Biography George Mackay Brown

from work poets (1996)

george mackay brown born on 17 october 1921. youngest of 6 children, parents john brown, tailor , postman, , mhairi mackay, had been brought in braal, hamlet near strathy, sutherland native gaelic speaker.

except periods mature student on mainland scotland, brown lived life in town of stromness in orkney islands. due illness father restricted in work , received no pension. family had history of depression , mackay s uncle, jimmy brown, committed suicide: body found in stromness harbour in 1935.

george mackay brown s youth marked poverty , time affected tuberculosis. illness kept him entering army @ start of world war ii , afflicted him such extent not live normal working life; however, because of had time , space in write. did start work in 1944 orkney herald, writing on stromness news, , became prolific journalist. encouraged in writing of poetry francis scarfe, billeted in browns house on year april 1944. after helped in development writer ernest marwick, criticism valued, , robert rendall.

in 1947, stromness voted allow pubs open again, town having been dry since 1920s. when first bar opened in 1948 mackay brown first tasted alcohol, found revelation; flushed veins happiness; washed away cares , shyness , worries. remember thinking myself if have 2 pints of beer every afternoon, life great happiness . subsequently, alcohol played considerable part in life, although says, never became alcoholic, because guts staled .

he mature student @ newbattle abbey college in 1951–1952 session, poet edwin muir, have great influence on life writer, warden. return following session interrupted recurrence of tuberculosis.

having had poems published in several periodicals, first volume of poems, storm, published orkney press in 1954. muir wrote in foreword: grace find in these poems . 3 hundred copies printed, , imprint sold out within fortnight. acclaimed in local press.

brown studied english literature @ university of edinburgh. after publication of poems in literary magazine, of muir, brown had second volume loaves , fishes published hogarth press in 1959. warmly received.

during period met, , drank in rose street edinburgh with, many of scottish poets of time: sydney goodsir smith, norman maccaig, hugh macdiarmid, tom scott , others. here met stella cartwright, described muse in rose street . brown briefly engaged her, , began correspondence continue till death in 1985.

in late 1960 brown commenced teacher training @ moray house college of education, unable remain in edinburgh because of ill-health. on recovery in 1961 found not suited type of work , returned late in year mother s house in stromness, unemployed. @ time received roman catholic church, being baptised on 23 december , taking communion on following day. followed twenty-five years of pondering religious beliefs. conversion not marked change in daily habits, including drinking.

after period of unemployment, , rejection of volume of poetry hogarth press, brown did post-graduate study on gerard manley hopkins, although academic study not taste. provided occupation , income until 1964, when volume of poetry, year of whale, accepted.

brown found himself able support himself financially first time, received new commissions. received bursary scottish arts council in december 1965 , working on volume of short stories, calendar of love, issued, critical acclaim, in february 1967. still troubled excessive drinking, , of stella cartwright. later year came death of mother, had supported him, while disapproving of drinking; left estate of £4.

meanwhile, had been working on orkney tapestry, includes essays orkney , more imaginative pieces. 1968 saw visit ireland, on bursary society of authors. met seamus heaney there, although nervous condition reduced ability enjoy time there.

in 1969 time keep, collection of short stories, published, , received positive welcome. poet charles causley said, don t know writing in particular genre today comes within thousand miles of him . year in finished working on six-part cycle of poems rackwick, published in 1971 fishermen ploughs . meanwhile, orkney tapestry proving commercial success.

by late 1960s brown s poetry renowned internationally, that, example, american poet robert lowell came orkney sole purpose of meeting him.

brown met musician peter maxwell davies in rackwick during summer of 1970. subsequently, davies – came live in rackwick – based number of works on poetry , prose of george mackay brown.

brown working on first novel greenvoe, story of imaginary orkney community menaced undefined project called operation black star . characters, 1 exception, not portrayed in psychological depths. exception mrs mckee, mother of (alcoholic) minister; had intended minor character said of her, grew love more , more novel unfolded . dictionary of literary biography says greenvoe ranks ... among great prose poems of century . when novel published in may 1972 appeared prophetic because of oil exploration beginning in orkney area. resultant degree of celebrity trial him.

the story of life of magnus erlendsson, earl of orkney 1 brown turned, , theme of next novel, magnus, published in 1973. story of magnus s life told in orkneyinga saga. novel examined themes of sanctity , self-sacrifice. brown takes theme of sacrifice twentieth century inserting, in journalistic language, account of death of dietrich bonhoeffer. while critics see work disjointed , peter maxwell davies, example, regards brown s greatest achievement. davies used basis of opera martyrdom of st magnus.

brown awarded obe in 1974 new year honours list. period after completion of magnus marked 1 of brown s more acute periods of mental distress. nevertheless, maintained stream of writing: poetry, children s stories , weekly column in local newspaper. columns in orcadian continued 1971 end of life; first collection of these columns published letter hamnavoe in 1975.

in mid-1976 brown met nora kennedy, viennese jeweller , silversmith, moving south ronaldsay. had brief affair, , remained friends rest of life. said in 1977 had been productive winter writer. 1977 entering period of depression lasted intermittently decade, maintained working routine throughout. suffered severe bronchial problems, condition serious in 1981 given last sacraments.

these years saw work on time in red coat, novel brown called more sombre fable , meditation on passage of time. has been described novel in poet – brown poet – assumes undoubted authority .

two of more important women in brown s life died @ time. 1 norah smallwood worked publishers chatto & windus, , had helped , encouraged them on years. died in 1984. other, died next year, stella cartwright. in period after death brown began islands sing, autobiography not published until after death. devotes more space stella other individual, although did not attend funeral.

brown subsequently formed intense, platonic, attachment kenna crawford, whom dedicated both golden bird: 2 orkney stories , poems in wreck of archangel, volume of poetry. bore remarkable resemblance stella cartwright. golden bird won james tait black memorial prize.

between 1987 , 1989 brown travelled nairn, including visit pluscarden abbey, , shetland , oxford, left orkney apart earlier studies in edinburgh. oxford visit coincided centenary of death of gerard manley hopkins.

shortly afterwards brown diagnosed bowel cancer, required 2 major operations during 1990, , lengthy stay in foresterhill hospital, aberdeen. in final years brown wrote 2 further novels, vinland , beside ocean of time. vinland, brown won £1,000 award scottish arts council, traces life of ranald sigmundson, fictional character viking era. beside ocean of time covers on 8 hundred years of orkney history through dreams of orkney schoolboy. meditation on nature of time. won saltire scottish book of year award 1994; , listed booker prize fiction. booker listing caused him acute anxiety.

during latter years brown remained in home cared network of friends, including surinder punjya (later principal of nesbitt centre, hong kong), gunnie moberg, , renée simm.

brown continued working, writing poems of following lark, , preparing book publication. first copies delivered home on day died.

he died on 13 april 1996 after short illness , buried on 16 april, feast day of saint magnus, funeral service held @ church of scotland st magnus cathedral. service presided on rev. mario conti, father michael spencer , later biographer ron ferguson. peter maxwell davies played farewell stromness. george mackay brown s gravestone bears inscription last 2 lines of 1996 poem, work poets  :

in 2005, memorial plaque brown unveiled in writers museum, in royal mile, edinburgh. engraved quotation best-known poem, hamnavoe :