Add MS 89408/2/4

Letters to Margaret Forster from fellow writers, including a list of them, as follows:

A

• Aldiss Brian W, regarding the Booker prize 1981, 16 Oct 1981.

B

• Bailey Paul, regarding the Booker Prize, 7 Apr 1982.
• Banks Olive, regarding the relationship between women and men, 1 Feb 1982, and thanking Forster for the copy of her book Significant Sisters, 3 Sept 1984.
• Barker Pat, thanking Forster for her note about Regeneration and about how she was inspired by Forster's author note at the end of Lady's Maid, 22 Mar 1991.
• Barr Pat, congratulating Forster and commenting on Significant Sisters, 25 May 1985.
• Basil Priya, thanking Forster for her nice comments on Ishq and Mushq, [2007].
• Bawden Nina, about Mother Can You Hear Me? [1979], The Battle for Christabel [1991], Mother's Boys [1994], her autobiography In My Own Time, 24 Oct 1994, and Hidden Lives, 10 May 1995.
• Bayley John, about inaccuracies in one of his books, undated.
• Benn Melissa, about Public Lives and Hidden Lives, 9 Oct 1995; about the conflict between personal and political writing, 3 Apr 1998.
• Birkin Andrew, thanking Forster for her review of J.M. Barrie and The Lost Boys, 4 Jul 1979.
• Blake Fanny, as editor at Penguin, asking Forster if she would be interested in doing an autobiographical work of non-fiction, 24 Jun 1993.
• Blythe Ronald, with his shortlist for the Booker Prize, 16 Sept 1980.
• Bostridge Mark, regarding Forster's contribution to his Lives for Sale, 25 Feb 2004.
• Bragg Melvin, regarding their work, undated.
• Brien Alan, regarding his wife Jill Tweedie and a comment Forster wrote about her biography in The Spectator (and a copy of it), 30 Nov and 4 Dec 1993.
• Brookner Anita, thanking Forster for her card with best wishes, 25 Oct (no year).
• Brown Christy, about his book Down All the Days, 21 Oct 1969.
• Byatt A.S., about the Society of Authors Committee, 30 Jun 1984; about her book Possession, [2002].
• Typescript of text entitled 'The Booker-McConnell Prize for Fiction', undated.

C

• Callil Carmen, about an interview with 'Rebecca', 27 Oct 1980; about a (unspecified) proposal by Forster, 5 Nov 1993; about Forster's radio interview for Woman's Hour where she speaks about Carmen, with a printout of an email exchange between Carmen and Margaret Drabble about it, Feb 2010.
• Carey John, thanking Forster for her message, undated.
• Carpenter Humphrey, regarding his biography of Dennis Potter and a letter from Dennis Porter to Margaret Forster, 7 Jun 1996 to 10 Apr 1998.
• Carr 'Jim', thanking Forster for her help with his book A Month in the Country, undated, [1980].
• Chitty Susan, regarding Forster's review of Germaine Greer, 1 Mar 1989; about her book Keeping the Work Away and Gwen John, 27 Mar 2006 and 18 May 2006.
• Coe Jonathan, about his review of Have the Men Had Enough? and his personal experience, 30 Mar [1989].
• Cook David, thanking Forster for her letter and mentioning an article about Walter in The Sunday Times, 10 Feb 1978; about his book Second Best, 21 Sept 1991.
• Coldstream John, regarding his Dirk Bogarde: The Authorised Biography and Dirk's role in A Bridge too Far, 14 Jul 2003.
• Cooper Jilly, congratulating Forster on Significant Sisters, 23 Aug 1984; about Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning, 3 Apr 2014.
• Connolly Cressida, about Hidden Lives, 2 Nov 1998; about a possible biography by Forster of Sheila Fell, 1999.

D

• Daiches David, with comments on Forster's Booker Prize shortlist, 16 Sept 1980.
• Darling Julia, thanking Forster for a review of Crocodile Soup, 20 Nov [1998].
• Darling Vicky (mother of Julia), regarding Hidden Lives and Precious Lives, Dec 1998; thanking Forster for her letter of sympathy after Julia's death, 25 Apr 2005.
• Davidoff Leonora, regarding Significant Sisters, 15 Jan 1985.
• Dawson Jill, thanking Forster for her letters about Trick of the Light and Magpie, 17 Jun 1998 and 25 Apr 1996; about Shadow Baby, 22 May 1999; about an article in The Guardian about her and her son Lewis, 24 Jul 1999; about the Whitbread Award, Dec 2000; about Keeping the World Away and thanking her for her letter, 22 Mar 2006.
• Drabble Margaret, about their support for the New Fiction Society, undated, about Hidden Lives, 8 Jan 1996; about the Oxford Companion to English Literature, 11 and 20 Mar 1998; about Lady's Maid, and about a photographs of her favourite books at Action Library in Florence and Forster's interview on Woman's Hour, 16 Apr 2010.
• Durant David, regarding Forster's review of Bess of Hardwick, 23 Jun 1977.

E

• Eliott Janice, thanking Forster for her review of Heaven on Earth, 23 Mar 1975; thanking Forster for her warning about 'Hodders and the Broker', 10 Feb 1980; thanking Forster for her card and congratulating her on Have the Men Had Enough?, 20 Jun [1989].

F

• Faulks Sebastian, apologising for his 'slackness', undated.
• Ferguson Patricia, thanking Forster for her nice words about Family Myths and Legends, 21 Mar [1985].
• Ferris Paul, expressing his support for Forster's letter in The Telegraph about writing biographies, undated.
• Finn Melanie, thanking Forster for her quote for her book Away from You, 1 Aug 2004.
• Fitzgerald Penelope, about Forster giving a lecture on Daphne du Maurier at the Highgate Institution, 23 Feb and 4 May [1991]; about an article on the Ham and High regarding The Battle of Christabel, 10 May [1991]; about the Booker Prize shortlist, Forster's lecture on Daphne du Maurier and J.G Ballard new book, 21 Oct 1991; regarding Hidden Lives 1995.
• Fowles John, about his dislike of doing interviews for literary reviewers, 10 Dec 1980.
• Frame Ronald, regarding his award [Betty Trask Award], 13 and 19 Jul 1984.
• Fraser Antonia, thanking Forster for her book [Significant Sisters], 10 Aug 1984; regarding her speech at Graham Watson's farewell party, undated.
• Freely Maureen, sending Forster her new book and thanking her for her review of The Stork Club, 13 Jul 1995 (with handwritten note at the bottom of the letter by Forster 'I never reviewed The Stork Club').
• Freud Esther, thanking Forster for her complimentary letter, undated.

G

• Gardam Jane, about Gwen John , Crete, her daughter and writing novels, 5 Jan 1982; about Hunter Davies, her neighbour and her son, 9 May 1985.
• Gee Maggie, about Have the Men Had Enough and it not being shortlisted for the Booker Prize, [1989]; about Good Wives, Hidden Lives, Precious Lives, and her own memoir to send to Forster to read, 16 Sept 2009; about her father and children, literary awards, Is there Anything you Want? and Forster doing a quote for her, 30 Sept 2009.
• Gee Sue, thanking Forster for her letter about Spring Will be Ours, about Ursula Bentley, about Shadow Baby being read on the radio, about making Hidden Lives a set text in her writing course at Middlesex University, and about Ancient and Modern, a Christmas play on Radio 4, 21 Oct 2004.
• Gillies Midge, thanking Forster for reading the proofs of Waiting for Hitler and congratulating her on her books, 21 Apr 2006.
• Glendinning Victoria, about Maggie Gee and Martin Amis being favourite authors amongst students and the biography of V. Sackville-West, [1983]; about tours for promoting books, her husband disease and about meeting up, undated; about Emma Goldman, her papers in Amsterdam containing material relating to Rebecca West, and a 'short' biography of Rebecca West, [1984].
• Goof Martyn, inviting Forster to be a judge on the Booker Prize, 20 Feb 1979 and 14 Feb 2000.
• Grove Valerie, about the biography of John Mortimer, 21 Aug 2006.

H

• Hall Sarah, thanking Forster for her words about Electric Michelangelo, and her good wishes for the Booker Prize shortlist [2004].
• Hartley Jenny, thanking Forster for her letter about Reading Groups and about Shadow Baby, 6 Jul 2001.
• Hastings Selina, about J.G Ballard work which she describes as 'dull', 1 Oct 1984.
• Hayter Alethea, suggesting possible words for an inscription on the stone at Coxhoe Hall, birthplace of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, 1and asking to call her 'poet' not 'poetess', 7 and 26 Aug 1988; about A Sultry Month, 13 Jul 1992, about Daphne du Maurier and writing biographies, 5 and 30 Aug 1992; thanking Forster for her letter about The Wreck of Abergavenny, 9 Sept 2002.
• Hemmings Susan, asking Forster questions for an article in Spare Rib, about Forster's article from 28 Feb 1981 in The Guardian about Margaret Drabble, where she wrote 'The Middle Ground pleased the feminists', 9 Mar 1981; about feminism, 16 Mar 1981.
• Hill Susan, about G Tindall, her daughter Jessica and wishing Forster good luck with her novel [Mother Can You Hear Me?], 1 Nov 1979; thanking Forster for her support, about an offer she received and accepted and her earning for it [Mrs De Winter], [1993].
• Hoare Philip, about some letters Forster had asked to see, 2 Aug 1990; about his work on Noel Coward, Hunter Davies' piece for Coward's 70^th birthday and Coward's letters to Daphne du Maurier, 24 Oct 1990.
• Hollinghurst Alan, thanking Forster for her letter about his book The Swimming Pool Library, 14 Mar 1998.
• Hollis Patricia, about Significant Sisters and Sylvia Pankhurst, and about Jennie Lee's biography and how Jennie's estate had asked other authors to write it, undated; abut Jennie Lee's papers, undated; about her husband's illness and a possible paperback of Jennie Lee's biography to include things left out in the hardback, 30 Jan [1997].
• Holman Sheri Elizabeth, thanking Forster for her words on The Dress Lodger and the association with Charles Dickens, 12 Jul 1999.
• Holroyd Michael, sending Forster a copy of a talk to give at the Devon Festival about the Bookshops in Libraries scheme and about her article on Maggie (Drabble), 28 Feb 1981; about the Bookshops in Libraries scheme, Forster's article in The Guardian and his article in The Times about William Gerhardie and asking for more articles like that, 5 Mar and 5 May 1981; about the Tate Britain exhibition on Gwen and Augustus John, Forster's new book about Gwen John, and him writing about Ellen Terry and Henry Irving, 28 Feb 2004.
• Hope Christopher, thanking Forster for her letter about his novel Kruger's Alp, 16 Nov 1984, and her review of the book in The Literary Review, 1 Feb 1985.
• Howard Elizabeth Jane, thanking Forster for her 'kind words' and stating how she loathes 'experimental novels', 25 Feb 1982; congratulating Forster for Significant Sisters, writing 'I can't think how we've done without this book for so long', 31 Aug 1984.
• Huth Angela, congratulating Forster for Hidden Lives and Precious Lives, 5 Jan 1999; about My Life in Houses, 2 Jan 2015.