Writers/1953, Shakespeare Memorial

The class of 1953, Shakespeare Memorial Theatre and the then-after written publications through the years from Yvonne Mitchell, Robert Shaw and Michael Redgrave are large. Donald Pleasance, also of that group of Shakespeare actors, wrote a children’s book. Between them, a body of written work covers playwriting, screenplays, children’s books, novels, and biographies.

The novels have distinct styles and diverse settings where the story takes place. Yvonne integrates her acting background into her storytelling with the characters, especially in A ‘Year in Time’ and ‘The Bedsitter’. The theme of seeking a sense of identity, where one can find acceptance, is prominent in both novels.

 Yvonne’s second novel, ‘A Frame For Julian,’ centres around the protagonist’s strong desire for recognition. What effect this has on those close to Julian, his family, friends and Julian himself brings the story to a climactic conclusion.

Delving into the human condition is a focal point of Yvonne’s novels. You come away after reading Yvonne’s writings with a sense of the double meaning in some of her passages. A talent for the humorous and the seriousness combined is a quality quite extraordinary that Yvonne excels at. This is done with great skill in her novel, ‘But Answer Came There None’. Yvonne’s novel powerfully describes and poses questions asked by an 80-year-old lady’s interpretation of her surroundings in a elderly ward.