‘Opening the Doris Lessing letters’
3rd March 2016, 4pm-7.30pm. Free admission
An archive of letters written by Nobel Laureate Doris Lessing to an “erstwhile lover” has been opened by the University of Sussex – 23 years after it was first acquired.
Leonard Smith, whom Lessing addresses as “Smithie”, was a 19-year-old cadet pilot in the Royal Airforce when he first met the aspiring novelist in 1944 in Rhodesia. The 150 letters he received from her span several decades, revealing her views on sex, politics, and literature that were to inform some of her most celebrated works. The letters were purchased from Smith in 1993 by the University with support from the Arts Council England/Victoria and Albert Museum Purchase Grant Fund. In line with the wishes of Lessing and Smith, they remained closed for research until Lessing’s death. Lessing died in 2013.
To celebrate the opening of these letters, a workshop, drinks reception and talk will be held at The Keep on 3rd March.