William Donaldson
Encyclopedia
Charles William Donaldson (4 January 1935 - 22 June 2005) was an English
satirist
, writer, playboy
and, under the pseudonym
of Henry Root, author of The Henry Root Letters.
, Berkshire
as the son of a shipping
magnate. He was educated at Winchester College
, where he met Julian Mitchell
. While studying English
at Magdalene College, Cambridge
, he was orphaned and inherited a substantial fortune. He spent some of that inheritance supporting young writers such as his contemporaries Ted Hughes
and Sylvia Plath
.
On graduation, Donaldson became associated with the set surrounding Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
and worked as a theatrical producer
. He established himself as a central player in the United Kingdom
satire boom
of the early 1960s as co-producer, with Donald Albery
, of Beyond the Fringe
(1960), and of dramatisations of J. P. Donleavy
's The Ginger Man
(1959) and Spike Milligan
's The Bed-Sitting Room (1963). The pair earned a weekly £2,000 from Fringe when the principal performers, Peter Cook
, Dudley Moore
, Alan Bennett
and Jonathan Miller
, were earning only £75. However, Donaldson managed, not for the last time, to squander his fortune.
In 1971, Donaldson left for Ibiza
where he imprudently spent his last £2,000 on a glass-bottomed boat. Before long he was scavenging for food on the beach. Returning to London, he found refuge with a former girlfriend who was running a brothel
on the Fulham Road
. His experiences there formed the basis of his first novel Both the Ladies and the Gentlemen (1975).
However, it was to be Donaldson's fictional correspondent Henry Root that made him a final fortune. Root's satirical lampooning of the wealthy, famous and influential was retold in the books:
Donaldson lived at Elm Park Mansions on Park Walk, Chelsea, from which all the Root letters were sent.
Donaldson's biographical survey of roguish Britons through the ages, Brewer's Rogues, Villains and Eccentrics
(2002), has been described as "a breathtaking triumph of misdirected scholarship".
The phenomenal success of the books, especially the first, enabled Donaldson to resume his chaotic lifestyle and in the mid-80s he began using crack cocaine
. He continued its use for more than a decade, but insisted he was not addicted.
, who then abandoned him. A sequence of affair
s followed, including liaisons with Sarah Miles
and Carly Simon
. He abandoned Miles for Simon, whom he described as "the answer to any sane man's prayers; funny, quick, erotic, extravagantly talented" but this did not prevent him from jilting her once they were engaged and returning to Miles. In 1968, he inherited another fortune and married Claire Gordon
. The couple becoming the epitome of 1960s Swinging London
. He later remembered that "sex, whether in company or not, has been the only department in life in which I have demanded from anyone taking part the very highest standards of seriousness."
He was survived by his third wife Cherry Hatrick.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
satirist
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
, writer, playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
and, under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of Henry Root, author of The Henry Root Letters.
Life and career
Donaldson enjoyed a privileged upbringing in SunningdaleSunningdale
Sunningdale is a large village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England.-Location:Sunningdale is located close to the present border with Surrey, and is not far from Ascot, Sunninghill and Virginia Water. It is situated 24 miles west of London and 7...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
as the son of a shipping
Shipping
Shipping has multiple meanings. It can be a physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo, by land, air, and sea. It also can describe the movement of objects by ship.Land or "ground" shipping can be by train or by truck...
magnate. He was educated at Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
, where he met Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell FRSL , full name Charles Julian Humphrey Mitchell, is an English playwright, screenwriter and occasional novelist...
. While studying English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
at Magdalene College, Cambridge
Magdalene College, Cambridge
Magdalene College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary Magdalene...
, he was orphaned and inherited a substantial fortune. He spent some of that inheritance supporting young writers such as his contemporaries Ted Hughes
Ted Hughes
Edward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
and Sylvia Plath
Sylvia Plath
Sylvia Plath was an American poet, novelist and short story writer. Born in Massachusetts, she studied at Smith College and Newnham College, Cambridge before receiving acclaim as a professional poet and writer...
.
On graduation, Donaldson became associated with the set surrounding Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II and the younger daughter of King George VI....
and worked as a theatrical producer
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
. He established himself as a central player in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
satire boom
Satire boom
The satire boom is a general term to describe the emergence of a generation of English satirical writers, journalists and performers at the end of the 1950s. The satire boom is often regarded as having begun with the first performance of Beyond the Fringe on 22 August 1960 and ending around...
of the early 1960s as co-producer, with Donald Albery
Donald Albery
Sir Donald Arthur Rolleston Albery was an English theatre impressario who did much to translate the adventurous spirit of London in the 1960s into theatrical reality....
, of Beyond the Fringe
Beyond the Fringe
Beyond the Fringe was a British comedy stage revue written and performed by Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett, and Jonathan Miller. It played in London's West End and then on New York's Broadway in the early 1960s, and is widely regarded as seminal to the rise of satire in 1960s Britain.-The...
(1960), and of dramatisations of J. P. Donleavy
J. P. Donleavy
James Patrick Donleavy is an Irish American author, born to Irish immigrants. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II after which he moved to Ireland. In 1946 he began studies at Trinity College, Dublin, but left before taking a degree...
's The Ginger Man
The Ginger Man
The Ginger Man is a 1955 novel by J. P. Donleavy.First published in Paris, the novel is set in Dublin, Ireland, in post war 1947. Upon its publication, it was banned in the Republic of Ireland and the United States of America for obscenity....
(1959) and Spike Milligan
Spike Milligan
Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
's The Bed-Sitting Room (1963). The pair earned a weekly £2,000 from Fringe when the principal performers, Peter Cook
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
, Dudley Moore
Dudley Moore
Dudley Stuart John Moore, CBE was an English actor, comedian, composer and musician.Moore first came to prominence as one of the four writer-performers in the ground-breaking comedy revue Beyond the Fringe in the early 1960s, and then became famous as half of the highly popular television...
, Alan Bennett
Alan Bennett
Alan Bennett is a British playwright, screenwriter, actor and author. Born in Leeds, he attended Oxford University where he studied history and performed with The Oxford Revue. He stayed to teach and research mediaeval history at the university for several years...
and Jonathan Miller
Jonathan Miller
Sir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE is a British theatre and opera director, author, physician, television presenter, humorist and sculptor. Trained as a physician in the late 1950s, he first came to prominence in the 1960s with his role in the comedy revue Beyond the Fringe with fellow writers and...
, were earning only £75. However, Donaldson managed, not for the last time, to squander his fortune.
In 1971, Donaldson left for Ibiza
Ibiza
Ibiza or Eivissa is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea 79 km off the coast of the city of Valencia in Spain. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, an autonomous community of Spain. With Formentera, it is one of the two Pine Islands or Pityuses. Its largest cities are Ibiza...
where he imprudently spent his last £2,000 on a glass-bottomed boat. Before long he was scavenging for food on the beach. Returning to London, he found refuge with a former girlfriend who was running a brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
on the Fulham Road
Fulham Road
Fulham Road is a street in London, England, that runs from the A219 road in right in the centre of Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, through Chelsea to Brompton Road Knightsbridge and the A4 in Brompton, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.Fulham Road runs parallel...
. His experiences there formed the basis of his first novel Both the Ladies and the Gentlemen (1975).
However, it was to be Donaldson's fictional correspondent Henry Root that made him a final fortune. Root's satirical lampooning of the wealthy, famous and influential was retold in the books:
- The Henry Root Letters (1980),
- The Further Letters of Henry Root (1980),
- Henry Root’s World of Knowledge (1982),
- Henry Root’s A-Z of Women: "The Definitive Guide" (1985),
- The Soap Letters (1988),
- Root into Europe (1992), and
- Root about Britain (1994).
Donaldson lived at Elm Park Mansions on Park Walk, Chelsea, from which all the Root letters were sent.
Donaldson's biographical survey of roguish Britons through the ages, Brewer's Rogues, Villains and Eccentrics
Brewer's Rogues, Villains and Eccentrics
Brewer's Rogues, Villains and Eccentrics is a reference book first published by Brewer's in 2002 and edited/compiled by William Donaldson.The book is an esoteric look at some of the wilder characters emanating from the United Kingdom and has been described as "a work of maniacal genius"...
(2002), has been described as "a breathtaking triumph of misdirected scholarship".
The phenomenal success of the books, especially the first, enabled Donaldson to resume his chaotic lifestyle and in the mid-80s he began using crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
. He continued its use for more than a decade, but insisted he was not addicted.
Personal life
He married Sonia Avory in 1957 and she bore him his only child, Charlie. However, he left her for Jacki Ellis, then wife of Jeffrey BernardJeffrey Bernard
Jeffrey Bernard was a British journalist, best known for his weekly column "Low Life" in the Spectator magazine, and also notorious for a feckless and chaotic career and life of alcohol abuse. He became associated with the louche and bohemian atmosphere that existed in London's Soho district...
, who then abandoned him. A sequence of affair
Affair
Affair may refer to professional, personal, or public business matters or to a particular business or private activity of a temporary duration, as in family affair, a private affair, or a romantic affair.-Political affair:...
s followed, including liaisons with Sarah Miles
Sarah Miles
-Early life and career:Sarah Miles was born in the small town of Ingatestone, Essex, in South East England.She first attended Roedean but at the age of 15 she enrolled at RADA, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
and Carly Simon
Carly Simon
Carly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work...
. He abandoned Miles for Simon, whom he described as "the answer to any sane man's prayers; funny, quick, erotic, extravagantly talented" but this did not prevent him from jilting her once they were engaged and returning to Miles. In 1968, he inherited another fortune and married Claire Gordon
Claire Gordon
Claire Gordon or Clare Gordon in the City of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK. Her father was a doctor, and her mother a make-up artist, who worked for Max Factor. Gordon is a British actress known for leading and cameo roles in many British movies, mainly in the 1960s and 1970s...
. The couple becoming the epitome of 1960s Swinging London
Swinging London
Swinging London is a catch-all term applied to the fashion and cultural scene that flourished in London, in the 1960s.It was a youth-oriented phenomenon that emphasised the new and modern. It was a period of optimism and hedonism, and a cultural revolution. One catalyst was the recovery of the...
. He later remembered that "sex, whether in company or not, has been the only department in life in which I have demanded from anyone taking part the very highest standards of seriousness."
He was survived by his third wife Cherry Hatrick.
External links
- Obituaries: