Edward St Aubyn (born 14 January 1960) is an English author and journalist. He is the author of ten novels, including notably the semi-autobiographical ''Patrick Melrose'' novels. In 2006, ''Mother's Milk'' was shortlisted for the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

Personal background and education

St Aubyn was born in 1960 in London, the son of Roger Geoffrey St Aubyn (1906–1985), a surgeon, and his second wife, Lorna Mackintosh (1929–2005). On his father's side, he is a great-great grandson of Sir Edward St Aubyn, 1st Baronet, and a great-nephew of

John St Aubyn, 1st Baron St Levan John St Aubyn, 1st Baron St Levan (23 October 1829 – 14 May 1908), known as Sir John St Aubyn, 2nd Baronet, from 1872 to 1887, was a British Liberal, and later Liberal Unionist, politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1858 until 1887 wh ...

. On his mother's side, he is a grandson of Captain Alastair William Mackintosh of the

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw servic ...

, who was briefly married to

Constance Talmadge Constance Alice Talmadge (April 19, 1898 – November 23, 1973) was an American silent film star. She was the sister of actresses Norma and Natalie Talmadge. Early life Talmadge was born on April 19, 1898 in Brooklyn, New York, to poor par ...

1926–1927), and Lela Emery (later Duchess of Talleyrand), daughter of the American businessman John Josiah Emery, Sr. He is a great-nephew of

John J. Emery John Josiah Emery Jr. (January 28, 1898 — September 24, 1976) was an American real estate developer. He was the developer of the Carew Tower (1931) in Cincinnati, Ohio, at the time the tallest building west of the Alleghenies, and the Netherland ...

, Jr. and

Audrey Emery Anna Audrey Emery (January 4, 1904 – November 25, 1971) was an American heiress and socialite who was the wife of one of the last Russian grand dukes. Early life Audrey was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on 4 January 1904. She was the youngest ...

, wife of

Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia (russian: Великий Князь Дмитрий Павлович; 18 September 1891 – 5 March 1942) was a son of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, a grandson of Tsar Alexander II of Russia and a ...

. St Aubyn’s father was first married to Sophie Helene ''

Freifrau (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

'' von Puthon of

Schloss Mirabell ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cognate ...

in Salzburg, whom he divorced in 1957. St Aubyn has two half-sisters by his father's first marriage, and an elder sister, Alexandra. He grew up in London and France, where his family had houses. He has described an unhappy childhood in which he was repeatedly raped by his sexually abusive father from the ages of 5 to 8, with the complicity of his mother. St Aubyn attended Sussex House and then

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

. In 1979 he went on to read English at

Keble College, Oxford Keble College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to th ...

. At the time a heroin addict, he graduated with a pass, the lowest possible class of degree. He entered

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

at the age of 25 and subsequently became a professional writer. From 1987 to 1990, St Aubyn was married to the author Nicola Shulman, now Marchioness of Normanby. He has a son, Lucian, by Jane Longman, daughter of Lady Elizabeth Longman and Mark Longman, and a daughter, Eleanor St Aubyn, by another previous relationship. He lives in London.

Patrick Melrose series

Five of St Aubyn's novels, ''Never Mind'', ''Bad News'', ''Some Hope'', '' Mother's Milk'', and ''At Last'', form ''The Patrick Melrose Novels,'' the first four of which were republished in a single volume in 2012, in anticipation of the fifth. They are based on the author's own life; the titular protagonist grows up in a highly dysfunctional upper-class English family, and deals with his father's sexual abuse, the deaths of both parents,

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

heroin addiction Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a substance use disorder characterized by cravings for opioids, continued use despite physical and/or psychological deterioration, increased tolerance with use, and withdrawal symptoms after discontinuing opioids. Op ...

and recovery, and marriage and parenthood. The books have been hailed as a powerful exploration of how emotional health can be carved out of childhood trauma. ''Mother's Milk'' was made into a

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

released in 2011. The screenplay was written by St Aubyn and director Gerald Fox. It stars

Jack Davenport Jack Arthur Davenport (born 1 March 1973) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''This Life'' and ''Coupling'', and as James Norrington in the '' Pirates of the Caribbean'' series. He has also appeared ...

Adrian Dunbar Adrian Dunbar (born 1 August 1958) is a Northern Irish actor, director and singer, known for his television and his theatre work. Dunbar co-wrote and starred in the 1991 film ''Hear My Song'', nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the BAF ...

Diana Quick Diana Marilyn Quick (born 23 November 1946) is an English actress. Early life and family background Quick was born on 23 November 1946 in London, England. She grew up in Dartford, Kent, the third of four children. Her father was Leonard Quic ...

, and

Margaret Tyzack Margaret Maud Tyzack (9 September 193125 June 2011) was an English actress. Her television roles included ''The Forsyte Saga'' (1967) and ''I, Claudius'' (1976). She won the 1970 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for the BBC serial ''The First Ch ...

in her last performance. In 2018 a five-part television series, ''

Patrick Melrose Edward St Aubyn (born 14 January 1960) is an English author and journalist. He is the author of ten novels, including notably the semi-autobiographical ''Patrick Melrose'' novels. In 2006, ''Mother's Milk'' was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. ...

'' was broadcast, a joint production of Showtime and

Sky Atlantic Sky Atlantic is a British pay television channel owned by Sky Group Limited broadcast in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel is primarily dedicated to imported programmes from the United States, and holds the domestic rights to HBO ...

Benedict Cumberbatch Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (born 19 July 1976) is an English actor. Known for his work on screen and stage, he has received various accolades, including a British Academy Television Award, a Primetime Emmy Award and a Laurence O ...

stars as Patrick Melrose (with the young Patrick played by Sebastian Maltz), with each episode based on a different novel in the series. The series premiered on Showtime on 12 May 2018 to favourable reviews.

Awards and honours

*1992

Betty Trask Award The Betty Trask Prize and Awards are for first novels written by authors under the age of 35, who reside in a current or former Commonwealth nation. Each year the awards total £20,000, with one author receiving a larger prize amount, called the ...

winner for ''Never Mind'' *1998

Guardian Fiction Prize The Guardian Fiction Prize was a literary award sponsored by ''The Guardian'' newspaper. Founded in 1965, it recognized one fiction book per year written by a British or Commonwealth writer and published in the United Kingdom. The award ran for 33 ...

shortlisted for ''On the Edge'' *2006

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

shortlisted for ''Mother's Milk'' *2007 Prix Femina Etranger winner for ''Mother's Milk'' *2007 South Bank Show award on literature winner for ''Mother's Milk'' *2014

Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize The Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize is the United Kingdom's first literary award for comic literature. Established in 2000 and named in honour of P. G. Wodehouse, past winners include Paul Torday in 2007 with ''Salmon Fishing in the Yemen'' an ...

winner for ''Lost for Words''Lea, Richard. "Edward St Aubyn wins Wodehouse prize with a satire of literary awards". ''The Guardian''. 19 May 2014.

Works

* * * * * * * * * * *''Double Blind.'' Harvill Secker. 2021.

References

External links