Dolly Wilde
One of the wildest characters in A Secretive Life is the very real Dolly Wilde, Oscar Wilde's niece. I discovered her existance by chance some years ago when browsing a secondhand bookshop. I could hardly believe it, but there was Joan Schenkar's wonderful biography: Truly Wilde - The Unsettling Story of Dolly Wilde, Oscar's Unusual Niece . First published by Virago in 2000, though I didn't discover it until 2004. What a gem! Dolly really did live up to her name, and she really did look a lot like her uncle. I tried to portray the best of Dolly - with all her attendant difficulties and fabulousness - and decided to sidestep the story of her later life. She died too young, 1895-1941, and there is much mystery about how her last hours were spent. Joan Schenkar brings as many of the puzzle pieces to life as it possible - though she suggests there is more to know, if that shoebox of letters or that diary stashed in the attic ever comes to light. There is always more to f