Showing 8 results

Archival description
Clifford Dyment manuscripts File
Print preview View:

Clifford Dyment correspondence

Some fifty-three letters and cards, 1936-1942, addressed to Clifford Dyment, relating mainly to his literary work, his attempts to find work in television, acting and journalism, and his war work with the Films Division of the Ministry of Information.
The correspondents include Richard Church of J.M. Dent & Sons, 1936-1939, writing concerning the publication of Dyment's second volume of poetry and generally offering advice and encouragement (ff. 1-6, 17, 31-32, 36-37); and several officials at the Ministry of Information, July 1941-May 1942 (ff. 53-54, 56, 58, 61-63, 65-68, 70, 78), including [Sir] Kenneth Clark (f. 53). Also included are carbon copy letters, March-June 1939, from Dyment to the BBC, applying for jobs on The Listener and BBC Television (ff. 20, 22-25 28-30); a copy of Dyment's explanatory notes on his poem 'Brother Ass', which were published in The Listener, 8 December 1938, pp. 1256-7 (f. 19); three Ministry of Supply permits, 1942, giving Dyment access to filming locations (ff. 75-77); a pencil draft of a poem (f. 79); miscellaneous notes (ff. 80-86) and a letter, 25 September 1941, from Kathleen Noble, Ickenham, to Professor [John] Hilton (f. 87).

Church, Richard, 1893-1972

Clifford Dyment papers

Manuscript and typescript papers, [?1932]-[c. 1965], of the poet and author Clifford Dyment, comprising poetry, [?1932]-[?1965] (ff. 1-76), and miscellaneous prose, [1948]-[c. 1965] (ff. 77-95).
The poems appear to be mainly unpublished; those which appear in his published collections are 'Mouse' (f. 12) (Straight or Curly (London, 1937), p. 36), 'The Suicide' (f. 35) (Experiences and Places (London, 1955), p. 42), and ff. 46-76 which are drafts, [1955]-[1965], of sixteen out of the twenty-eight new dream poems in section VI of his Collected Poems (London, 1970), pp. 89-102 passim; 'Gedicht voor mijn Verjaardag', [late 1950s] (f. 37), is a Dutch translation by G. K. van het Reve of Dyment's 'Poem for my Birthday' (f. 36). The prose includes a corrected typescript, [1948], of the introduction to Thomas Hood, Selected Poems, ed. by Clifford Dyment ([London], 1948) (ff. 77-88, see also f. 26 verso); a draft letter to Bernard Miles, [early 1950s] (f. 89); and part of an essay on his dream poetry, [c. 1965] (ff. 91-92). Many of the later items are written on the backs of old letters, circulars and other ephemera as well as fragments of a typescript for his autobiography The Railway Game (London, 1962) (ff. 44 verso, 45 verso, 48 verso, 76 verso). A photocopy of the front cover of the original binder is f. i.

Dream Poems

Manuscript and typescript drafts, [1951]-[1969], of poetry by Clifford Dyment, consisting mostly of drafts of twenty-six of the twenty-eight dream poems first published in section VI of his Collected Poems (London, 1970), pp. 89-106 (ff. 2 verso, 5 verso, 6 verso, 9-94, 96-104, 106-109).
Also included are a few additional poems, most apparently unpublished; these comprise 'The Found Postman' (f. 46 verso), 'The Trap' (f. 95), 'The Thames' (ff. 105, 108), 'The Crow' (f. 108; published in Fur, Feather and Fin (London, [1968]), p. 71), 'Crucifixus' (f. 109; published in Poems 1935-1948 (London, 1949), p. 22), 'The Worm is near its Victory' (f. 109), 'Strict Life Takes Toll' (f. 109), 'The Shadow in the Corn' (f. 110), 'Harvest' (f. 111), 'The Dumble' (f. 112), 'Landscape' (f. 113) and 'The Off-beat' / 'The Tramp' (ff. 114-115). The presence of a draft foreword (ff. 4-7), notes (f. 8) and title page, 'Poems in the Night' (f. 20 verso), gives an indication of Dyment's intention to publish the dream poems as a separate volume. Most of the poems are listed, in Dyment's hand, on ff. 1-2. Some of the poems are written on the backs of old letters and circulars, as well as fragments of a typescript for his autobiography The Railway Game (London, 1962) (ff. 33-35, 45, 55, 73, 75-76, 81, 92, 96, 99-101, 104, 114-115, versos only) and the beginning of his introduction to the first edition of Robert Greacen's autobiography, Even Without Irene (Dublin, 1969) (f. 4 verso, 12 verso).

First Footings

A collection of eighteen holograph poems by Clifford H. Dyment, dated February 1930 (see ff. 1, 7), when Dyment was aged sixteen.
The collection consists of fair copies of seventeen poems, written in ink (ff. 2-11 verso), with an eighteenth added in pencil (f. 12); all are apparently unpublished.

Fur, Feather and Fin

Corrected authors' typescript, [mid-1960s], for Clifford and Marcella Dyment's collection of amusing animal poetry 'Fur, Feather, and Fin' (NLW MS 24085iD), together with a copy of the limited edition (No. 11 of 500) of the book, Fur, Feather, and Fin (London: Carrefour Press, 1968), signed by Clifford Dyment and illustrator Hafis Bertschinger (NLW MS 24085iiD).
The typescript contains a few pencil emendations by Clifford Dyment, mostly unused in the published version (NLW MS 24085iD, ff. 5 verso, 14, 15, 27, 32, 33, 42), including four additional lines to 'The Camel' (f. 5 verso). The typescript also includes an 'Explanation and Extenuation' by the authors, also omitted from the published version (f. v).

Dyment, Marcella

Miscellaneous papers

Miscellaneous papers of Clifford Dyment, 1951-[late 1960s], comprising the first five pages of a typescript prose story entitled 'She Wanted to Pick Bluebells' (ff. 1-6); a typescript autobiographical fragment entitled 'I / dep. Nottingham (Victoria)', possibly the beginning of his follow-up to The Railway Game (London, 1962), [late 1960s] (ff. 7-9); a typescript page, apparently of a voiceover script for a television programme concerning animals, [?1960s] (f. 10); a manuscript piece beginning 'We are none of us the same person always', [mid 1960s] (f. 11); a rough draft of a poem, [mid 1950s] (f. 12); miscellaneous notes (ff. 13-20), containing references to Turgenev's 'The Torrents of Spring' (f. 14) and to Germany and the Nazis (ff. 15-20); and a letter, 1 April 1953, from E. N. Hogben of the Religious Drama Society apparently concerning Dyment's play 'Mr Everyman' (f. 21).

Mr Everyman: A Play

Typescript and manuscript drafts, [?1953], of Clifford Dyment's play 'Mr Everyman', consisting of one main typescript draft, often heavily emended in pencil and ink, together with later manuscript drafts of some scenes and parts of scenes, and occasional other fragments.
The play comprises the Prologue (ff. 3-24); Act I, scenes 1-4 (ff. 25-79); Act I, scenes 5-6 (corresponding to Act II, scenes 1-2 in the later draft NLW MS 24082C) (ff. 79 verso-90); Act II, scenes 1-2 (Act II, scenes 3-4) (ff .91-109); Act II, scene 3 (omitted from NLW MS 24082C) (ff. 110-113); Act II, scenes 4-5 (Act II, scenes 5-6) (ff. 114-131); Act II, scene 6 (Act III, scene 1) (ff. 132-137); Act II, scene 7 (Act III, scene 2) (ff. 138-144); Act III, scenes 1-3 (Act III, scenes 3-5) (ff. 145-175); Act II, scene 4 (omitted from NLW MS 24082C) (f. 176); Act III, scene 5 (Act III, scene 6) (ff. 177-187); and the Epilogue (ff. 188-192). Some of the manuscript sections are written on the reverse of routine letters and other papers, including a typescript fragment of Dyment's autobiography The Railway Game (London, 1962), pp. 33-34 (f. 164 verso), two leaves of another memoir (ff. 59 verso, 60 verso), and the last six leaves (numbered 11-16) of a prose piece, possibly an outline for a film or television script (ff. 149 verso, 150 verso, 160 verso-163 verso (versos only)).

Turgenev's 'The Torrents of Spring'

Typescript script, [?1950s], for a stage adaptation, in three acts (Act One, ff. 1-56, Act Two, ff. 57-98, and Act Three, ff. 99-145), of Ivan Turgenev's 'The Torrents of Spring', containing emendations in pencil in the hand of Clifford Dyment.

Turgenev, Ivan Sergeevich, 1818-1883