Kathleen Jeannette Halton Tynan (January 25, 1937 – January 10, 1995) was a Canadian-British journalist, author, and screenwriter.

Early life

Halton was the daughter of Canadian war correspondent

Matthew Halton Matthew Henry Halton (September 7, 1904 – December 3, 1956) was a Canadian television journalist, most famous as a foreign correspondent for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation during World War II. Biography Born in Pincher Creek, Alberta ...

(1904–56) and Jean Campbell (1906–2001), and the sister of television journalist David Halton. She attended

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

before working for ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'', ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'', and ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' in London. In 1967, she gave up her career in journalism to marry theatre critic

Kenneth Tynan Kenneth Peacock Tynan (2 April 1927 – 26 July 1980) was an English theatre critic and writer. Initially making his mark as a critic at ''The Observer'', he praised John Osborne's ''Look Back in Anger'' (1956) and encouraged the emerging wave ...

(1927–80). She had previously been married to Oliver Gates; that marriage ended in divorce. Kenneth Tynan was married when the couple's relationship began.Buck, Joan Juliet
"Obituary: Kathleen Tynan"
, ''The Independent'', January 11, 1995. Last accessed March 11, 2009. She also had a subsequent relationship with Franco-Swiss director

Barbet Schroeder Barbet Schroeder (born 26 August 1941) is an Iranian-born Swiss film director and producer who started his career in French cinema in the 1960s, working with directors of the French New Wave such as Jean-Luc Godard, Jacques Rivette and Eric Rohm ...

(born 1941).

Work

She published a novel, ''The Summer Aeroplane'', in 1975. The novel was later adapted into the film '' Agatha'' about the disappearance of

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving ...

in the 1920s starring

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for Dustin Hoffman filmography, his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable charac ...

and

Vanessa Redgrave Dame Vanessa Redgrave (born 30 January 1937) is an English actress. In her career spanning over six decades, she has garnered List of awards and nominations received by Vanessa Redgrave, numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony A ...

. Tynan collaborated with Arthur Hopcraft on the screenplay. She later wrote a screenplay based on

Louise Brooks Mary Louise Brooks (November 14, 1906 – August 8, 1985) was an American film actress during the 1920s and 1930s. She is regarded today as an cultural icon, icon of the flapper culture, in part due to the bob cut, bob hairstyle that she helped ...

' autobiography '' Lulu in Hollywood'', but this film never was made. Following Kenneth Tynan's death in 1980, she wrote the biography ''The Life of Kenneth Tynan'' (1987), her best-known book. She subsequently edited ''Profiles'' (1990), an anthology of her second husband's writing, as well as an anthology of his letters in 1994. She published some of her own theatre and literary criticism as well before her death from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

in 1995. Kathleen Tynan was mentioned in Helen Fielding's 1996 novel '' Bridget Jones's Diary'': "I read in an article that Kathleen Tynan, late wife of the late Kenneth, had 'inner poise' and, when writing, was to be found immaculately dressed, sitting at a small table in the center of the room sipping at a glass of chilled white wine", that information coming from Tynan's obituary by Joan Juliet Buck. In the television film ''Kenneth Tynan: In Praise of Hardcore'' (2005), she was portrayed by Catherine McCormack.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tynan, Kathleen 1937 births 1995 deaths British people of Canadian descent Deaths from cancer in England 20th-century British novelists 20th-century British biographers 20th-century British screenwriters