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Radio in and around Greece, 1937–61: Cultural politics and literary cultures
  • ISSN: 2052-3971
  • E-ISSN: 2052-398X

Abstract

This article returns to the life and work of a writer who was once much-lauded in the Anglo-Greek tradition: Lawrence Durrell. It does so with a view to reassessing the repeated expression in Durrell’s writing of a particular fantasy – the philosophy of ‘islomania’, a madness for island life – and to gauging the impact on this fantasy of radio culture. The article deals in depth with Durrell’s official island books – (1945), (1953) and (1957) – and interpolates discussion of these with re-readings of his early novels: namely, (1937), (1938) and (1947). As well as seeking to evaluate Durrell’s fascination with insular Greece, both as tourist, settler and government employee, the article makes a new case for contextualizing his composition of in relation to his work at the BBC, upon his return to Britain in 1956.

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2024-12-26
2026-04-17

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References

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/content/journals/10.1386/jgmc_00099_1
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  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): BBC; broadcasting; Cyprus; islands; media; Nikos Kazantzakis; T. S. Eliot
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