Wrey Gardiner
Encyclopedia
Charles Wrey Gardiner was an English writer and poet, editor and publisher, born in Plymouth
.
Gardiner was a noted and well-connected literary figure, particularly in London in the years around Second World War, though very much in the tradition of the literary amateur. His importance in publishing was through editorial work for the little magazine Poetry Quarterly from 1939, continuing to 1953, and the establishment of the Grey Walls Press, in Billericay
, Essex
, in 1940. Lyra: An anthology of new lyric (1942), edited by Alex Comfort
and Robert Greacen
, was a representative poetry anthology published by Grey Walls, containing new writing of the time. He is also notable as a supporter of Kenneth Patchen
, whose Outlaw of the Lowest Planet he published in 1946, with an introduction by David Gascoyne
and a preface by Alex Comfort
.
His many works include Laid in Sharp Scorpions: Poems (1941), The Gates of Silence (1944, poems), The Dark Thorn (1946, autobiography
) and A Season of Olives (1948, first novel). He left a great deal of autobiography in manuscript.
New Road. New Directions In Art & Writing was a series of anthologies published by Grey Walls Press. These are:
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
.
Gardiner was a noted and well-connected literary figure, particularly in London in the years around Second World War, though very much in the tradition of the literary amateur. His importance in publishing was through editorial work for the little magazine Poetry Quarterly from 1939, continuing to 1953, and the establishment of the Grey Walls Press, in Billericay
Billericay
Billericay is a town and civil parish in the Basildon borough of Essex, England. It lies within the London Basin, has a population of 40,000, and constitutes a commuter town east of central London. The town has three secondary schools and a variety of open spaces...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, in 1940. Lyra: An anthology of new lyric (1942), edited by Alex Comfort
Alex Comfort
Alexander Comfort, MB BChir, PhD, DSc was a medical professional, gerontologist, anarchist, pacifist, conscientious objector and writer, best known for The Joy of Sex, which played a part in what is often called the sexual revolution...
and Robert Greacen
Robert Greacen
Robert Greacen was an Irish poet and member of Aosdána. Born in Derry, Ireland, on 24 October 1920, he was educated at Methodist College Belfast and Trinity College Dublin...
, was a representative poetry anthology published by Grey Walls, containing new writing of the time. He is also notable as a supporter of Kenneth Patchen
Kenneth Patchen
Kenneth Patchen was an American poet and novelist. Though he denied any direct connection, Patchen's work and ideas regarding the role of artists paralleled those of the Dadaists, the Beats, and Surrealists...
, whose Outlaw of the Lowest Planet he published in 1946, with an introduction by David Gascoyne
David Gascoyne
David Gascoyne was an English poet associated with the Surrealist movement.-Early life and Surrealism:...
and a preface by Alex Comfort
Alex Comfort
Alexander Comfort, MB BChir, PhD, DSc was a medical professional, gerontologist, anarchist, pacifist, conscientious objector and writer, best known for The Joy of Sex, which played a part in what is often called the sexual revolution...
.
His many works include Laid in Sharp Scorpions: Poems (1941), The Gates of Silence (1944, poems), The Dark Thorn (1946, autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
) and A Season of Olives (1948, first novel). He left a great deal of autobiography in manuscript.
New Road. New Directions In Art & Writing was a series of anthologies published by Grey Walls Press. These are:
- Volume 1 (1943) - Edited by Alex ComfortAlex ComfortAlexander Comfort, MB BChir, PhD, DSc was a medical professional, gerontologist, anarchist, pacifist, conscientious objector and writer, best known for The Joy of Sex, which played a part in what is often called the sexual revolution...
and John BaylissJohn BaylissJohn Bayliss was a British poet and significant literary editor of the World War II period; later in life a civil servant. He was born in Gloucestershire, and was an undergraduate at St Catharine's College, Cambridge...
- including a special 50-page surrealist section - Volume 2 (1944) - Edited by Alex Comfort and John Bayliss
- Volume 3 (1945) - Edited by Fred Murnau
- Volume 4 (1946) - Edited by Fred Murnau
- Volume 5 (1949) - Edited by Charles Wrey Gardiner