Lost World—England 1933-1936

Dorothy Hartley (18931985) is an author revered by enthusiasts for old English food and cookery and English country life. Her many books on these subjects, often illustrated with her own drawings, are collectors items. Her greatest book, Food in England, has remained in print since its first appearance in 1954. During 19331936, she was commissioned by the Daily Sketch newspaper to write articles describing the English countryside, old English crafts and customs, country foods and country ways (with the odd excursion to Wales, Scotland and Ireand). She did her research in the British Museum (she had by then written several books of social history) and on the ground, travelling around the country on her sturdy bicycle, staying with her subjects or under hedges. These articles were to form her knowledge-bank which she used in several books that came out during the 1930s and beyond (particularly Heres England, 1935), but they have never been seen as they were first written. We offer a selection, with a foreword by Lucy Worsley (who is presenting the BBC TV documentary on Hartley to be transmitted this autumn) and introduced by the writer Adrian Bailey (who befriended Dorothy Hartley in her later life). The 60 articles are illustrated with some of Hartleys own snapshots which she kept as notes for future reference. The subjects range widely on matters as various as thatching, clog-making, eels, the country chemist, marram grass, sand shoes, crabs, sheep shearing, spring-cleaning, country kitchens, ploughing, weather lore, and elevenses. It will be classic.

DOROTHY HARTLEY (1893-1985) was the daughter of a teacher and clergyman in Yorkshire. She was educated there and in Nottinghamshire and later at art college in London. She wrote much on the social history of England and on English crafts and country lore and on English food. Her most famous book is Food in England (1954). She was also a teacher herself and wrote much journalism, principally on country matters. Latterly, she lived in north Wales. She never married. Her books have continued to have a strong following among English readers. LUCY WORSLEY is chief curator at Hostoric Royal Palaces. She is an historian (the biographer of William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle) and has latterly been the very successful presenter of several British television documentaries on historical matters and social history. She is presenting the TV documentary on Dorothy Hartley in 2012. ADRIAN BAILEY is an author, food writer, photographer and journalist. His books on food include one on bread and one on ingredients that continue to have a strong following thirty years after their first publication. He has also written several books on the techniques of photography. He was art editor and later food editor on various magazines in the 1960s and 1970s including Queen and Harper's & Queen.