Elizabeth Fulton Salter (2 October 1918 – 14 March 1981) was an Australian biographer and crime novelist. She was secretary to

Edith Sitwell Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell (7 September 1887 – 9 December 1964) was a British poet and critic and the eldest of the three literary Sitwells. She reacted badly to her eccentric, unloving parents and lived much of her life with her governess ...

from 1957 until the latter's death in 1964.

Education and career

Salter was born in Angaston in the Barossa Valley and educated locally and then at the

Wilderness School , motto_translation = Always True , established = 1884 , type = Independent, day and boarding , denomination = Non-denominational , slogan = , principal ...

. She graduated from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

and the

Elder Conservatorium of Music The Elder Conservatorium of Music, also known as "The Con", is Australia's senior academy of music and is located in the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is named in honour of its benefactor, Sir Thomas Elder. Dating in ...

. She moved to England in 1952 and where she found work with the BBC, before being employed as secretary to Edith Sitwell in 1957. Although based in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, Salter retained her sense of being Australian. In reviewing Salter's memoir of Sitwell in 1967, John Whitwell wrote in ''

The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in ...

'', "As an Australian, Miss Salter was able to pierce the hierarchical etiquettes in which Dame Edith lived, to the great advantage of each. Her book sits modestly and worthily alongside such memoirs as

Neville Cardus Sir John Frederick Neville Cardus, CBE (2 April 188828 February 1975) was an English writer and critic. From an impoverished home background, and mainly self-educated, he became ''The Manchester Guardian''s cricket correspondent in 1919 and it ...

' book on Sir

Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Roya ...

." Salter was granted a Commonwealth Literary Fellowship in 1969 to research and write a biography of Daisy Bates. Film rights were sold to

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

and

Robert Helpmann Sir Robert Murray Helpmann CBE ( Helpman, 9 April 1909 – 28 September 1986) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor, director, and choreographer. After early work in Australia he moved to Britain in 1932, where he joined the Vic-Wells Ballet (n ...

before the book was complete. It was later adapted for film by

Eleanor Witcombe Eleanor Katrine Witcombe (20 September 1923 – 21 October 2018) was an Australian writer who worked extensively in radio, film and television. Early life and education Witcombe was born in Yorketown, South Australia where her father ran a far ...

, with Hepburn to take the leading role. On one of many visits to Australia in 1980 she was seeking to write a biography of Maie, Lady Casey. Salter died in London on 14 March 1981. The

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

holds 27 boxes of her papers.

Works

Biographies

* ''The Last Years of a Rebel: A Memoir of Edith Sitwell'', Bodley Head, 1967 * ''Daisy Bates: Queen of the Never Never'', Angus & Robertson, 1971 * ''The lost impressionist: a biography of John Peter Russell,'' Angus & Robertson,1976 * ''Helpmann: The authorised biography of Robert Helpmann,'' Angus & Robertson, 1978 * ''Edith Sitwell'', Oresko Books, 1979

Crime novels

* ''Death in a Mist'', Geoffrey Bles, 1957 * ''Will to Survive'', Geoffrey Bles, 1958 * ''There Was a Witness'', Geoffrey Bles, 1960 * ''The Voice of the Peacock'', Geoffrey Bles, 1962 * ''Once Upon a Tombstone'', Geoffrey Bles, 1965

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salter, Elizabeth 1918 births 1981 deaths People from Angaston, South Australia People educated at Wilderness School University of Adelaide alumni 20th-century Australian women writers Australian biographers Australian women biographers