Mervyn Peake, Centenary Year, 2011

Latest news

05/01/2012 01:12 PM

Gormenghast play at Bury St Edmunds

Another short run production of John Constable's adaptation of Gormenghast takes place at the Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds, from 31st August - 1st September 2012.

04/23/2012 01:36 PM

Gormenghast or Westminster

In last Saturday's Guardian Review there was a reference to an All-Party Parliamentary group of women chaired by Jo Swinton, (Liberal-Democrat), all involved in the charity, Changing Faces. The reporter, Tanya Gold, noted that 'it must have been the largest female group ever seen in Gormenghast', referring to the meeting that took place in the Palace of Westminster.

04/20/2012 09:40 AM

The Long Wait Vindicated

Some years ago the specialist publisher Queen Anne Press approached the Mervyn Peake estate with an idea that has now been brought to glorious life. Ten volumes of work have been published and these are available either linen-bound or in goatskin.

The look of the volumes is quite magnificent, with the quality of paper and reproduction of both character illustration and margin drawings taken from the original manuscripts owned by the British Library, of the highest standard. The set which includes not only the Titus books, but Mr Pye, Titus Awakes, Captain Slaughterboard and other titles not previously known in this format, sets a precedent for Peake work unlikely ever to be surpassed. This outstanding tour de force of both visual and tactile reproduction is a must for those exhilarated by the idiosyncratic and original voice of the author and illustrator.

04/20/2012 09:34 AM

Under a Canvas Sky, in paperback

After the good reviews Clare had when Under a Canvas Sky first appeared last year, a paperback edition has just appeared. With a lovely drawing of her as a young girl by her father, let's hope that the beautifully-written autobiography meets with the same success as the hardback edition. Tender, incisive, poignant, and sad in parts, an initially idyllic childhood in Sark, Chelsea and later Kensington, is set against a later tragedy which touches the heart.

04/17/2012 06:36 AM

Gormenghast in Kilkenny

In the first Irish adaptation of Constable's stage version of Gormenghast, it seems the Kilkenny Youth Theatre have given the piece everything they've got, and really captured the audience.

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Mr Pye TV series on DVD

Following regular requests, a dvd of Channel 4's brilliant adaptation of the novel is now available. Contact me for further details at SebastianPeake@aol.com.

Celebrating the Creativity of People with Parkinson's

The Mervyn Peake Awards are a celebration of the talents of people with Parkinson's. Parkinson’s UK aims to encourage creativity in memory of the late Mervyn Peake. 2011 marks the centenary of his birth and the tenth anniversary of the awards.

This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone with Parkinson's, of any ability, to share their creative passion. There are 4 prize categories including art, poetry, photograph and digital art. In addition, this year, all entries will be shortlisted for an online public vote to feature in the Parkinson's UK 2012 calendar. For more information please visit www.parkinsons.org.uk/mervynpeake or call 020 7963 9319

Peake Studies

Anyone interested in knowing more about Mervyn Peake should consider subscribing to Peake Studies, a bi-annual publication edited and published by Peter Winnington, a world authority on the subject. Every issue includes reviews, articles, and very frequently previously unseen drawings and other work by Mervyn Peake. Above are examples of the publication.
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Mervyn Peake: the Man and His Art

Compiled by Sebastian Peake & Alison Eldred. Edited by G. Peter Winnington

Announcing a major new volume on the acclaimed writer and artist is available now.
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Sixty years on, the world of Titus Groan and his castle remains as contemporary now as when first published in 1946.

It is generally accepted that the Gormenghast trilogy as a whole offers one of the most original and sustained flights of imaginative writing of the 20th century and Mervyn Peake is best remembered for this timeless and highly influential work. Now translated into over thirty languages, to be joined shortly by Mandarin.

Less well known however, is his prolific output as a painter and writer of children’s books, nonsense verse, and work as a war artist, poet, and illustrator. Such classic texts as Treasure Island, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, The Ancient Mariner, Swiss Family Robinson, The Hunting of the Snark, Bleak House and others were illustrated, resulting in idiosyncratic interpretations immediately recognisable as his own.

Texts were read closely before any drawings were committed to paper, though the description of the characters in the books, the location and atmosphere being brought to life, acted as the sole guide for his eagle eye, with the published drawings often remaining imprinted for ever on the reader’s visual mind.

This completely new and comprehensive website aims to display as many of the above talents as possible while the motivating rationale behind the enlargement of the site was the dedication to presenting work of the whole artist, rather than the parts. He was after all, as some have suggested, the incarnation of Renaissance man.