Susie Boyt (born January 1969) is a British

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

and journalist. She has published seven novels, and a memoir about her obsession with

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...

. Boyt was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 800 Fellows, elect ...

in 2022.

Life

Boyt is the youngest of five daughters of Suzy Boyt and artist

Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. His early career as a painter was inf ...

, and great-granddaughter of

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies seen as originating fro ...

. Boyt was educated at Channing and at

Camden School for Girls The Camden School for Girls (CSG) is a comprehensive secondary school for girls, with a co-educational sixth form, in the London Borough of Camden in north London. It has about one thousand students of ages eleven to eighteen, and specialis ...

and read English at

St Catherine's College, Oxford St Catherine's College (colloquially called St Catz or Catz) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford. In 1974, it was also one of the first men's colleges to admit women. It has 528 un ...

, graduating in 1992. As a student her boyfriend died in a climbing accident. She later trained as a bereavement counsellor, and bereavement features as a theme in her novels. Working variously at a PR agency, and a literary agency, she completed her first novel, ''The Normal Man'', which was published in 1995 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. She returned to university to do a Masters in Anglo American Literary Relations at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, studying the works of

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

and the poet

John Berryman John Allyn McAlpin Berryman (born John Allyn Smith, Jr.; October 25, 1914 – January 7, 1972) was an American poet and scholar. He was a major figure in American poetry in the second half of the 20th century and is considered a key figure in th ...

. , Boyt has published seven novels, the most recent being ''Loved and Missed'' (2021). In 2008, she published ''My Judy Garland Life,'' a layering of biography, hero-worship and self-help. The book was serialised on Radio 4, shortlisted for the PEN Ackerley prize and adapted as a musical by

Amanda Whittington Amanda Whittington (born 1968 in Nottingham) is an English dramatist who has written over 30 plays for theatre and radio. Her work is widely performed by companies across the UK, with recent productions at Hull Truck, Oldham Coliseum, New Vic Th ...

. In 2018 she edited '' The Turn of the Screw and Other Ghost Stories'' for Penguin. Boyt's journalism includes a column in the weekend Life & Arts section of the

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

. She is married to Tom Astor, a film producer. They live with their two daughters in London. Boyt is a director at the

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. History The original ''Hampstead Theatre Clu ...

. Boyt was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2022.

Novels

* '' The Normal Man'', 1995 * '' The Characters of Love'', 1996 * '' The Last Hope of Girls'', 2001 * '' Only Human'', 2004 * '' The Small Hours'', 2012 * '' Love & Fame'', 2017 * '' Loved and Missed'', 2021

Non-fiction

* '' My Judy Garland Life'', 2008

Awards and nominations

* ''The Last Hope of Girls'' was shortlisted for the

John Llewellyn Rhys Prize The John Llewellyn Rhys Prize was a literary prize awarded annually for the best work of literature (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or drama) by an author from the Commonwealth aged 35 or under, written in English and published in the United Kin ...

* ''Only Human'' was shortlisted for the

Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...

Book of the Year Award * ''My Judy Garland Life'' was shortlisted for the PEN Ackerley Prize

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyt, Susie Living people 1969 births British people of German-Jewish descent Freud family People educated at Camden School for Girls Alumni of St Catherine's College, Oxford Alumni of University College London Writers from London 20th-century British women writers 21st-century British women writers British women novelists 20th-century English novelists 21st-century English novelists Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature People educated at Channing School

Life

Novels

Non-fiction

Awards and nominations

See also

References