A Correspondence between Daphne du Maurier and Denys Val Baker

Daphne du Maurier c1970

From time to time, we touch on the subject of Daphne du Maurier's short stories.  She wrote many early in her writing career and returned to short story writing throughout her life.  Daphne's short stories were published in magazines, anthologies, and her own short story collections.  

Recently, we were fortunate enough to see a small group of letters Daphne wrote to Denys Val Baker.  The letters were dated between 1972 and 1976 and centred principally on Daphne's short stories.

Denys Val Baker c1970

Denys Val Baker (1917 - 1984) was a prolific writer who specialised in short stories, novels, and autobiography.  Like Daphne, he was not Cornish but spent many years living in Cornwall, and during that time, a lot of his work had a robust Cornish background.  He did a great deal to promote and advance the arts, particularly the written word, in Cornwall and was the editor of the Cornish Review.

Many well-known names in literature and the arts in Cornwall contributed to the Cornish Review over the years, including Frank Baker, Sven Berlin, Claude Berry, Arthur Caddick, Charles Causley, Jack Clemo, Judith Cook, Daphne du Maurier, Rosalie Glynn Grylls, W.S. Graham, E.F. Halliday, Peter Lanyon, E.W. Martin, Ida Proctor, Oenone Rashleigh, A.L. Rowse, Frank Ruhrmund, D.M. Thomas, Anne Treneer, J.C. Trewin, C.C. Vyvyan, Noel Welch, Michael Williams and many more.

The Cornish Review compared with the short-lived Cornish Magazine (1898 – 1899), which Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch had edited fifty years previously with only limited success.  Denys Val Baker funded the Cornish Review himself and was running into financial trouble by issue five (1950) of the first series.  He sent out an appeal to readers and friends, asking them to contribute to a Goodwill Fund.  The total amount he needed to clear his debts and move forward with the magazine was £270.00, not an inconsiderable sum in 1950.  Daphne was among those who responded immediately and sent Denys 3 guineas (about £85 in today's money) towards his fund.  She was to make further donations later

The Cornish Review Series one, issue 1

The Cornish Review was an approximately quarterly literary journal (although Denys did not always produce four journals in a year), which ran for two series.  The first series began in 1949 and ran for ten issues before financial pressures put an end to it.  In the Spring of 1966, Denys relaunched the Cornish Review.  This second series ran for twenty-seven issues, again ending because of financial pressures in 1974.  The format for the journal was an approximately A5 paperback containing articles, poetry, short stories, and pictures about all aspects of the arts in Cornwall.  Now, these journals provide a fantastic record of the history of what was going on in the arts in Cornwall during those two periods.

The first issue of series one of the Cornish Review (Spring 1949) included an article about Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch written by E. W. Martin.  Sir Arthur, who had died in 1944, was still recognised as a hugely influential literary figure in Cornwall at the time and revered, as he still is today by all of us at the Daphne du Maurier website.  A further article about Sir Arthur appeared in Series 2, issue 25 (Winter 1973 – although it says 1974 on the front cover of the journal) and was written by Arthur Gibson.   Issue 4 (Spring 1950) included a review of Daphne's new novel, The Parasites. 

Daphne featured a little more prominently in the second series.  Series 2, issue 2 (Summer 1966) includes four du Maurier references.  An article about Daphne du Maurier by E.W. Martin, discussing some of her novels with Cornish settings; Daphne's short story The Old Man; a copy of a sketch of Daphne from the original by Stuart Armfield and a review of Angela du Maurier's autobiography Old Maids Remember.  Issue 6 (Summer 1967) includes an article by Daphne entitled Cornwall's Climate and three related black and white photographs entitled When the Wind Blows, A Sullen Calm and Tranquillity by Daphne's son, Kits Browning.  Issue 7 (Autumn 1967) includes a review of Vanishing Cornwall, and issue 13 (Winter 1969) includes a review of The House on the Strand.

Noel Welch started to feature in The Cornish Review in the early 1970s.  She was a poet and partner to the artist Jeanne du Maurier, Daphne's sister.  They had met when they were both part of the St Ives School, an early to mid-twentieth-century group of artists, sculptors, writers and poets, with whom Denys Val Baker was also associated.  Denys published a copy of Jeanne's painting, Still Life, in Series 2, Issue 27 (Winter 1974).  Several of Noel's poems and the articles she wrote about the artist Dod Proctor, the potter Bernard Leach and sculptor Barbara Hepworth also appeared in various issues during the second series, all of which are worth reading. 

But it is issue 24 (Summer 1973) which is most interesting to followers of Daphne du Maurier because here Denys published both Noel's poem Kilmarth and her fascinating essay The du Mauriers, which is a biographical article about Angela, Daphne, and Jeanne du Maurier.  This journal also included black and white photographs of Angela and her home, Ferryside, Daphne and Kilmarth, and Jeanne and her and Noel's home, Half Moon at Manaton, in Devon.

The Cornish Review Series two, issue 1

In October 1973, Daphne wrote to Denys Val Baker saying that she had been sorry to read in the Western Morning News that the Cornish Review was again struggling financially.  She asked if she could buy additional copies of the issue with Noel's article about herself and her sisters, saying they would make good Christmas cards to send to various people.  Daphne ended her letter by saying she hoped the journal would not close.  Shortly afterwards she sent a further cheque, hoping an injection of cash might help to keep the journal going. 

In October 1974, Daphne responded to concerns about the financial state of the Cornish Review again.  This time, in a letter to Denys, and presumably referring to the local council, she remarked:

Why the hell can't they spend less on car parks and amusements and let the Arts in Cornwall have more?

She went on to say that she understood why Denys felt he could not cope anymore.  However, she suggested that he try to gain local support one more time.  Her idea was that Denys could ask the magazine contributors to send in their entries 'for free' just once, saying the publicity could be glory enough for one issue.  We don't know how Denys responded to this, but we do know that the Winter 1974 edition was the last Cornish Review to be published.

In a letter to Denys dated April 1976, Daphne apologised for not writing sooner but said that frankly, she had not known what to do and, having already helped a little (she had, in fact, helped several times), did not feel there was any more she could have done to contribute towards saving the Cornish Review.  The demise of this small but important literary journal clearly saddened her. 

The other venture that Denys and Daphne collaborated on was the series of books of short stories with a Cornish theme that he edited between the early 1970s and 1985.  These anthologies were filled with work by the best Cornish and Cornwall-associated writers of the time, and even now, more than forty years on, they make fascinating and enjoyable reading.

The first anthology of short stories that Denys edited was called Haunted Cornwall (1973).  This set a blueprint for many of his anthologies, which had a supernatural theme.  Titles included Stories of the Macabre, Stories of the Occult, Cornish Ghost Stories and When Churchyards Yawn.  Not all the anthologies had such a scary theme.  Others included Cornish Harvest, Stories of the Sea, My Favourite Story and My Personal Choice.  In all, Denys edited about twenty-six anthologies, all of which were published by William Kimber, who also published much of Denys's own writing.  Ten of Daphne du Maurier's short stories were included in different books within the series.

In 1972, Denys contacted Daphne asking about short stories she had written with a Cornish setting.  She replied that there were only two, The Birds and The Old Man.  She commented that The Birds had been reprinted many times and that she had already sent Denys The Old Man, which he had published in the Cornish Review in the Summer of 1966.  However, this was a considerably less well-known story than The Birds, and Denys decided to include The Old Man in Haunted Cornwall.

In May 1973, Denys and Daphne's correspondence continued with a discussion about which short story to publish in Denys's next anthology.  This time, they were looking at the possibility of publishing The Pool and The Lordly Ones.  The Pool was set in Cornwall, with its location clearly the house and grounds of Menabilly, but Daphne thought it was not really evocative of Cornwall.  Daphne told Denys that she would love to have The Lordly Ones included in his collection, although it was not a Cornish short story.  Its inspiration had come to Daphne on a visit to Jeanne and Noel's house at Manaton on Dartmoor, where she had seen wild ponies on the Green under the moon at midnight.  But, she felt it was a scene she could just as easily have imagined on Bodmin Moor.  Her main concern about The Lordly Ones was that she wanted people to realise that the little boy in the story had run away with the wild ponies and not gipsies, as many people who had read the story originally thought.  The little boy in The Lordly Ones was called Ben, and she pointed out to Denys that she had written twice about a boy called Ben, who was dumb, as she had written a character of that name and disposition into her novel Rule Britannia as well.  A character called Ben also appears in Rebecca, of course.  She said there must be some psychological explanation for this, but she did not know what it was.  Despite Daphne's apparent preference for The Lordly Ones, it was The Pool that Denys chose to include in his 1974 anthology, Cornish Harvest. 

Cornish Harvest, edited by Denys Val Baker

It is worth noting that Daphne invariably concurred with other people's wishes regarding editing or publishing decisions.  She must have been a wonderfully cooperative writer to work with, as she had no notions of grandeur concerning her work and always accepted people's viewpoints graciously.  This is something that Sheila Hodges, Daphne's editor for many years at the publisher Victor Gollancz, commented upon.

Towards the end of May 1975, Daphne wrote to Denys confirming that she was glad to sign an agreement confirming that The Chamois would be published in his next anthology.  This was to be Stories of the Macabre, published in 1976. 

In April 1976, Daphne wrote to Denys telling him that Gollancz was publishing a collection of her short stories for release at Christmas time.  She thought the book would include eight short stories that the publisher thought were her best, all of which had been published previously.  The book was to be Echoes From the Macabre and, when published, actually included nine of her short stories.  She told Denys that there was one story they would not include in the book because it did not fit with the others, all of which were of a macabre nature.  The story she referred to was A Border-Line Case, which she described to Denys as being the one about Ireland and the present 'troubles'.  She offered this story to Denys for his next anthology, her only concern being that it might be too long for his purposes.  If it was, she suggested The Breakthrough, about a scientific experimental station in Suffolk, as an alternative.  Daphne asked Denys to read them both.  He was welcome to either, and she said she would sign the agreement for the one he preferred.  Denys chose The Breakthrough, which was published in My Favourite Story in 1977.

My Favourite Story, edited by Denys Val Baker

The group of letters from Daphne to Denys ended in 1976, so we have no further information about their discussions or their decisions about future stories.  However, over the following years, Denys published The Alibi, Ganymede, Kiss Me Again Stranger, The Apple Tree, The Escort and The Blue Lenses.

In addition to discussions about the choice of short stories, Daphne's letters included news and comments on what was happening at the time.  There is a moment in the correspondence when she stops calling him Denys Val Baker and says it is time she just calls him Denys and sends her best wishes to his family.  The letters contained genuine warmth and were a delight to read, showing how willing to help Daphne was with both the wonderful but constantly struggling Cornish Review and with the publication of the Cornish anthologies.

I cannot recommend strongly enough the journals that make up the two series of the Cornish Review.  You can still find copies in second-hand and antiquarian bookshops in Cornwall or by searching on one of the meta-book-searching sites on the internet, such as Addall or Bookfinder.  You will discover an incredible array of articles that provide you with tremendous information about all aspects of literature and the arts in Cornwall at the time of their publication.  Prices will range from about £5 to £20 depending on condition and scarcity.  Similarly, you can search for Denys Val Baker's books, including his anthologies of short stories by Cornish and Cornwall-associated writers.  You will find much to enjoy and a fascinating glimpse of short story writing in Cornwall.  Again, prices will range from about £5 to £20, although some titles are difficult to find and can achieve up to £100 or more.  

© Ann Willmore June 2024.

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