Life and Letters

Life and Letters was an English literary journal associated with the interwar and immediate postwar British literary world. Its first period ran from June 1928 until April 1935, when it served as a venue for literary criticism, essays, cultural commentary, and contributions from a broad group of writers and intellectuals. The journal was edited from its launch by Desmond MacCarthy, who had previously been connected with the New Statesman but had lost interest in that publication. Financial support came from Lord Esher, whose backing helped make the journal possible during a period when literary periodicals depended heavily on private patronage and a relatively small educated readership. The publication occupied a position between a literary review, a cultural magazine, and an intellectual forum. Its contributors included established and emerging figures such as H. E. Bates, Max Beerbohm, Hilaire Belloc, Kenneth Clark, Cyril Connolly, E. M. Forster, Thomas Hardy, F. L. Lucas, William Plomer, Peter Quennell, Dilys Powell, Lytton Strachey, Evelyn Waugh, Antonia White, and Virginia Woolf. This contributor network gave the journal a wide literary range, extending from fiction writers and poets to critics, historians, editors, and cultural commentators. Cyril Connolly was particularly associated with a number of important pieces published in the journal. His articles included discussions of Berlin, James Joyce, English national identity, and the British monarchy or constitutional order. These writings helped establish the periodical as one of the settings in which Connolly developed ideas and styles that would later be associated with Horizon, the influential literary magazine he co-founded and edited from 1940. Life and Letters can therefore be viewed as one of the publications that formed part of the prehistory of Connolly's later editorial career, although it was not itself a direct continuation of Horizon. The original run ended in April 1935. The title returned after the Second World War in a combined form, Life and Letters and the London Mercury and Bookman, in 1945. The expanded title linked the revived journal with established literary-review traditions represented by the London Mercury and Bookman. In 1946, the publication reverted to the shorter Life and Letters title. Ellis Roberts had replaced MacCarthy as editor in 1934, shortly before the end of the first run, and the revived postwar publication remained part of the same broader literary-journal tradition. Life and Letters finally ceased publication in 1950. It is remembered less as a mass-market consumer brand than as a historically significant literary periodical whose pages brought together major British writers and critics. Its importance rests on its contributor roster, its role in interwar literary culture, and its connection to the development of influential criticism and magazine editing in Britain. No current operating organization, website, parent company, or successor brand is identified in the available reference material.

Life and Letters emerged in June 1928 as an English literary journal during a particularly active period for British cultural publishing. Its founding circumstances were connected to Desmond MacCarthy, who became the editor from the first issue after losing interest in the New Statesman. The journal also benefited from financial support supplied by Lord Esher. The available historical record does not identify a separate founding corporation or a formal commercial parent, so the publication is best understood as an editorial literary venture rather than as a modern publishing-company brand. The journal's editorial profile was broad. It published literary criticism, cultural essays, commentary, and work by a substantial group of notable writers and intellectuals. Among the contributors were H. E. Bates, Max Beerbohm, Hilaire Belloc, Kenneth Clark, Cyril Connolly, E. M. Forster, Thomas Hardy, F. L. Lucas, William Plomer, Peter Quennell, Dilys Powell, Lytton Strachey, Evelyn Waugh, Antonia White, and Virginia Woolf. The range of contributors indicates that Life and Letters functioned as a meeting place for different generations and tendencies within English literary culture. Cyril Connolly's work was an especially notable part of the journal's record. His contributions included "Conversations in Berlin," "The Position of Joyce," published in April 1929, "England not my England," published in October 1929, and "Under which King?" These pieces addressed European and British cultural questions as well as major literary subjects. The journal's publication of Connolly's work is significant because Connolly later became closely associated with Horizon, and Life and Letters formed part of the wider magazine environment in which his critical voice developed. MacCarthy edited the journal from its launch until 1934. Ellis Roberts then took over as editor. The original run ended in April 1935, after nearly seven years of publication. The end of this first period did not permanently eliminate the title. In 1945, Life and Letters was revived under the longer title Life and Letters and the London Mercury and Bookman. This form placed the journal in relation to the established London literary-review tradition represented by the other named publication. The following year, the title was shortened again to Life and Letters. The postwar revival continued until 1950, when the journal ceased publication. There is no evidence in the supplied material of a later revival, digital continuation, corporate successor, or current commercial operation. Its historical significance lies in its role as an English literary periodical, the writers it published, and the place its pages occupied in the development of interwar and postwar literary criticism. It also provides documentary context for the careers of writers and editors who later became prominent elsewhere in British literary publishing.

• 1950

  Publication ends

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  Life and Letters ceased publication after its postwar period.

• 1946

  Original title restored

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  The revived publication reverted from its combined title to Life and Letters.

• 1945

  Postwar revival

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  The journal returned as Life and Letters and the London Mercury and Bookman.

• 1935

  First run concludes

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  The initial publication period ended with the April 1935 issue.

• 1934

  Editorial succession

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  Ellis Roberts replaced Desmond MacCarthy as editor during the final year of the original period.

• 1929

  Cyril Connolly publishes major criticism in the journal

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  The journal published Connolly's discussions of James Joyce and English identity, including pieces appearing in April and October 1929.

• 1928

  First issue published

  [1]Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org

  Life and Letters began publication in June 1928 with Desmond MacCarthy as editor and financial backing from Lord Esher.

An English literary and cultural journal serving as a platform for criticism, essays, and writing by prominent British and international literary figures.

• Literary journal · 1928

  Life and Letters

  The principal publication of the brand, first issued from June 1928 through April 1935 and revived after the Second World War. It carried literary criticism, cultural essays, and writing by prominent figures including Virginia Woolf, E. M. Forster, Evelyn Waugh, Max Beerbohm, and Cyril Connolly. The journal ended permanently in 1950 according to the supplied reference.

• Combined literary journal title · 1945

  Life and Letters and the London Mercury and Bookman

  A combined title used for the journal's postwar revival in 1945. It connected the Life and Letters name with the London Mercury and Bookman literary-review tradition. The combined wording was temporary: the publication reverted to Life and Letters in 1946.

• 1946

  Return to the original titleStrategy

  Background

  The revived publication had appeared in 1945 under the longer combined name.

  Action taken

  The publication dropped the reference to the London Mercury and Bookman and resumed the shorter Life and Letters title.

  Aftermath

  The journal continued under the original name until it ceased publication in 1950.

  Source

• 1945

  Revive the journal under a combined titleStrategy

  Background

  After the original run ended in 1935, the publication returned in the postwar period with the expanded name Life and Letters and the London Mercury and Bookman.

  Action taken

  The journal was relaunched in 1945 using a title that joined Life and Letters with London Mercury and Bookman.

  Aftermath

  The combined title lasted one year; in 1946 the publication reverted to Life and Letters before finally ending in 1950.

  Source

1. 1Life and Lettersen.wikipedia.org