File BJA/1 - Letters to Dannie Abse

Letters and cards to Dannie Abse from various individuals and organisations mainly from the British and American literary and arts world, correspondents including the Arts Council of Wales, Gillian Clarke, Milein Cosman, Professor Tony Curtis, Menna Elfyn, Christopher Fry, Raymond Garlick, William Meredith/Richard Harteis, John Heath-Stubbs, Daniel Hoffman, Jonah Jones, Judith Maro, Norman Kreitman, Christopher Levenson, Gwyneth Lewis, Maureen Lipman, Jon Manchip White, Jan Morris, Andrew Motion, William Oxley, Patricia Oxley, the Poetry Society, Suzanne Poirier, Harri Pritchard-Jones, Simon Rae, Anne Ridler, Sally Roberts Jones, Macha Louis Rosenthal, the Royal Society of Literature, Lawrence Sail, Alan Sillitoe, the Society of Authors (mainly referencing Abse's rôle on the Gregory Awards selection panel), Meic Stephens, Anne Stevenson, Barry Wallenstein, Theodore Weiss, the Welsh Academy, Tony Whittome and Paul Zimmer.
Correspondence from the University of Wales College of Medicine and from the University of Glamorgan discusses Dannie Abse's acceptance of, respectively, an Honorary Fellowship and an Honorary Doctorate.
Family correspondents include Dannie Abse's brothers, Dr Wilfred Abse and Leo Abse, his daughters Keren and Susanna, his son David, his niece Bathsheba Abse, his grandsons Max and Marley and his granddaughter Larne.
Some letters are addressed to both Dannie and Joan Abse (see also under heading Correspondence of Joan Abse).
Included is a photocopied article titled Dannie Abse: poet and physician by Professor Michael J. Collins of Georgetown University, Washington D.C. (see under letter 'C' in alphabetical sequence).
Some of the material is annotated in Dannie Abse's hand.
One letter (filed under 'J') incomplete.
Also included are Christmas and birthday cards, 1992, 1995, 1997-1999, and one undated Easter card to Dannie and, in the case of Christmas cards, to both Dannie and Joan Abse, together with a list of 1997 cards written out in Abse's hand. Two cards blank.

A postcard from Alan Brownjohn (for whom see under 'B') is enclosed with a note from Tony Whittome (for whom see under 'W').

Correspondence relating to more specific topics eg publications, including articles and reviews and poetry/prose readings, talks and workshops by Dannie Abse, are filed under their particular headings eg Articles and reviews, Readings, talks and workshops. Likewise, many of the correspondents are referenced within other sections of this archive. For literary references (eg works by/edited by Dannie Abse) see under relevant headings within this archive.

For correspondence from Barnet London Borough/Church Farmhouse Museum (under 'B') see also January 2005 papers under heading Press cuttings: articles, reviews, poetry.