Molly Keane

Writer, born in Co Kildare, E Ireland. She wrote her first book at the age of 17 under the pseudonym M J Farrell, and wrote 10 novels in the period 1928–52, including The Rising Tide (1937), Two Days in Aragon (1941), and Loving Without Tears (1951), drawing her material from the foibles of her own class. She also wrote plays, such as Spring Meeting (1938), Ducks and Drakes (1942), and Dazzling Prospect (1961). When her husband died at 36 she stopped writing for many years, but Good Behaviour (1981, televised 1983), short-listed for the Booker Prize, led to the reprinting of many of her books and a revival of critical appreciation. Later books included Time After Time (1983, televised 1986) and Loving and Giving (1988).

Molly Keane (1904 - 1996) was an Irish novelist (born Mary Nesta Skrine in Ballyrankin, County Kildare). Keane was the pseudonym she used for some of her novels, several of which (Good Behaviour, Time After Time) have been adapted for television. Between 1928 and 1956, she wrote 11 novels under the pseudonym M.J. When her husband died at age 36 in 1961, she didn't write again for twenty years.