David Plunket Greene (19 November 1904 – 24 February 1941), together with his brother

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

and sister

Olivia Olivia may refer to: People * Olivia (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Olivia (singer) (Olivia Longott, born 1981), American singer * Olívia (basketball) (Carlos Henrique Rodrigues do Nascimento, born 19 ...

, was part of the

Bright Young Things __NOTOC__ The Bright Young Things, or Bright Young People, was a nickname given by the tabloid press to a group of Bohemianism, Bohemian young Aristocracy (class), aristocrats and socialites in 1920s London. They threw flamboyant costume party, f ...

who inspired the novel ''

Vile Bodies Vile may refer to: Characters * Vile (Mega Man X), a character from the Mega Man X game series * Doctor Vile (Dr. Weil), a character from the Mega Man Zero game series * V.I.L.E., a fictional villain group in the ''Carmen Sandiego'' franchise ...

'' to

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires ''Decli ...

, a family friend.

Biography

David Plunket Greene was born on 19 November 1904, the son of

Harry Plunket Greene Harry Plunket Greene (24 June 1865 – 19 August 1936) was an Irish baritone who was most famous in the formal concert and oratorio repertoire. He wrote and lectured on his art, and was active in the field of musical competitions and examination ...

and Gwendoline Maud Parry.Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh. Burke's Irish Family Records. London, U.K.: Burkes Peerage Ltd, 1976

James Knox James Robert Knox GCC (2 March 1914 – 26 June 1983) was an Australian prelate of the Catholic Church. After years as a Vatican diplomat, he served as Archbishop of Melbourne from 1967 to 1974, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worshi ...

described David and his elder brother Richard as a "wildly irresponsible pair who had never experienced any form of parental control". He attended

West Downs School West Downs School, Romsey Road, Winchester, Hampshire, was an English independent preparatory school, which was established in 1897 and closed in 1988. History Founding The school was founded by Lionel Helbert (1870–1919), with help from h ...

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

, and then

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

where his brother

Richard Plunket Greene Richard George Hubert Plunket Greene (1 July 1901 – 25 March 1978) was an English racing motorist, a jazz musician and author. Biography Richard George Hubert Plunket Greene was born on 1 July 1901, the son of Harry Plunket Greene, an Irish bar ...

was a very good friend of

. At Oxford Plunket Greene was part of the Railway Club and the

Hypocrites' Club The Hypocrites' Club was one of the student clubs at Oxford University in England. Its motto in Greek, from an Olympian Ode by Pindar, was ''Water is best''. This led to the members being called ''Hypocrites'', due to the fact that beer, wine an ...

. When in May 1925 the authorities ordered the closure of the Hypocrites' Club, David Plunket Greene rented the former premises of the club. The 1930 novel ''

'', satirising the

, the decadent young London society between World War I and World War II, is partly inspired by the Plunket Greene family. Railway Club at Oxford

David Plunket Greene was a "dandy devoted to all that was fashionable". His cousin was

Hugh Lygon Hugh Patrick Lygon (2 November 190419 August 1936) was the second son of William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp, and is often believed to be the inspiration for Lord Sebastian Flyte in Evelyn Waugh's ''Brideshead Revisited''. He was a friend of Waugh's ...

and therefore he was often a guest at

Madresfield Court Madresfield Court is a country house in Malvern, Worcestershire, England. The home of the Lygon family for nearly six centuries, it has never been sold and has passed only by inheritance since the 12th century; a line of unbroken family ownersh ...

. Lygon and David attended West Downs together, and together decided to go to Oxford. The Plunket Greene siblings, Richard, Olivia and David, went often to New York City, to have their trousers cut properly and to frequent the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...

clubs. David Plunket Green was also a jazz musician. In 1926 he married Marguerite McGustie, nicknamed "Babe", daughter of W. McGustie. She played a leading role in the

, in the company of her friends

Sylvia Ashley Sylvia, Lady Ashley (born Edith Louisa Hawkes, 1 April 1904 – 29 June 1977) was an English model, actress, and socialite who was best known for her numerous marriages to British and Georgian noblemen and American movie stars. Early life Ash ...

and

Elizabeth Ponsonby Hon. Elizabeth Ponsonby (28 December 190031 July 1940) was an English aristocrat who was a prominent member of the Bright Young Things, well-connected socialites who featured heavily in the contemporary tabloid press for what were perceived to be ...

, this latter David's cousin. The marriage was short lived, they divorced in October 1928, and already in May 1929 Babe Plunket Greene was announcing her engagement to Count Anthony de Bosdari, former fiancé of actress

Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several prominent films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's ''Lif ...

. ''Blackbirds Party at David Plunket Greene's, Somewhere in Knightsbridge'' is a 1927 painting by

Anthony Wysard Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the ''Antonii'', a '' gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton ...

currently at the National Portrait Gallery, London. David Plunket Greene committed suicide on 24 February 1941. He is buried at St Andrew Churchyard, Hurstbourne Priors, Hampshire, near his father and his brother Richard.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plunket Greene, David 1904 births 1941 deaths 20th-century English people Alumni of the University of Oxford English jazz musicians English socialites People educated at Harrow School People educated at West Downs School Suicides in England 1941 suicides