Peter Berresford Ellis

{{Short description|English historian, biographer, and novelist (born 1943)}}

{{Infobox person

|name = Peter Berresford Ellis

|other_names = Peter Tremayne, Peter MacAlan

|image = Peter Berresford Ellis.jpg

|image_size =

|caption = Ellis in Emly, Ireland in 2006

|birth_name =

|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1943|3|10|df=yes}}

|birth_place = Coventry, England

|death_date =

|death_place =

|spouse = Dorothea Cheesmur (died 2016)

|known_for = Celtic history, literary biography, historical novels

|education = Brighton College of Art;
University of London

|alma_mater = North East London Polytechnic

|occupation = Writer

}}

Peter Berresford Ellis (born 10 March 1943) is a British historian, literary biographer, and novelist who has published over 98 books to date either under his own name or his pseudonyms Peter Tremayne and Peter MacAlan. He has also published 100 short stories. Under Peter Tremayne, he is the author of the international bestselling Sister Fidelma historical mystery series. His work has appeared in 25 languages.

Early life

Peter Berresford Ellis was born in Coventry. His father, Alan John Ellis (1898-1971), was a Cork-born journalist who started his career with The Cork Examiner.{{cite book|last1=White|first1=Gerry|last2=O'Shea|first2=Brendan|year=2006|title=The Burning of Cork|location=Cork|publisher=Mercier Press}}{{cite web|url=https://aubanehistoricalsociety.org/aubane_collection/burning.pdf

|title=The Burning Of Cork: an eyewitness account|website=aubanehistoricalsociety.org|access-date=7 February 2024}} According to Ellis, the Ellis family (originally "Elys") can be traced in the area from 1288; his branch were stonecutters in Cork City from the early 1800s.{{cite book|year=2003|author=Peter Berresford Ellis|chapter=The Ellis Family of Millstreet|title=Millstreet: a Considerable Town|publisher=Aubane Historical Society}}

His mother, Eva Daisy (1897-1991), was the daughter of Henry Randolph Randell, a house painter and decorator from an old Sussex family of Saxon origin. Her autobiography presents its lineage back through 14 generations in the Hurstpierpoint area. Her mother was of Breton descent.{{cite book|last=Ellis|first=Eva Daisy (Randell), ed. Peter Berresford Ellis|year=2003|title=Daisy: Growing Up in a Sussex Village, 1897-1918: An Autobiography|location=Hurstpierpoint|publisher=Hurstpierpoint Historical Society}}{{cite web | url=https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/heritage-and-retro/retro/the-girl-who-gave-directions-to-edward-vii-2143871 | title=The girl who gave directions to Edward VII | date=15 July 2016 }}

Educated at Brighton College of Art and the University of London,{{cite book|last1=Rielly|first1=Edward|first2=David Robert|last2=Wooten|year=2012|title=The Sister Fidelma Mysteries: Essays on the Historical Novels of Peter Tremayne|publisher=MacFarland}} Ellis graduated from North East London Polytechnic (now part of the University of East London) in Celtic Studies in 1989.{{cite web|url=http://www.uel.ac.uk/alumni/groups/nelp.htm|title=UEL Alumni Network|publisher=University of East London|access-date=13 July 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222065311/http://www.uel.ac.uk/alumni/groups/nelp.htm|archive-date=22 February 2012}} He also earned a master's degree in Celtic Studies from the University of East London (1993).{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

Work and writing career

He began his career as a junior reporter on an English south coast weekly, becoming deputy editor of an Irish weekly newspaper and was then editor of a weekly publishing trade journal in London. He first went as a feature writer to Northern Ireland in 1964 for a London daily newspaper. His first book was published in 1968: Wales: a Nation Again, on the Welsh struggle for political independence, with a foreword by Gwynfor Evans, Plaid Cymru's first MP.

In 1975 he became a full-time writer. He used his academic background to produce many titles in the field of Celtic Studies and he has written academic articles and papers in the field for journals ranging from The Linguist (London) to The Irish Sword: Journal of the Irish Military History Society (University College Dublin). In 1999 The Times Higher Education Supplement described him as one of the leading authorities on the Celts then writing. He has been International Chairman of the Celtic League (1988–90); chairman of Scrif-Celt (The Celtic Languages Book Fair (1985–86); chairman and vice-president of the London Association for Celtic Education (1989–95), of which he is an Honorary Life Member.

He was also chairman of his local ward Labour Party in London and was editorial advisor on Labour and Ireland magazine in the early 1990s. He is an honorary life member of the Connolly Association (founded 1938) to examine and promote the life and teachings of James Connolly. He introduced and edited James Connolly: Selected Writing (Penguin, 1973) and wrote a regular column for the Association's newspaper Irish Democrat from 1987 to 2007. He is a member of the Society of Authors.

Ellis supports Chechen independence, Tibetan independence, a United Ireland and Scottish independence.{{Cite web|url=https://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/practising-history-without-a-licencepeter-berresford-ellis-and-popular-history/|title = 'Practising history without a licence':Peter Berresford Ellis and popular history|date = 5 March 2013}}

Ellis believes that the idea of unbiased historical works is a myth, instead believing that historians should state their bias at the start of a work - "I write as someone who fully supports Celtic cultural, political and economic independence. Nor do I disguise the fact that I am a socialist."

Popular fiction

Apart from his Celtic Studies interests, Ellis has written full-length biographies of the writers H. Rider Haggard, W. E. Johns, Talbot Mundy and E. C. Vivian, as well as critical essays on other popular fiction authors. His output in the fictional field, writing in the genre of horror fantasy and heroic fantasy, began in 1977 when the first "Peter Tremayne" book appeared. Between 1983 and 1993 he also wrote eight adventure thrillers under the name "Peter MacAlan".{{cite news|newspaper=Book and Magazine Collector|location=London, UK|date=March 1993|title=Works by Peter MacAlan}}

As of June 2015 he had published 106 books, 100 short stories, several pamphlets, and numerous academic papers and signed journalistic articles. Under his own name he wrote two long running columns: "Anonn is Anall" ("Here and There") from 1987 to 2008 for the Irish Democrat, and, "Anois agus Arís" ("Now and Again") from 2000 to 2008 for The Irish Post.{{cn|date=May 2024}}

His books include 35 titles under his own name 55 titles under his pen name of Peter Tremayne and eight under the pen name of Peter MacAlan.{{cite book|title=The Encyclopaedia of Fantasy|editor1-first=John|editor1-last=Clute|editor2-first=John|editor2-last=Grant|year=1997|location=New York/London|publisher=St. Martin's Press; Little, Brown and Company}}{{cite book|title=The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Modern Crime Fiction|editor-first=Mike|editor-last=Ashley|location=London/New York|publisher=Robinson; Carroll & Graf|year=2002}}{{cite book|title=Supernatural Literature of the World: an encyclopaedia|editor1-first=S.T.|editor1-last=Joshi|editor2-last=Stefan|editor2-first=Dziemianowicz|year=2005|location=Westport, CT|publisher=Greenwood Press}} He has lectured at universities in several countries, including the UK, Ireland, America, Canada, France and Italy. He has also broadcast on television and radio since 1968.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

The popularity of his Sister Fidelma mysteries led, in January 2001, to the formation of an International Sister Fidelma Society in Little Rock, Arkansas, with a website and a print magazine called The Brehon produced three times a year.{{cite news|newspaper=Book and Magazine Collector|location=London, UK|date=October 2004|title=Sister Fidelma mysteries}}Details of his work and career are posted at the [http://www.sisterfidelma.com International Sister Fidelma Society website], sisterfidelma.com; accessed 27 May 2017. A book, The Sister Fidelma Mysteries: Essays on the Historical Novels of Peter Tremayne, was published by MacFarland in 2012. Ellis's novel, The Devil's Seal was published by St. Martin's Press in 2015.

Awards and honours

He was given an Honorary Doctorate of Letters by the University of East London in 2006 in recognition of his work.{{cite web |url=http://www.uel.ac.uk/news/latest_news/stories/damon.htm |title=News |year=2006 |publisher=University of East London |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090403023546/http://www.uel.ac.uk/news/latest_news/stories/damon.htm |archive-date=3 April 2009}}

He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland (1996) and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society (1998). He was made a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedd (1987) for his work on the history of the Cornish language – The Cornish Language and its Literature (published in 1974). He received an Irish Post Award (1989) for his work on Celtic history, and the French Prix Historia (2010) for best historical crime novel of 2010.

He was made Honorary Life President of the Scottish 1820 Society (1989),{{cite book |year=1990 |title=Who's Who in International Affairs |location=London, UK}} and Honorary Life Member of the Irish Literary Society (2002).{{cite book |year=1977 |title=International Authors and Writer's Who's Who |location=Cambridge, England}}{{cite book |title=Contemporary Authors |location=Detroit |volume=81 onward |year=1979}}{{cite book |year=1980 |title=Who's Who in the World |location=Chicago |edition=5th}}{{cite book |year=1990 |title=European Biographical Directory |location=Belgium}}{{cite book |year=2004 |title=Who's Who of Authors and Writers |publisher=Europa Publications}}{{cite book |year=2005 |title=The Cambridge Blue Book |location=Cambridge, England}}{{cite book |year=2005 |title=The Writers' Directory |location=Detroit}}

Personal life

Ellis's wife, Dorothea Cheesmur Ellis (11 September 1940 – 30 March 2016) died of cancer at age 75.{{cite web |url=http://www.sisterfidelma.com/main.htm |title=SISTER FIDELMA MYSTERIES - OFFICIAL WEBSITE |website=www.sisterfidelma.com |access-date=28 May 2017}}

Works

[https://archive.org/details/cornishlanguagei0000elli/mode/2up The Cornish Language and its Literature] (1974)
[https://archive.org/details/hellorconnaught00pete/mode/2up Hell or Connaught!: the Cromwellian Colonisation of Ireland, 1652-1660] (1975)
[https://archive.org/details/boynewaterbattle0000elli/mode/2up The Boyne Water: The Battle of the Boyne, 1690] (1976)
[https://archive.org/details/greatfireoflondo0000elli/mode/2up The Great Fire of London] (1976)
[https://archive.org/details/caesarsinvasiono0000unse/mode/2up Caesar's Invasion of Britain] (1978)
[https://archive.org/details/hriderhaggardvoi0000elli_d0n7/mode/2up H. Rider Haggard: A Voice from the Infinite] (1978)
[https://archive.org/details/macbethhighkingo0000elli/mode/2up MacBeth: High King of Scotland 1040-57] (1980)
[https://archive.org/details/historyofirishwo0000elli_o1t7/mode/2up A History of the Irish Working Class] (1985)
[https://archive.org/details/celticrevolution0000elli/mode/2up The Celtic Revolution: A Study in Anti-Imperialism] (1985)
[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofiris0000elli_l9g1/mode/2up A Dictionary of Irish Mythology] (1987)
[https://archive.org/details/risingofmoon00elli/mode/2up The Rising of the Moon: A Novel] (1987)
[https://archive.org/details/celticempirefirs00elli/mode/2up The Celtic Empire] (1990)
[https://archive.org/details/celticinheritanc0000elli/mode/2up Celtic Inheritance] (1992)
[https://archive.org/details/celticdawnhistor0000elli/mode/2up Celtic Dawn: A history of Pan-Celticism] (1993)
[https://archive.org/details/druids0000elli/mode/2up The Druids] (1995)
[https://archive.org/details/celtgreekceltsin0000elli/mode/2up Celt and Greek: Celts in the Hellenic world] (1997)
[https://archive.org/details/celtromanceltsof0000elli/mode/2up Celt and Roman: The Celts of Italy] (1998)
[https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofce0000elli/mode/2up A Brief History of the Celts] (1998)
[https://archive.org/details/celtshistory0000elli/mode/2up The Celts: A History] (1998)
[https://archive.org/details/ancientworldofce0000elli_z7r3/mode/2up The Ancient World of the Celts] (1998)
[https://archive.org/details/chroniclesofcelt0000elli/mode/2up The Chronicles of the Celts: New tellings of their myths and legends] (1999)
[https://archive.org/details/erinsbloodroyal00elli/mode/2up Erin's Blood Royal: The Gaelic Noble Dynasties of Ireland] (2002)
[https://archive.org/details/eyewitnesstoiris0000elli/mode/2up Eyewitnesses to Irish History] (2004)

References

External links

{{cite web|url=http://us.macmillan.com/author/petertremayne|title=Peter Tremayne|work=Author on the Web|publisher=Macmillan Publishers}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.transceltic.com/pan-celtic/biography-peter-berresford-ellis|title=Biography of Peter Berresford Ellis|date=29 January 2013|publisher=Transceltic}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.transceltic.com/pan-celtic/interview-peter-berresford-ellis|title=Interview with Peter Berresford Ellis|date=29 January 2013|publisher=Transceltic}}
[https://web.archive.org/web/20060615050803/http://www.manxman.co.im/cleague/ The Celtic League]

Category:1943 births

Category:Living people

Category:English historians

Category:20th-century English novelists

Category:21st-century English novelists

Category:English biographers

Category:English people of Breton descent

Category:English people of Irish descent

Category:English literary critics

Category:Celtic studies scholars

Category:Bards of Gorsedh Kernow

Category:Writers of historical fiction set in the Middle Ages