The Fair Venetian

London: Michael Joseph Ltd, 1943. Cloth. Good+. FIRST EDITION, INSCRIBED BY AUTHOR. 8vo. Original red cloth, spine lettered in silver. Unevenly sunned and rubbed, pushing to spine ends, edgewear, bottom corners bumped, a few scores to bottom board. Inscribed by Farjeon in blue pen to ffep: "Dearest Denys � Nollekins �/ from Eleanor � Nellikins �/ to mark The Silver Curlew's / second London year./ Dec. 22nd 1950" with another inscription below in blue ink: "Bertha Rose./ given to me by Ren�e / in memory of Denys./ March 15. 1971." Closed tear to bottom edge of pp. 211-2, nick to rear hinge, else, clean and tidy, especially given the wartime paper stock. A unique association copy of Farjeon's only crime novel. Good+ Aptly, with a printed dedication to Farjeon's brother, who was a crime novelist by trade: "To Joe from a novice in his craft". Inscribed to "Denys" in 1950, the first year of Blakelock and Farjeon's friendship, and subsequently re-gifted to another friend Bertha Rose (n�e Hagart) by Blakelock's sister-in-law Ren�e: "in memory of Denys/ March 15th 1971". Denys Blakelock (1901-1970), actor, RADA teacher and childhood friend and lover of Laurence Olivier, became one of the closest friends of Farjeon's later life. The couple met when Blakelock was cast as King Nollekins of Norfolk in the first run of Farjeon's play The Silver Curlew at The Arts Theatre in 1949/1950; an event celebrated in her inscription to our copy of Love Affair (ref. 2214), and, indeed, recalled in Farjeon's inscription here too. Indeed, 1950 proved a hinge year for Farjeon, who had lost her long-time companion, George Earle (Pod) in November 1949 and was grieving deeply; it also saw the beginnings of her conversion to Catholicism. By their meeting, Blakelock "was an established victim of dark moods of depression and anxiety," which were taking a toll both personally and professionally. The friendship offered a new start for them both and very rapidly they became each other's emotional succour. They even dubbed their first trip away together in June 1951 their "honeymoon" holiday, which they commemorated over the 15 years of their friendship. As Blakelock reflected in the closing pages of his memoir of Farjeon, Eleanor: "Eleanor Farjeon's life was so closely bound up with mine for that last long phase, if I were to paint a true picture of her it seemed to become increasingly impracticable to keep myself to any real extent in the background". (Blakelock, 1966). Less is known about Farjeon's friend, Bertha Hagart/ Rose: it seems likely she is the Royal Academy of Music (RAM)-trained, South African pianist, who was active professionally both in South Africa and Britain in the 1950s. If this is the case, it also seems probable that the two women met through Farjeon's elder brother Harry, who taught at RAM for 45 years. Whatever the case, Hagart was close enough to them both to be presented with Blakelock's cherished copies of Farjeon's books by his sister-in-law, the actor Ren�e Blakelock (1897-1973); a posthumous intertwining of their three lives, which would surely have pleased Farjeon, given her own practice of re-gifting books (see our other inscribed Farjeon copies). Denys Blakelock (1966) Eleanor: Portrait of a Farjeon. London: Gollancz Ltd.