Stephen James Napier Tennant (21 April 1906 – 28 February 1987) was a British

socialite A socialite is a person, typically a woman from a wealthy or aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having ...

known for his

decadent Decadence was a late-19th-century movement emphasizing the need for sensationalism, egocentricity, and bizarre, artificial, perverse, and exotic sensations and experiences. By extension, it may refer to a decline in art, literature, science, ...

, eccentric lifestyle. He was a central member of the socialite group referred to as " Bright Young Things" by the tabloid press of the time. Tennant was noted for his affected demeanor, appearance and behaviours.

Early life

Tennant was born into British nobility, the youngest son of a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

peer, Edward Tennant, 1st Baron Glenconner, and the former Pamela Wyndham, one of the Wyndham sisters and of The Souls clique. His mother was also a cousin of

Lord Alfred Douglas Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas (22 October 1870 – 20 March 1945), also known as Bosie Douglas, was an English poet and journalist, and a lover of Oscar Wilde. At Oxford University he edited an undergraduate journal, ''The Spirit Lamp'', that carr ...

(1870–1945),

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

's lover and a

sonnet A sonnet is a fixed poetic form with a structure traditionally consisting of fourteen lines adhering to a set Rhyme scheme, rhyming scheme. The term derives from the Italian word ''sonetto'' (, from the Latin word ''sonus'', ). Originating in ...

eer. On his father's death, Tennant's mother married

Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon (25 April 1862 – 7 September 1933), better known as Sir Edward Grey, was a British statesman and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician who was the main force behind British foreign policy i ...

, a fellow bird-lover. Tennant's eldest brother

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

– "Bim" – was killed in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. His elder brother

David Tennant David John Tennant (; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He is best known for portraying the Tenth Doctor, tenth and Fourteenth Doctor, fourteenth incarnations of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction series ''Docto ...

founded the Gargoyle Club in Soho.

Social set

During the 1920s and 1930s, Tennant was an important member – the "Brightest", it is said – of the " Bright Young Things". His friends included Rex Whistler,

Cecil Beaton Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton (14 January 1904 – 18 January 1980) was a British fashion, portrait and war photographer, diarist, painter, and interior designer, as well as costume designer and set designer for stage and screen. His accolades ...

, the Sitwells,

Lady Diana Manners Diana Cooper, Viscountess Norwich (née Lady Diana Olivia Winifred Maud Manners; 29 August 1892 – 16 June 1986) was an English silent film actress and aristocrat who was a well-known social figure in London and Paris. As a young woman, she ...

and the Mitford girls. He is widely considered to be the model for Cedric Hampton in

Nancy Mitford Nancy Freeman-Mitford (28 November 1904 – 30 June 1973) was an English novelist, biographer, and journalist. The eldest of the Mitford family#Mitford sisters, Mitford sisters, she was regarded as one of the "bright young things" on the ...

's novel '' Love in a Cold Climate'', one of the inspirations for Lord Sebastian Flyte in

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 ...

's ''

Brideshead Revisited ''Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder'' is a novel by the English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It follows, from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the life and romances of Charles Ryder, esp ...

'', and a model for the Hon. Miles Malpractice in some of Waugh's other novels.

Writing

For most of his life, Tennant tried to start or finish a novel – ''Lascar: A Story You Must Forget''. It is popularly believed that he spent the last 17 years of his life in bed at the house he inherited from his parents, Wilsford House at Wilsford cum Lake, Wiltshire, which he had redecorated by

Syrie Maugham Gwendoline Maud Syrie Maugham ( Barnardo, formerly Wellcome; 10 July 1879 – 25 July 1955) was a leading British interior decorator of the 1920s and 1930s who popularised rooms decorated entirely in white. Early life Gwendoline Maud Syrie Ba ...

. Though undoubtedly idle, he was not truly lethargic: he made several visits to the United States and Italy, and developed many new friendships. His later reputation as a

recluse A recluse is a person who lives in voluntary seclusion and solitude. The word is from the Latin , which means 'to open' or 'disclose'. Examples of recluses are Symeon of Trier, who lived within the great Roman gate Porta Nigra with permissio ...

became increasingly true only towards the last years of his life. Yet even then, his life was not uneventful: he became landlord to V. S. Naipaul, who immortalised Tennant in his novel '' The Enigma of Arrival''.

Personal life

During the 1920s and 1930s Tennant had a long time sexual affair with the poet

Siegfried Sassoon Siegfried Loraine Sassoon (8 September 1886 – 1 September 1967) was an English war poet, writer, and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the First World ...

. Prior to this he had proposed to a friend, Elizabeth Lowndes, but had been rejected ( Philip Hoare relates how Tennant discussed plans with Lowndes about bringing his

nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...

with them on their honeymoon). His relationship with Sassoon (twenty years his senior), however, was to be his most important: it lasted some six years before Tennant off-handedly put an abrupt end to it and Sassoon was reportedly devastated. When Tennant died in 1987, he had outlived most of his contemporaries. A large archive of his letters, scrapbooks, personal ephemera and artworks is held in The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History in

Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen ...

In popular culture

The character of Cedric Hampton in the novel '' Love in a Cold Climate'' is based on Tennant. The character of Miles Malpractice in the novel '' Vile Bodies'' is based on Tennant. Lord Sebastian Flyte, a character in the novel ''

'', is partly based on Tennant. The narrator of Shola von Reinhold's novel ''LOTE'' (2020) is obsessed ("transfixed") with Tennant, and mentions him throughout the boo

He was played as a younger man by

Calam Lynch Calam Finbar Lynch (born 7 November 1994) is a British actor. His films include the Disney adaptation of '' Black Beauty'' (2020) and Terence Davies' ''Benediction'' (2021). On television, he appeared in the BBC One drama '' Mrs Wilson'' (2018) ...

and as an older man by

Anton Lesser Anton Lesser (born 14 February 1952) is a British actor. He is known for his roles as Qyburn in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'', Harold Macmillan in ''The Crown'', Clement Attlee in '' A United Kingdom'', Chief Superintendent Bright in '' E ...

in the 2021 Terence Davies film ''

Benediction A benediction (, 'well' + , 'to speak') is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service. It can also refer to a specific Christian religious service including the exposition of the eucharisti ...

''.

References

External links

* Stephen Tennant Papers. James Marshall and Marie-Louise Osborn Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tennant, Stephen 1906 births 1987 deaths English people of Scottish descent English socialites Younger sons of barons

Stephen Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...

20th-century English LGBTQ people Siegfried Sassoon