Stuart Evans (author)

{{Short description|Welsh novelist and poet (1934–1994)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} '''Edwin Stuart Gomer Evans''' (20 October 1934 – 12 December 1994)<ref>{{Cite news|newspaper=The Times|title=Obituary: Stuart Evans|date=29 December 1994}}</ref> was a [[Swansea]]-born Welsh [[novelist]] and [[poet]], raised in [[Ystalyfera]] in Glamorgan.<ref name=MS>{{Cite book|page=417|chapter=Stuart Evans|title=Poetry 1900–2000|first=Meic|last=Stephens|authorlink=Meic Stephens|year=2007|publisher=[[Summersdale Publishers]]|isbn=9781848397224}}</ref>

He read English at [[Jesus College, Oxford]], before serving in the Royal Navy. He then taught at [[Brunel University London|Brunel College of Advanced Technology]]. From the mid-1960s, he was employed by [[BBC Radio]], London, to produce programmes for the Schools Broadcasting Department.<ref name=MS />

His novels include ''Meritocrats'' (1974), ''The Gardens of the Casino'' (1976), ''The Caves of Alienation'' (1977), and the ''Windmill Hill Sequence'' of five novels which included ''Centres of Ritual'', ''Occupational Debris'', ''Temporary Hearths'', ''Houses on the Site'', and ''Seasonal Tribal Feasts''. Prior to concentrating on novel writing, Evans had won the [[Newdigate Prize]] in 1955 for his poem "Elegy for a Dead Clown".<ref>{{Worldcat|name="Elegy for the Death of a Clown" (The 1955 Newdigate prize poem.)|oclc=558909242}}</ref> He also published two collections of poetry, ''Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads'' (1972) and ''The Function of the Fool'' (1997). For his thrillers co-written with Kay Evans, he used the pseudonym Hugh Tracy.<ref>{{Worldcat|id=lccn-nb2007027206|name=Tracy, Hugh}}</ref>

[[Norman Shrapnel]], in ''[[The Guardian]]'', wrote of Evans' debut novel ''Meritocrats'', that "I can scarcely recall a more ambitious first novel ... and few more interesting ones".<ref>Norman Shrapnel, ''The Guardian''; November 21, 1974; p. 16;</ref> [[Philip Howard (journalist)|Philip Howard]], writing in ''[[The Times]]'', described Evans as "my candidate for the [[Juvenal]], I dare not say the [[Martial]], of our generation."<ref>Philip Howard, "A Novel Today, a Classic for the Future", ''The Times'' (London, England), May 3, 1982; p. 8; Issue 61223</ref> Peter Lewis, in ''[[The Times Literary Supplement]]'', described Evans' ''Windmill Hill Sequence'' as "probably the most ambitious fictional work in progress by a British writer".<ref>Peter Lewis, ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (London, England), June 25, 1982; p. 702; Issue 4134</ref>

Until the late 2000s much of his work was out of print, but two of his poems were included in the anthology ''Poetry 1900–2000'',<ref name=MS /> published by the Library of Wales. The Library of Wales has also re-published his novel ''The Caves of Alienation'',<ref>''Forward to The Caves of Alienation'', [[Parthian Books]]/Library of Wales (2009). {{ISBN|978-1-905762-95-8}} with a foreword by [[Duncan Bush]]</ref> described by Anthony Brockway as "One of the most ambitious Welsh novels of the twentieth century".{{Quote without source|date=August 2014}} This is his most widely held book; according to [[WorldCat]], it is held in 151 libraries. Evans was married to Kathleen Bridget Snelling, née Treacy (1932–1993), her second marriage.<ref>[https://www.myheritage.com/names/kathleen_treacy "Kathleen Treacy"], [[MyHeritage]]</ref>

== References == {{reflist|30em}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Stuart}} [[Category:1934 births]] [[Category:1994 deaths]] [[Category:Writers from Swansea]] [[Category:Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford]] [[Category:20th-century Welsh novelists]] [[Category:20th-century Welsh poets]] [[Category:20th-century Welsh male writers]] [[Category:Academics of Brunel University London]]