The Diaries of Lindsay Anderson

by Lindsay Anderson

As a director, critic, writer and actor, Lindsay Anderson established a reputation as one of the most innovative, impassioned and fiercely independent British artists of the twentieth century. In directing films such as IF, THIS SPORTING LIFE and O LUCKY MAN he championed a new wave of social responsiveness in British cinema, while as director at the Royal Court he was responsible for establishing the reputation of a number of groundbreaking plays. Throughout his life Anderson stood in opposition to the establishment of his day. Published for the first time, his diaries provide a uniquely personal document of his artistic integrity and vision, his work, and his personal and public struggles. Peopled by a myriad of artists and stars - Malcolm McDowell, Richard Harris, Albert Finney, Anthony Hopkins Brian Cox, Karel Reisz, Arthur Miller, George Michael - the Diaries provide a fascinating account of one of the most creative periods of British cultural life.

400 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Martin Moriarty · Rating 5 out of 5]

While Lindsay Anderson was staying at Le Nid de Duc, film director Tony Richardson’s hacienda in the hills above St Tropez, in July 1970, he watched the progress of a vast forest fire in the area with Tony and another of his guests, the film and theatre designer Jocelyn Herbert (a lifelong collaborator).
“Tony and Jocelyn think how puny human beings are revealed to be when some natural cataclysm occurs. True. Yet I find myself being more stirred by the mutual aid which humans then instinctively give each other – ironically I say, ‘At such times, anarchist though I am - I perceive some value in organised society’. But I don’t mean it ironically. I am more stirred by the thought of all men being brothers than of all men being ants.” (entry for 15 July 1970)

[Nasser Hashmi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A blistering account from a tour-de-force filmmaker. A lost genius.