Pamela Travers: biography, history, life, creativity and books

Pamela Travers is an English writer of Australian descent. Her main creative victory was a series of children's books about Mary Poppins. Pamela Travers, whose biography is presented in this article, has lived an unusual, rich and interesting life, corresponding to the world of her books.

Childhood

The real name of the writer is Helen Goff. She was born on August 9 in the distant year of 1899. It happened in the Australian town of Maryborough. Her family was quite wealthy. The father, whose name was Travers Goff, worked as a bank manager. Mother, Margaret Morehead, was the niece of the Prime Minister of Queensland. Pamela had Irish roots for her father.

In 1905, Travers's work forced the whole family to move to the nearby town of Allora, where he was demoted to a bank clerk. All the fault was the impoverished drunkenness of the head of the family. Two years later the venerable Travers let out a spirit. In official papers, the cause of death is an epileptic seizure, but much later his daughter, a famous writer, admits that his father died of alcoholism.

After the funeral, the family moved to New South Wales, where Helen-Pamela's grandmother lived. She had her own sugar plantation. The Goffs lived there for ten years.

As a child, Helen preferred a company of animals to human society. She had a very developed imagination and imagination. She read many books and believed in fairy tales.

Youth

When the First World War began, Pamela Travers began to study at the Ashville School for Girls. It was there that most clearly for her youthful years was her talent as a writer. She rejoiced the school theater with plays, wrote stories and poems, her brothers and sisters were delighted with the fairy tales that emerged from Pamela's pen.

She was very early in the press in Australian magazines. However, writing books was not the limit of the young girl's dreams. She was engaged in music and longed to become an actress.

In 1917 Helene Goff moved to Sydney to fulfill her desire. It was there that she became PL Travers. Initials at the time were in the course of women who wanted to participate in cultural and creative life.

For several years she successfully performed in the theater, playing the leading roles. However, this activity did not bring a tangible income, and in order to somehow exist, Pamela had to work part time as a journalist. For a long time she led a column in the newspaper. Literary path also brought a small income. Meanwhile, her poems became increasingly popular. Subjects of the works were quite diverse. Some sang the homeland of their father - Ireland, others were erotic.

Eventually, writing activity prevailed, and Pamela decided to devote her life to literature.

Moving to England

Turning point in the fate of the writer was 1924. It was then that she moved to England. Her trip was very interesting and was reflected in some of Pamela's works. According to Travers, she had only ten pounds when she set off, and five of them were spent on some kind of nonsense.

At first she wrote short notes for Australian publishing houses in London and sent great articles about art to the newspapers of her homeland.

In 1925, while traveling in Ireland, Pamela Travers became acquainted with the poet JW Russell, who became for her not just a friend, but also in a sense an ideologist of life. Their communication lasted until 1935, until Russell's death. He was the editor of the magazine, so Pamela often printed. In addition, thanks to this man, the writer became acquainted with many Irish poets of the twentieth century, who had a great influence on her.

Among them, a special place was occupied by William Yeats, who instilled in her not just interest in the occult, but faith in him. From the moment of their acquaintance and until their last days Pamela Travers considered this direction to be decisive in her destiny.

Triumph of Pamela

In 1934, the writer fell ill with pleurisy and decided to leave London to gain strength outside the city in the fresh air. She settled in an old house in Sussex and for a while gave up literary activity.

Her friend Russell assumed that Pamela was working on a great novel about the witch (because of her occult predilections), but it was not so. She did not write at all, only read a lot and she looked after the garden. But one day she was asked to look after two children, and Travers agreed. To somehow entertain the kids, she came up with an amazing story about an unusual nanny who flew to the children on an umbrella.

This is how the famous Mary Poppins was born, unexpectedly appeared in the house number 17 on Cherry Street, the Banks family and other heroes. From the usual fairy tale for the night to develop the plot for the book, and not alone, only Pamela Lyndon Travers could. "Mary Poppins" was released in the same year 1934. It was an incredible success, a real triumph.

The next year there was a continuation of the story of the nurse. In total, the writer created 18 works about the fairy Mary, the last of which was published in 1989.

The books of Pamela Travers were screened in Hollywood in 1964. Disney's studio shot a film, which in the end was 13 times nominated for an Oscar (5 awards won). In Russia, in 1983, the film "Mary Poppins, Goodbye!" Was released, the main role in which was performed by Natalia Andreichenko.

Personal life

The relationship in the life of the writer was very much, but she did not marry. She was even attributed to love relationships with women.

For a long time Pamela Lyndon Travers, whose books were adored by all English children, dreamed of a child, but she could not give birth to her. Therefore, as soon as she turned forty, she decided to adopt the baby. He was a boy from Dublin (Ireland). The choice was not accidental. Little John Cammillus was the grandson of Joseph Gon, who, in turn, was friendly with William Yeats and was his biographer. Joseph and his wife were forced to raise one of seven grandchildren and agreed to give one of them for adoption to somehow make life easier. Cammillus had a twin brother, but despite this, Pamela wanted to take only one.

After completing all the documents, John began to bear the name of Cammillus Travers Gon. Pamela hid the truth from her son, but she still surfaced when he met his twin Anthony in one of the London bars. Young people were seventeen years old.

Cammillus died in 2011.

Interesting Facts

1. PL Travers died in 1996, not live a couple of months before her 97th birthday.
2. The writer was an officer of the Order of the British Empire.