MacLean, Veronica 1920-2005

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MACLEAN, Veronica 1920-2005

(Lady Veronica Maclean)

PERSONAL:

Born February 12, 1920, in London, England; died of cancer, January 7, 2005, in Strachur, Argyllshire, Scotland; daughter of Simon, 14th Baron and 16th Lord (a clan chief and sales representative) and Laura (a homemaker; maiden name, Lister) Lovat; married Alan Phipps (a naval officer; died, November, 1943); married Sir Fitzroy Maclean (a diplomat, politician, and writer), 1946; children: (first marriage) Jeremy, Susan Rose (Mrs. Nicholas Paravicini); (second marriage) Charles, Jamie. Education: Educated privately. Politics: Conservative. Religion: Roman Catholic. Hobbies and other interests: Gardening.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Strachur House, Strachur, Argyll, Scotland. Agent—Ed Victor Ltd., 162 Wardour St., London W1V 3AT, England.

CAREER:

Writer. Creator of the garden at Strachur, Argyll, Scotland.

WRITINGS:

(Under name Lady Veronica Maclean) Lady Maclean's Diplomatic Dishes, Collins (London, England), 1975.

(Under name Lady Veronica Maclean) Lady Maclean's Book of Sauces and Surprises, Collins (Glasgow, Scotland), 1978.

Crowned Heads: Kings, Sultans, and Emperors, Hodder & Stoughton (London, England), 1993.

Past Forgetting: A Memoir of Heroes, Adventure, and Love, Review (London, England), 2002.

Also author of the books Lady Maclean's Cookbook, published by HarperCollins (New York, NY), and Lady Maclean's Second Helpings.

SIDELIGHTS:

Lady Veronica Maclean once told CA: "I used to write cookery books because I am a crusader for improving the quality and scope of British cooking. One of them was in print for twenty years. When a publisher suggested I should write a book about the last reigning kings and queens in the world, I hesitated, but when I consulted an atlas I was won over by the wonderful travel the research would involve. The result is Crowned Heads: Kings, Sultans, and Emperors, which is partly a travel book. I write because it amuses me, and to keep my end up with the rest of my family, who are all authors."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Maclean, Veronica, Past Forgetting: A Memoir of Heroes, Adventure, and Love, Review (London, England), 2002.

PERIODICALS

Spectator, April 13, 2002, Hugh Massingberd, review of Past Forgetting: A Memoir of Heroes, Adventure, and Love, p. 52.*

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