Talk:Hugh Alexander Pollock

First meeting with Ida Crowe

The problem is that sources are inconsistent - possibly because of relying on the memory of a very old lady: some say Crowe chased up the fate of her first novel after three months, others after six. Then there is disagreement about whether she was 20 or 21 when she first met Pollock. I guess they met possibly in 1929, or 1928 at the earliest. But there is no reliable source I can find to suggest the novel was published any earlier than 1934: I have given the BBC obituary as a RS citation, which says "mid-1930s". Alfietucker (talk) 09:04, 30 April 2014 (UTC)

Thanks. Sorry, I put "in the 1920s" back in the wrong place yesterday. I had meant to go back closer to the original text saying Pollock first met Crowe in the 1920s, when she submitted the book for publication, not that the book was actually published then (the earliest date I have seen is "early 1930s", but without a good source).

Yes, "Palanquins and coloured lanterns" was set in the 1920s, but I am confident it was written and submitted to the publisher in the 1920s too, even if (as seems likely) it was published in the early 1930s. Her obituary (also in the Telegraph) reports her first meeting Pollock shortly after submitting her novel to George Newnes. The Bath Chronicle also reports her visiting George Newnes "at the age of 20" (i.e. between April 1928 and April 1929) and then meeting Pollock within a few months - three, six, whatever - but almost certainly before the end of 1929, and having lunch together. "This was the start of their long friendship which gradually evolved into romance."[1] The obituary says "Despite the age gap of 20 years, Ida was charmed by Pollock, who told her he was married. To put him from her mind, Ida immersed herself in her writing, working so hard that she suffered a mental breakdown. Yearning to see the desert, she travelled alone to Morocco, and after touring souks and glimpsing the Atlas Mountains, returned to England cured, and took a job as a Harley Street receptionist. ... In September 1941 she again encountered Pollock"[2] So different articles in the Telegraph can't agree on whether they met each other again in 1939 or 1941! I think the statement "became friends in 1939" must refer to a renewal and deepening of an earlier acquaintance.[3]

The key point, I think, is that Pollock and Crowe clearly first met several years before 1939. Perhaps we can agree on what the sources indicate clearly: she submitted her novel to George Newnes in the late 1920s; it got lost; a short time later it was found by Pollock; they first met at some point after April 1928 but before the book was published, certainly before 1934. She then went away to Morocco, and they met again shortly before or during the second war.

I don't have a copy of Starlight but I am sure it would make the timeline clearer. -- Ferma (talk) 17:15, 30 April 2014 (UTC)

Yes, that's how the timeframe appears to me too. Obviously if we can find more reliable sources and so be more certain of the year they met, etc, then we can add those details. (Thank you for your courteous reply, by the way.) Alfietucker (talk) 17:30, 30 April 2014 (UTC)

Great. No problem. I should not have snapped in my edit summary yesterday, but the fact is that (apart from the few points lifted from somewhere else specifically noted) most of this is sourced from or supported by the Ayrshire article. -- Ferma (talk) 17:48, 30 April 2014 (UTC)

We just need to be aware that as/if the article grows, there will come a point when, unless there are such inline citations, an editor will notice that parts of the article are not clearly attributed to a source. Hence why I gave a citation to the Ayrshire article to those parts which are clearly supported by it - piecemeal, I admit, but something that needs to be done anyway, to distinguish these from parts of the text which are/will be based on other sources. (Hope that's not too convoluted an explanation!) Alfietucker (talk) 18:01, 30 April 2014 (UTC)

Alcoholism

According to some references Pollock's alcoholism in the late 1930s during his marriage with Enid Blyton, was the result of his collaboration with Winston Churchill, but this collaboration was in the 1920's. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Belagaile (talk • contribs) 18:32, 21 September 2014 (UTC)