Monday, May 28, 2007


Saturday, May 12, 2007

Daphne Du Maurier

Dame Daphne du Maurier, 1907–1989, was a famous British novelist. Among her works are The Birds, Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, and The Blue Lense.

Du Maurier's novel Mary Anne is about her great-great grandmother who was the mistress of the Duke of York, the brother of King George IV.

Du Maurier was the cousin of the Llewelyn-Davies boys (George, Jack, Peter, Michael, and Nicholas), J.M. Barrie's inspiration for Peter Pan.

Du Maurier's father was the actor Sir Gerald du Maurier. Daphne du Maurier believed that her father's attitude towards her was homoerotic.

"If only she'd been born a boy," he wrote in a poem addressed to her.

Reportedly, Daphne du Maurier encouraged 'inappropriate intimacies' between her father and herself. 'We crossed the line,' she admitted. (Daphne's terrible secret the Daily Mail )

Reportedly, Daphne du Maurier had an affair with Gertrude Lawrence. Daphne Du Maurier also loved the wife of her American publisher, Ellen Doubleday.

Reportedly, Daphne du Maurier "referred to her heterosexual encounters as 'Cairo' and to homosexual encounters as 'Venice'." (Du Maurier's lesbian loves on film UK News The Observer)

Daphne du Maurier was married to Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick "Boy" Browning. Browning became Comptroller of the Household at Buckingham Palace and, according to Daphne, "fell in love with the Queen." (Daphne's terrible secret the Daily Mail )