Esmé Wynne-Tyson
Encyclopedia
Esmé Wynne-Tyson was an English actress and writer. As a child she acted in West End
plays, and became a close friend, confidante, and collaborator of Noël Coward
. She left the stage in 1920 and wrote a series of novels. A growing interest in religious and moral matters led her into non-fiction and journalism, sometimes in partnership with the writer J. D. Beresford
.
, London, the only child of Harry Innes Ripper (1871–1956), a stockbroker, and Minnie Maude née Pitt (1874–1940). Educated first by governesses, then at an English boarding school and at a Belgian convent, she became a child-actress, taking the stage name Esmé Wynne in 1909.
She made her professional début in Maeterlinck
's The Blue Bird and was the original Rosamund in Where the Rainbow Ends in 1911. While in the latter play, she became friendly with the young Noël Coward
, who was in the production, and their friendship was for a time the most important in Coward's life. She began writing plays, sometimes alone and on other occasions in collaboration with Coward. Her first play, The Prince's Bride, was produced by Charles Hawtrey at the Savoy Theatre
, London, when she was 13. Coward was in the cast. At the age of 19, she wrote a light comedy, Little Lovers, which was staged in London in 1922, drawing a dismissive review in The Times
. With Coward, she wrote a series of short plays, under the joint pen-name "Esnomel": The Last Chapter (staged 1917), To Have and to Hold (not staged), and Women and Whisky (staged 1918). Her last stage appearance was as Faith in Coward's comedy I'll Leave It to You, in 1920, to which she contributed lyrics for a song.
. They combined their names as "Wynne-Tyson" the following year. There was one son of the marriage, Jon Wynne-Tyson
, who became a writer and publisher. She became a convert to Christian Science
and vegetarianism and was estranged from the worldly life of the theatre, though she remained friendly with Coward, who was amused at her attempts to improve his moral character. He teased her by professing "a selfless absorption in the well-being and achievement of Noël Coward" and an "unregenerate spiritual attitude".
In the years after her marriage, Wynne-Tyson wrote a series of novels: Security, 1927; Quicksand, 1927; Momus, 1928; Melody, 1929; and Incense and Sweet Cane, 1930. All five of these novels were to some extent autobiographical, reflecting the deterioration of her marriage and her increasing attachment to religion. Her husband left her in 1930, and they were divorced in 1947. After the separation, she turned to non-fiction and journalism as well as fiction, often in collaboration with John Davys Beresford
, who shared her interest in metaphysics and in a mutual gospel she later named "philosophy of compassion". They wrote ten novels together, although some were issued under Beresford's name, for contractual reasons. Their official collaborations were Strange Rival, 1940; Men in the Same Boat, 1943; The Riddle of the Tower, 1944; and The Gift, 1947. Wynne-Tyson's non-fiction works include Prelude to Peace: The World-Brotherhood Educational Movement, 1936; The Unity of Being, 1949; This Is Life Eternal: The Case for Immortality, 1951; (under the pseudonym Peter de Morny) The Best Years of Their Lives, 1955; Mithras, the Fellow in the Cap, 1958; The Philosophy of Compassion: The Return of the Goddess,1962; and (as editor) Porphyry
's Abstinence from Animal Food, 1965.
Wynne-Tyson also wrote children's stories under the pen-name Amanda, and contributed philosophical articles, sometimes using the pen-name Diotima, to a wide range of publications including The Manchester Guardian
. From 1961 to 1970 she edited the magazine World Forum, which focused on vegetarianism and humanitarian matters.
, though the chief source of the character is thought to be another of Coward's friends, the writer Clemence Dane
. However, Carlotta in Coward's late play A Song at Twilight
was based on Wynne-Tyson after she had briefly come back into Coward's life in 1952, and Amanda's cries of "sollocks" in Private Lives
to restore peace at times of quarrel have their origins in Wynne-Tyson's youthful rules of engagement with Coward. Her son Jon wrote a comedy, Marvellous Party, about a middle-age reunion of his mother and Coward.
Wynne-Tyson died in Chichester
at the age of 73.
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
plays, and became a close friend, confidante, and collaborator of Noël Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
. She left the stage in 1920 and wrote a series of novels. A growing interest in religious and moral matters led her into non-fiction and journalism, sometimes in partnership with the writer J. D. Beresford
J. D. Beresford
John Davys Beresford was an English writer, now remembered for his early science fiction and some short stories in the horror story and ghost story genres. His Hampdenshire Wonder was a major influence on Olaf Stapledon. His other science-fiction novels includeThe Riddle of the Tower, about a...
.
Early years
Dorothy Estelle Esmé Innes Ripper was born in StockwellStockwell
Stockwell is a district in inner south west London, England, located in the London Borough of Lambeth.It is situated south south-east of Charing Cross. Brixton, Clapham, Vauxhall and Kennington all border Stockwell...
, London, the only child of Harry Innes Ripper (1871–1956), a stockbroker, and Minnie Maude née Pitt (1874–1940). Educated first by governesses, then at an English boarding school and at a Belgian convent, she became a child-actress, taking the stage name Esmé Wynne in 1909.
She made her professional début in Maeterlinck
Maurice Maeterlinck
Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck, also called Comte Maeterlinck from 1932, was a Belgian playwright, poet, and essayist who wrote in French. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1911. The main themes in his work are death and the meaning of life...
's The Blue Bird and was the original Rosamund in Where the Rainbow Ends in 1911. While in the latter play, she became friendly with the young Noël Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
, who was in the production, and their friendship was for a time the most important in Coward's life. She began writing plays, sometimes alone and on other occasions in collaboration with Coward. Her first play, The Prince's Bride, was produced by Charles Hawtrey at the Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
, London, when she was 13. Coward was in the cast. At the age of 19, she wrote a light comedy, Little Lovers, which was staged in London in 1922, drawing a dismissive review in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. With Coward, she wrote a series of short plays, under the joint pen-name "Esnomel": The Last Chapter (staged 1917), To Have and to Hold (not staged), and Women and Whisky (staged 1918). Her last stage appearance was as Faith in Coward's comedy I'll Leave It to You, in 1920, to which she contributed lyrics for a song.
Writing career
In 1918 Wynne married Linden Charles Tyson, an officer in the Royal Air ForceRoyal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. They combined their names as "Wynne-Tyson" the following year. There was one son of the marriage, Jon Wynne-Tyson
Jon Wynne-Tyson
Jon Wynne-Tyson is a British author, publisher, activist and pacifist who founded Centaur Press in 1954. He ran Centaur Press from his home in Sussex and is a distinguished independent publisher. Centaur Press was a full-time independent publishing company until it was sold in 1998...
, who became a writer and publisher. She became a convert to Christian Science
Christian Science
Christian Science is a system of thought and practice derived from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the Bible. It is practiced by members of The First Church of Christ, Scientist as well as some others who are nonmembers. Its central texts are the Bible and the Christian Science textbook,...
and vegetarianism and was estranged from the worldly life of the theatre, though she remained friendly with Coward, who was amused at her attempts to improve his moral character. He teased her by professing "a selfless absorption in the well-being and achievement of Noël Coward" and an "unregenerate spiritual attitude".
In the years after her marriage, Wynne-Tyson wrote a series of novels: Security, 1927; Quicksand, 1927; Momus, 1928; Melody, 1929; and Incense and Sweet Cane, 1930. All five of these novels were to some extent autobiographical, reflecting the deterioration of her marriage and her increasing attachment to religion. Her husband left her in 1930, and they were divorced in 1947. After the separation, she turned to non-fiction and journalism as well as fiction, often in collaboration with John Davys Beresford
J. D. Beresford
John Davys Beresford was an English writer, now remembered for his early science fiction and some short stories in the horror story and ghost story genres. His Hampdenshire Wonder was a major influence on Olaf Stapledon. His other science-fiction novels includeThe Riddle of the Tower, about a...
, who shared her interest in metaphysics and in a mutual gospel she later named "philosophy of compassion". They wrote ten novels together, although some were issued under Beresford's name, for contractual reasons. Their official collaborations were Strange Rival, 1940; Men in the Same Boat, 1943; The Riddle of the Tower, 1944; and The Gift, 1947. Wynne-Tyson's non-fiction works include Prelude to Peace: The World-Brotherhood Educational Movement, 1936; The Unity of Being, 1949; This Is Life Eternal: The Case for Immortality, 1951; (under the pseudonym Peter de Morny) The Best Years of Their Lives, 1955; Mithras, the Fellow in the Cap, 1958; The Philosophy of Compassion: The Return of the Goddess,1962; and (as editor) Porphyry
Porphyry (philosopher)
Porphyry of Tyre , Porphyrios, AD 234–c. 305) was a Neoplatonic philosopher who was born in Tyre. He edited and published the Enneads, the only collection of the work of his teacher Plotinus. He also wrote many works himself on a wide variety of topics...
's Abstinence from Animal Food, 1965.
Wynne-Tyson also wrote children's stories under the pen-name Amanda, and contributed philosophical articles, sometimes using the pen-name Diotima, to a wide range of publications including The Manchester Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. From 1961 to 1970 she edited the magazine World Forum, which focused on vegetarianism and humanitarian matters.
Inspiration for stage characters
Wynne-Tyson was the inspiration for several stage characters. Some critics have seen elements of her in Madame Arcati, the eccentric spiritualist in Coward's Blithe SpiritBlithe Spirit (play)
Blithe Spirit is a comic play written by Noël Coward which takes its title from Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "To a Skylark" . The play concerns socialite and novelist Charles Condomine, who invites the eccentric medium and clairvoyant, Madame Arcati, to his house to conduct a séance, hoping to...
, though the chief source of the character is thought to be another of Coward's friends, the writer Clemence Dane
Clemence Dane
Clemence Dane was the pseudonym of Winifred Ashton , an English novelist and playwright.-Life and career:...
. However, Carlotta in Coward's late play A Song at Twilight
A Song at Twilight
A Song at Twilight is a play in two acts by Noël Coward. It is one of a trio of plays collectively entitled Suite in Three Keys, all of which are set in the same suite in a luxury hotel in Switzerland...
was based on Wynne-Tyson after she had briefly come back into Coward's life in 1952, and Amanda's cries of "sollocks" in Private Lives
Private Lives
Private Lives is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It focuses on a divorced couple who discover that they are honeymooning with their new spouses in neighbouring rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetually stormy relationship, they realise that they still have feelings for...
to restore peace at times of quarrel have their origins in Wynne-Tyson's youthful rules of engagement with Coward. Her son Jon wrote a comedy, Marvellous Party, about a middle-age reunion of his mother and Coward.
Wynne-Tyson died in Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
at the age of 73.