Victoria Glendinning
Encyclopedia
The Hon.
Victoria Glendinning, CBE
(23 April 1937), is a British
biographer, critic, broadcaster and novelist; she is President of English PEN, a winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
, was awarded a CBE in 1998 and is Vice-President of the Royal Society of Literature
.
to a Quaker family. Her father was the banker Frederic Seebohm
(created a life peer
as The Rt. Hon.
The Baron Seebohm in April 1972), while her great-grandfather was the great economic historian, also called Frederic Seebohm. Glendinning grew up near York
and after attending Millfield School
in Somerset, went up to Oxford
to study modern languages. In the second year of her degree, she married one of her Spanish lecturers, Professor Nigel Glendinning in 1958. They divorced in 1981. Her second husband Terence de Vere White
died of Parkinson's disease
in 1994 and in 1996 she married Kevin O'Sullivan. She had four sons (before she was 28), including Matthew Glendinning, with whom she coauthored the book Sons and Mothers, and the mathematician Paul Glendinning
. Another son, Simon Glendinning
, lectures in European Philosophy at the London School of Economics
having previously taught at the University of Kent at Canterbury.
The Honourable
The prefix The Honourable or The Honorable is a style used before the names of certain classes of persons. It is considered an honorific styling.-International diplomacy:...
Victoria Glendinning, CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(23 April 1937), is a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
biographer, critic, broadcaster and novelist; she is President of English PEN, a winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
, was awarded a CBE in 1998 and is Vice-President of the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
.
Biography
She was born in SheffieldSheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
to a Quaker family. Her father was the banker Frederic Seebohm
Frederic Seebohm, Baron Seebohm
Frederic Seebohm, Baron Seebohm, TD , was a British banker, soldier and social work innovator.Lord Seebohm was the son of Hugh Exton Seebohm and Lesley Gribble, and grandson of the historian Frederic Seebohm, he was born in Hitchin in Hertfordshire...
(created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
as The Rt. Hon.
The Right Honourable
The Right Honourable is an honorific prefix that is traditionally applied to certain people in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Anglophone Caribbean and other Commonwealth Realms, and occasionally elsewhere...
The Baron Seebohm in April 1972), while her great-grandfather was the great economic historian, also called Frederic Seebohm. Glendinning grew up near York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
and after attending Millfield School
Millfield
Millfield is an independent school in Street in Somerset, in south-west England.The school currently has a roll of 1,260 pupils, of whom 910 are boarders...
in Somerset, went up to Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
to study modern languages. In the second year of her degree, she married one of her Spanish lecturers, Professor Nigel Glendinning in 1958. They divorced in 1981. Her second husband Terence de Vere White
Terence de Vere White
Terence de Vere White was an Irish writer, lawyer and editor.Born in Dublin, he studied at Trinity College, Dublin where he qualified as a solicitor and became a partner in a leading Dublin law firm. He gave up law when he became the literary editor of The Irish Times from 1961 to 1977...
died of Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
in 1994 and in 1996 she married Kevin O'Sullivan. She had four sons (before she was 28), including Matthew Glendinning, with whom she coauthored the book Sons and Mothers, and the mathematician Paul Glendinning
Paul Glendinning
Paul Glendinning is a British mathematician known for his work on dynamical systems, specifically models of the time-evolution of complex mathematical or physical processes...
. Another son, Simon Glendinning
Simon Glendinning
Dr Simon Glendinning is an English philosopher currently teaching in the European Institute at the London School of Economics. He is Director of the Forum for European Philosophy....
, lectures in European Philosophy at the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
having previously taught at the University of Kent at Canterbury.