Philip Lindsay
Philip Lindsay (1906–1958) was an Australian writer, who mostly wrote historical novels. He was the son of Norman Lindsay, an Australian artist and a younger brother of writer Jack Lindsay. He was educated at the Anglican Church Grammar School in Brisbane,[1] and emigrated to England in the 1930s. Most of his novels were written whilst he lived in England. His daughter Cressida also became a novelist.
His novels often treated his subject matter in a dark fashion, with his central characters depicted as brooding, depressed, or disturbed characters. They include:
- The Devil and King John, influenced by Margaret Murray's The Divine King in England, according to which John had leanings towards the "Old Religion" of witchcraft (see witch-cult hypothesis) and his first wife Hadwisa was an actual witch. However its treatment of the better-established facts of John's reign, although ambiguous, was more sympathetic to John than most accounts. Archbishop Stephen Langton is an important character who is treated relatively sympathetically.
- One Dagger for Two, about Christopher Marlowe. In this account Marlowe is an atheist, but heterosexual. He was stabbed in a tavern quarrel, but over a dispute about a woman, not just a petty dispute over the bill.
- They Have Their Dreams, about Perkin Warbeck, claims that Warbeck was really the illegitimate son of Margaret of York and a clergyman.
- The Little Wench, about Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere.
- Here Comes the King, about Catherine Howard, Henry VIII's fifth wife.
- The Merry Mistress, about Jane Shore, mistress of Edward IV.
He also wrote highly sympathetic biographies of Richard III of England (The Tragic King) and of Henry V of England.
In addition, he did some work for the film industry. He was one of a team of writers on Song of Freedom and Under the Red Robe, and was a technical advisor on The Private Life of Henry VIII.
References
- ↑ Mason, James (2011). Churchie: The Centenary Register. Brisbane, Australia: The Anglican Church Grammar School. ISBN 978-0-646-55807-3.
External links
- Bookstore entry
- Some information on Here Comes the King
- Entry at IMDB
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