Daphne du Maurier
Daphne du Maurier had strong links to Cornwall. Her family bought a house near Fowey and it was in Cornwall that du Maurier settled. She began publishing stories and articles in 1928 and her first novel, 'The Loving Spirit' was published in 1931. In 1936, she published 'Jamaica Inn' which is arguably one of her most enduring successes.
Perhaps du Maurier's most significant and best-loved novel is 'Rebecca' which was published in 1938. This was made into a film directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1940.
Du Maurier used both male and female narrators in her novels and her works often explored themes around gender and sexuality. Unitil the age of 15, Daphnes du Maurier had a male alter ego, 'Eric Avon' (see 'Growing Pains: The Shaping of a Writer', p. 59) and she often spoke privately about having a masculine side to her personality (se P.M. Forster, 'Daphne du Maurier, p. 222). During her life, du Maurier experienced attraction to both men and women, but she never spoke or wrote publically about her own sexual identity. in 1932, she married Frederick A. M. Browning; they had one son and two daughters.
The University of Exeter's Special Collections include literary and personal papers of Daphne du Maurier. The Daphne du Maurier collections include manuscript and typescript drafts, proofs and correspondence.
For a larger view of the exhibition board click on the image to take you through to the image page, then click on it again to view it in a zoomable format.
Further information about the Daphne du Maurier collections (including papers relating to other members of the du Maurier family) can be found on the archives catalogue.
The exhibition board relating to Agatha Christie is currently being hosted at Bookbag Exeter until September 2023.