WATCH ELIZABETH McGOVERN READ “MARY CHURCHILL’S WAR” BY MARY SOAMES
THE 40TH AND FINAL BOOK IN OUR '40TH READINGS AT CHARTWELL BOOKSELLERS' VIDEO SERIES!
We have reached the climax of our 40th Anniversary video voyage through the 40 best books about Winston Churchill published during Chartwell Booksellers’ lifetime. And we do so with the absolute perfect final reader: actor ELIZABETH McGOVERN.
Back on April 11, 1986 (Chartwell Booksellers’ actual third Birthday), Ms. McGovern inaugurated 1ST READINGS AT CHARTWELL BOOKSELLERS: A Fanfare for New Fiction — our then-brand new in-store reading series — with the novel, In Country, by Bobbie Ann Mason.
She returns now to close out 40TH READINGS AT CHARTWELL BOOKSELLERS with the closing pages of our 40th and final book: MARY CHURCHILL’S WAR: The Wartime Diaries of Churchill’s Youngest Daughter, by Lady MARY SOAMES, as edited by her daughter, Emma Soames.
We have come full circle. What a trip!
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MARY SOAMES (1922-2014) was born on September 15, 1922. She served in London, Belgium and Germany in anti-aircraft batteries, and accompanied her father on several of his overseas wartime journeys, including to the Potsdam Conference. In 1945 she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), in recognition of her military services, later promoted to Dame Commander, and, in 2005, invested as Lady Companion of the Order of the Garter. Author of eight fascinating books about the Churchill family, she married Christopher Soames on February 11, 1947. Together they had five children.
EMMA SOAMES, Mary Soames’ eldest daughter, is an editor, broadcaster and columnist. She has served as editor of The Literary Review, Tatler, and the Daily Telegraph magazine.
ELIZABETH McGOVERN, a graduate of the American Conservatory Theater and the Juilliard School, is today best known for her performance as Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, in the television series Downton Abbey. She was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Evelyn Nesbitt in the 1981 film, Ragtime, following her acclaimed debut in the movie Ordinary People. Born in Illinois, Ms. McGovern has lived in London for many years.
40TH READINGS AT CHARTWELL BOOKSELLERS
toasts the best 40 books about Winston Churchill published during our forty year existence.
We launched the series on April 11, 2023 with actor JOHN LITHGOW reading THE LAST LION.
You can watch that reading: HERE