Phyllis Dorothy James White, Baroness James of Holland Park (3 August 1920 – 27 November 2014), known professionally as P. D. James, was an English novelist and

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

. Her rise to fame came with her series of detective novels featuring the police commander and poet,

Adam Dalgliesh Adam Dalgliesh ( ) is a fictional character who is the protagonist of fourteen mystery novels by P. D. James; the first being James's 1962 novel '' Cover Her Face''. He also appears in the two novels featuring James's other detective, Cordeli ...

Life and career

James was born in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, the daughter of Sidney Victor James, a tax inspector, and his wife, Dorothy Mary James. She was educated at the British School in

Ludlow Ludlow ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road (Great Britain), A49 road which bypasses the town. The town is near the conf ...

and Cambridge High School for Girls. Her mother was committed to a mental hospital when James was in her mid-teens. She had to leave school at the age of sixteen to work to take care of her younger siblings, sister Monica, and brother Edward, because her family did not have much money. She worked in a tax office in Ely for three years and later found a job as an

assistant stage manager Stage management is a broad field that is generally defined as the practice of organization and coordination of an event or theatrical production. Stage management may encompass a variety of activities including overseeing of the rehearsal proce ...

for the Festival Theatre in Cambridge.''Time To Be in Earnest'', p. 20 She married Ernest Connor Bantry White (called "Connor"), an army doctor, on 8 August 1941. They had two daughters, Clare and Jane. White returned from the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

mentally ill and was institutionalised. With her daughters being mostly cared for by Connor's parents, James studied hospital administration, and from 1949 to 1968 worked for a hospital board in London. She began writing in the mid-1950s, using her maiden name ("My genes are James genes"). Her first novel, ''

Cover Her Face ''Cover Her Face'' is the debut 1962 crime novel of P. D. James. It details the investigations into the death of a young, ambitious maid, surrounded by a family which has reasons to want her gone – or dead. The title is taken from a passage f ...

'', featuring the investigator and poet

New Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

, was published in 1962. Dalgliesh's last name comes from a teacher of English at Cambridge High School and his first name is that of Miss Dalgliesh's father. Many of James's mystery novels take place against the backdrop of UK bureaucracies, such as the criminal justice system and the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

, in which she worked for decades starting in the 1940s. Two years after the publication of ''Cover Her Face'', James's husband died on 5 August 1964.''Time To Be in Earnest'', p. 115 Prior to his death, James had not felt able to change her job: "He onnorwould periodically discharge himself from hospital, sometimes at very short notice, and I never knew quite what I would have to face when I returned home from the office. It was not a propitious time to look for promotion or for a new job, which would only impose additional strain. But now fter Connor's deathI felt the strong need to look for a change of direction." She applied for the grade of Principal in the Home Civil Service and held positions as a civil servant within several sections of the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

, including the criminal section. She worked in government service until her retirement in 1979. On 7 February 1991, James was created a

as Baroness James of Holland Park, of

Southwold Southwold is a seaside town and civil parish on the North Sea, in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It lies at the mouth of the River Blyth, Suffolk, River Blyth in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths ...

in the

County of Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

. She sat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

. She was an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

and a lay patron of the Prayer Book Society. Her 2001 work, '' Death in Holy Orders'', displays her familiarity with the inner workings of church hierarchy. Her later novels were often set in a community closed in some way, such as a publishing house, barristers' chambers, a theological college, an island or a private clinic. '' Talking About Detective Fiction'' was published in 2009. Over her writing career, James also wrote many essays and short stories for

periodicals Periodical literature (singularly called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) consists of Publication, published works that appear in new releases on a regular schedule (''issues'' or ''numbers'', often numerically divided into annu ...

and

anthologies In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and ge ...

, which have yet to be collected. She said in 2011 that ''The Private Patient'' was the final Dalgliesh novel. However, at the time of her death, she had been planning another Dalgliesh novel, set in Southwold. As guest editor of

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

's ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'' programme in December 2009, James conducted an interview with the Director General of the BBC, Mark Thompson, in which she seemed critical of some of his decisions. Regular ''Today'' presenter Evan Davis commented that "She shouldn't be guest editing; she should be permanently presenting the programme." In 2008, she was inducted into the International Crime Writing Hall of Fame at the inaugural

ITV3 ITV3 is a Television in the United Kingdom, British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. The channel was first launched on Monday 1 November 2004 at 9 pm, replacing Plus (British TV channel), Plus ...

Crime Thriller Awards. In August 2014, James was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' opposing

Scottish independence Scottish independence (; ) is the idea of Scotland regaining its independence and once again becoming a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom. The term Scottish independence refers to the political movement that is campaignin ...

in the run-up to September's referendum on that issue. James' main home was her house at 58

Holland Park Avenue Holland Park Avenue is a street located in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, in west central London. The street runs from Notting Hill Gate in the east to the Holland Park Roundabout in the west, forms a part of the old west road ...

, in the area from which she took her title; she also owned homes in Oxford and Southwold. PD James Cologne

James died from cancer at her home in Oxford on 27 November 2014, aged 94. She is survived by her two daughters, Clare and Jane, five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

Film and television

During the 1980s and 1990s, many of James's mystery novels were adapted for television by

Anglia Television ITV Anglia, previously known as Anglia Television, is the ITV franchise holder for the East of England. The station is based at Anglia House in Norwich, with regional news bureaux in Cambridge and Northampton. ITV Anglia is owned and operated b ...

for the ITV network in the UK. These productions have been broadcast in other countries, including the US on the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

network.

Roy Marsden Roy Marsden (born ''Roy Anthony Mould''; 25 June 1941) is an English actor who portrayed Adam Dalgliesh in the Anglia Television dramatisations (1983–1998) of P. D. James's detective novels, and Neil Burnside in the spy drama '' The S ...

played Adam Dalgliesh. According to James in conversation with Bill Link on 3 May 2001 at the Writer's Guild Theatre, Los Angeles, Marsden "is not my idea of Dalgliesh, but I would be very surprised if he were." The BBC adapted '' Death in Holy Orders'' in 2003, and '' The Murder Room'' in 2004, both as one-off dramas starring

Martin Shaw Martin Shaw (born 21 January 1945) is an English actor. He came to national recognition in the role of Ray Doyle in ITV crime-action television drama series '' The Professionals'' (1977–1983). Further notable television parts include the ti ...

as Dalgliesh. In '' Dalgliesh'' (2021),

Bertie Carvel Robert Hugh Carvel (born 6 September 1977) is a British film and theatre actor. He has twice won a Laurence Olivier Award: for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for his role as Miss Trunchbull in '' Matilda the Musical'', and for Best ...

starred as the titular, enigmatic detective–poet. Six episodes, shown as three two-parters, premiered on

Acorn TV Acorn TV is a British-American over-the-top VOD streaming service offering television programming from Australia, Canada, other Commonwealth countries, Spain, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In other countries, it is available on a variety ...

on 1 November 2021 in the United States followed by a Channel 5 premiere on 4 November in the United Kingdom. A further six episodes started to air on Channel 5 in April 2023. Her novel ''

The Children of Men ''The Children of Men'' is a dystopian novel by English writer P. D. James, published in 1992. Set in England in 2021, it centres on the results of mass infertility. James describes a United Kingdom that is steadily depopulating and focuses ...

'' (1992) was the basis for the feature film ''

Children of Men ''Children of Men'' is a 2006 dystopian action thriller film directed and co-written by Alfonso Cuarón. The screenplay, based on P. D. James' 1992 novel '' The Children of Men'', was credited to five writers, with Clive Owen making uncredite ...

'' (2006), directed by

Alfonso Cuarón Alfonso Cuarón Orozco ( ; ; born 28 November 1961) is a Mexican filmmaker. List of awards and nominations received by Alfonso Cuarón, His accolades include four Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and seven BAFTA Awards. Cuarón made h ...

and starring

Clive Owen Clive Owen (born 3 October 1964) is an English actor. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for playing the lead role in the ITV series '' Chancer'' from 1990 to 1991. He received critical acclaim for his work in the film '' Close ...

Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and children's author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent ...

and

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

.Children of Men
at IMDB Despite substantial changes from the book, James was reportedly pleased with the adaptation and proud to be associated with the film. A three-episode adaptation of her novel '' Death Comes to Pemberley'', written by Juliette Towhidi, was made into the TV series '' Death Comes to Pemberley'' by Origin Pictures for

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

. It was first shown in the UK over three nights from 26 December 2013 as part of the BBC's Christmas schedule and stars

Anna Maxwell Martin Anna Maxwell Martin (born Anna Charlotte Martin; 10 May 1977), sometimes credited as Anna Maxwell-Martin, is an English actress who won two British Academy Television Awards, for her portrayals of Esther Summerson in the BBC adaptation of ''Ble ...

as Elizabeth,

Matthew Rhys Matthew Rhys Evans ( ; born 8 November 1974) is a Welsh actor. He gained recognition for playing Kevin Walker in the family drama series '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011) and Philip Jennings in the spy drama series ''The Americans'' (2013 ...

as Mr Darcy,

Jenna Coleman Jenna-Louise Coleman (born 27 April 1986) is an English actress. She began her television career by playing Jasmine Thomas in the soap opera ''Emmerdale'' from 2005 to 2009, followed by a recurring role in the BBC school-based drama series ''Wat ...

as Lydia and

Matthew Goode Matthew William Goode (born 3 April 1978) is an English actor. He made his screen debut in 2002 with ABC's television film '' Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister''. His breakthrough role was in the romantic comedy '' Chasing Liberty'' (2004), f ...

as Wickham.

Books

Novels

Adam Dalgliesh mysteries #''

'' (1962) #''

A Mind to Murder A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...

'' (1963) #'' Unnatural Causes'' (1967) #'' Shroud for a Nightingale'' (1971) #'' The Black Tower'' (1975) #''

Death of an Expert Witness ''Death of an Expert Witness'' is a detective novel by English writer P. D. James, the sixth of her Adam Dalgliesh series. It was published in 1977 in the UK by Faber and Faber, and in the US by Charles Scribner's Sons. Set in the Fens, it foll ...

'' (1977) #'' A Taste for Death'' (1986) #'' Devices and Desires'' (1989) #''

Original Sin Original sin () in Christian theology refers to the condition of sinfulness that all humans share, which is inherited from Adam and Eve due to the Fall of man, Fall, involving the loss of original righteousness and the distortion of the Image ...

'' (1994) #'' A Certain Justice'' (1997) #'' Death in Holy Orders'' (2001) #'' The Murder Room'' (2003) #'' The Lighthouse'' (2005) #''

The Private Patient ''The Private Patient'' is a 2008 crime novel by English author P. D. James, the fourteenth and last in her Adam Dalgliesh series. Synopsis In deepest Dorset, the once magnificent Cheverell Manor has been renovated and transformed into a plasti ...

'' (2008) Cordelia Gray mysteries #'' An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'' (1972) #'' The Skull Beneath the Skin'' (1982) Miscellaneous novels *'' Innocent Blood'' (1980) *''

'' (1992) *'' Death Comes to Pemberley'' (2011)

Omnibus editions

*''Crime Times Three'' (1979), later reprinted as ''Three Complete Novels'' (1988), comprising ''Cover Her Face'', ''A Mind to Murder'', and ''Shroud for a Nightingale'' *''Murder in Triplicate'' (1980), later reprinted as ''In Murderous Company'' (1988), comprising ''Unnatural Causes'', ''An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'', and ''The Black Tower'' *''Omnibus'' (1982), comprising ''Unnatural Causes'', ''Shroud for a Nightingale'' and ''An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'' *''Trilogy of Death'' (1984), comprising ''Innocent Blood'', ''An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'', and ''The Skull Beneath the Skin'' *''A Dalgliesh Trilogy'' (1989), comprising ''Shroud for a Nightingale'', ''The Black Tower'', and ''Death of an Expert Witness'' *''A Second Dalgliesh Trilogy'' (1993), comprising ''A Mind to Murder'', ''A Taste for Death'', and ''Devices and Desires'' *''Deadly Pleasures'' (1996), comprising ''The Black Tower'', ''Death of an Expert Witness'', and ''The Skull Beneath the Skin'' *''An Adam Dalgliesh Omnibus'' (2008), comprising ''A Taste for Death'', ''Devices and Desires'', and ''Original Sin''

Nonfiction

*'' The Maul and the Pear Tree: The Ratcliffe Highway Murders, 1811'' (1971), with Thomas A. Critchley *''Time to Be in Earnest: A Fragment of Autobiography'' Faber & Faber, London 1999 *'' Talking About Detective Fiction'' (2009)

Short stories

*"Moment of Power" (1968), first published in ''Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, July 1968'' (collected as "A Very Commonplace Murder" in ''The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories'', 2016) *"The Victim" (1973), first published in ''Winter's Crimes 5'', ed. Virginia Whitaker (collected in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'', 2017) *"Murder, 1986" (1975), first published in ''Ellery Queen's Masters of Mystery'' *"A Very Desirable Residence" (1976), first published in ''Winter's Crimes 8'', ed. Hilary Watson (collected in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'', 2017) *"Great-Aunt Ellie's Flypapers" (1979), first published in ''Verdict of Thirteen'', ed. Julian Symons (collected as "The Boxdale Inheritance" in ''The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories'', 2016) *"The Girl Who Loved Graveyards" (1983), first published in ''Winter's Crimes 15'', ed. George Hardinge, later reprinted as "Memories Don't Die", in ''Redbook'', July 1984 (collected in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'', 2017) *"The Murder of Santa Claus" (1984), first published in ''Great Detectives'', ed. D. W. McCullough (collected in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'', 2017) *"The Mistletoe Murder" (1991), first published in ''The Spectator'' (collected in ''The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories'', 2016) *"The Man Who Was 80" (1992), first published in ''The Illustrated London News'', 1 November 1992, and ''The Man Who'', later revised as "Mr. Maybrick's Birthday" c. 2005 (collected as "Mr. Millcroft's Birthday" in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'', 2017) *"The Part-time Job" (2005), first published in ''The Detection Collection'', ed. Simon Brett *"Hearing Ghote" (2006), first published in ''The Verdict of Us All'', ed. Peter Lovesey. An earlier version of the story ("The Yo-Yo") written in 1996 was later published in ''Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales'' in 2017. *"The Twelve Clues of Christmas" (collected in ''The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories'', 2016)

TV and film adaptations

Adam Dalgliesh series

* ''

'' (1983) * '' Shroud for a Nightingale'' (1984) * ''

'' (1985) * '' The Black Tower'' (1985) * '' A Taste For Death'' (1988) * '' Devices and Desires'' (1991) * '' Unnatural Causes'' (1993) * ''

'' (1995) * ''

'' (1997) * '' A Certain Justice'' (1998) * '' Death in Holy Orders'' (2003) * '' The Murder Room'' (2005) * '' Dalgliesh'' (2021)

Other adaptations

* '' An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'' (1982, 1997–1998, 1999–2001) * ''

'' (feature film) (2006) * '' Death Comes to Pemberley'' (2011)

Selected awards and honours

Honours

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, 1983 * Associate Fellow of

Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 950 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to the university between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the oldest of ...

, 1986 *

Life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

age, Baroness James of Holland Park, of

in the County of Suffolk, 7 February 1991 *

Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the ...

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

* President of the

Society of Authors The Society of Authors (SoA) is a United Kingdom trade union for professional writers, illustrators and literary translators, founded in 1884 to protect the rights and further the interests of authors. Membership of the society is open to "anyon ...

1997–2013 Honorary doctorates *

University of Buckingham The University of Buckingham (UB) is a non-profit private university#United Kingdom, private university in Buckingham, England, and the oldest of the country's six private universities. It was founded as the University College at Buckingham (U ...

, 1992 *

University of Hertfordshire The University of Hertfordshire (UH) is a Universities in the United Kingdom, university in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. The university is based largely in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Its antecedent institution, Hatfield ...

, 1994 *

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

, 1995 *

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. The university comprises three camp ...

, 1996 *

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...

, 1998 *

University of Portsmouth The University of Portsmouth (UoP) is a public university in Portsmouth, England. Comprising five Faculty (division), faculties, the university offers a wide range of academic disciplines. in 2022, with around 28,280 students enrolled in Unde ...

, 1999 *

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, 1993 Honorary fellowships *

St Hilda's College, Oxford St Hilda's College (full name = Principal and Council of St. Hilda's College, Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. The college is named after the Anglo-Saxon saint Hilda of Whitby and was founded in 1893 as a ...

, 1996 *

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college at Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status by the un ...

, 2000 *

Kellogg College, Oxford Kellogg College is a graduate-only colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1990 as Rewley House, Kellogg is the university's 36th college and the largest by number of students ...

Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge Lucy Cavendish College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1965 as a women's college and since 2021 has admitted both women and men. The college is na ...

, 2012

Awards

* 1971 Best Novel Award,

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is a professional organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the E ...

(runner-up): ''Shroud for a Nightingale'' * 1972

Crime Writers' Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors' organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its "Dagger" awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. ...

(CWA) Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction: ''Shroud for a Nightingale'' * 1973 Best Novel Award, Mystery Writers of America (runner-up): ''An Unsuitable Job for a Woman'' * 1976 CWA Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction: ''The Black Tower'' * 1986 Mystery Writers of America Best Novel Award (runner-up): ''A Taste for Death'' * 1987 CWA Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction: ''A Taste for Death'' * 1987 CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger (lifetime achievement award) * 1992 Deo Gloria Award: ''The Children of Men'' * 1992 The Best Translated Crime Fiction of the Year in Japan, '' Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! 1992'': ''Devices and Desires'' * 1999 Grandmaster Award, Mystery Writers of America * 2002 WH Smith Literary Award (shortlist): ''Death in Holy Orders'' * 2005 British Book Awards Crime Thriller of the Year (shortlist): ''The Murder Room'' * 2010 Best Critical Nonfiction Anthony Award for ''Talking About Detective Fiction'' * 2010 Nick Clarke Award for interview with

Director-General of the BBC The director-general of the British Broadcasting Corporation is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief of the BBC. The post-holder was formerly appointed by the Board of Governors of the BBC (for the period 1927 to 2007) and then the ...

Mark Thompson whilst guest editor of ''

'' radio programme.

Interviews

*
''The Guardian'', 4-3-01
Accessed 2010-09-15
"A grisly end"
''The Sunday Herald'', 12 September 2008
CBC Radio hour-long interview by Eleanor Wachtel, 2000
Accessed 2 Aug. 2020
''The Globe and Mail'' (Canada), 30-1-09
Accessed 2010-09-15

Accessed 2010-09-15

Accessed 2010-09-15
''The American Spectator'' magazine (U.S.), 4-1-10
Accessed 2010-09-15
Extended audio discussion on Death Comes to Pemberley for the Faber website. Recorded October 2011.

Video interview discussing Death Comes to Pemberley. Filmed October 2011.

References

External links

The British Council's Contemporary Writers
Accessed 2016-08-03
Faber and Faber (U.K.), publisher
Accessed 2010-09-15
Random House (U.S.), publisher
Accessed 2010-09-15

Accessed 2010-09-15 * *
"P.D. James (Baroness James of Holland Park OBE JP)"
, Fellows Remembered, The Royal Society of Literature. {{DEFAULTSORT:James, P. D. 1920 births 2014 deaths 20th-century English novelists 20th-century English women writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers Anglo-Catholic writers Anthony Award winners BBC governors English mystery writers English women mystery writers Cartier Diamond Dagger winners Conservative Party (UK) life peers Deaths from cancer in England Edgar Award winners English Anglo-Catholics English crime fiction writers English women novelists Fellows of Girton College, Cambridge Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Literary peers Macavity Award winners Members of the Detection Club Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Kensington People from Southwold Presidents of the Society of Authors Pseudonymous women writers English women science fiction and fantasy writers Writers from Oxford