells out «A.N. Wilson is a
s---.»
Wilson's publisher acknowledged the passionate note must
be fake.
«We won't be stopping publication of the book, but when
we reprint it, we will take the letter out,» said Emma
Mitchell, a publicist for publisher Hutchinson. «We're not
panicking about it»
The letter appeared to reveal a lusty romance that
occurred 11 years after the poet married Penelope Chetwode.
Betjeman said in a television interview before his death in
1984 that he wished he had had more sex.
The passionate letter, dated May 1944, was addressed to
writer Honor Tracy, with whom Betjeman worked during World
War II.
Wilson received the letter _ with a French return address
and London postmark _ from an unknown correspondent using
the name Eve de Harben two years ago. Last week, the Sunday
Times newspaper received another letter informing it of the
hoax.
«I should have smelled a rat ... Obviously the letter is
a joke, a hoax,» Wilson told The Sunday Times after a
reporter pointed out the letter's hidden code.
The newspaper suggested that rival Betjeman biographer
Bevis Hillier might have been responsible, reporting that
the envelope came from a stationer in Winchester, the
southern English town where Hillier lives. Hillier denied
involvement, but told the paper he thinks Wilson is
«despicable.»
In a 2002 book review, Wilson said Hillier's biography of
Betjeman was a «hopeless mishmash of a book.»
Betjeman served as Britain's poet laureate from 1972 until
his death, and became a much-loved broadcaster late in
life. Britain is celebrating the centenary of his birth on
Aug. 28, 1906, with events across the country.
*
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm