Nancy Cunard, writer, heiress and political activist, was an icon of the Jazz Age, who was said to have inspired half the poets and novelists of the twenties.

Rebelling against expectations to pursue a life in the arts, she moved between the glamorous cafes and artistic circles of London and Paris, reading widely, writing poetry, campaigning for civil rights and fighting fascism. Her Paris life – the focus of Anne de Courcy’s glorious new biography – was filled with art, sex and alcohol. Mina Loy wrote poems to her; Constantin Brâncuși sculpted her; Man Ray photographed her; she played tennis with Ernest Hemingway and had love affairs with, amongst others, Ezra Pound, Aldous Huxley, Louis Aragon and jazz musician Henry Crowder, with whom she ran a printing press.

In conversation with American Library in Paris Programs Manager Alice McCrum at The London Library, de Courcy discusses Five Love Affairs and a Friendship, a tempestuous tale of passion and intrigue, which is as much a portrait of twenties Paris as it is the story of an extraordinary woman who defined her age.

About the speakers:

Anne de Courcy is the author of fourteen widely acclaimed works of social history and biography, including, Chanel’s Riviera, The Husband Hunters, The Fishing Fleet, The Viceroy’s Daughters and Debs at War. In the 1970s she was Woman’s Editor on the London Evening News and in the 1980s she was a regular feature-writer for the Evening Standard. 

Alice McCrum is the head of cultural programming at The American Library in Paris. She also studies at Sciences Po, and co-hosts a podcast at Shakespeare and Company.

Important information: This event will happen offsite at The London Library and will be live-streamed on Zoom.

Access to this event requires purchase of a ticket through The London Library. Click on the button below to purchase your ticket.