A tribute to Julia Darling
The School of English is deeply saddened to hear of the death of Julia Darling. She was an extremely popular and much valued colleague. Julia (pictured) first joined the University in 2000 as a Royal Literary Fund Fellow, a fellowship she held first of all in Careers and then in The School of English. As part of the work for the Fellowship she set up a writing group for academics which proved so popular it still has (approximately) two hundred members. She also decided to do an MA in Writing Poetry, which she completed with a Distinction in 2001. It was typical of her no-nonsense approach to creativity and her humility that she moved effortlessly from fellow to student and back again, being appointed Fellow in Creative Writing and Health in 2004, a fellowship made possible by the Catherine Cookson Fund.
The last five years were probably the most productive of Julia’s career, as she threw herself into writing fiction, poetry and plays with equal fluency. The fact that she had achieved major status as a writer was recognised in 2002 by the award of Northern Rock Writer’s Award. Her second novel, The Taxi Driver’s Daughter, which was longlisted for the Man-Booker Prize, was written whilst she was a member of the School, following on from her collection of short stories, Bloodlines (Panurge, 1995), and her acclaimed first novel Crocodile Soup (republished by Penguin in 2004).
She produced two collections of poetry, both with Arc Publications: Sudden Collapses in Public Places (2003), and, most recently, Apology for Absence (2004). Her many plays, including the series Appointments, which was broadcast on Women’s Hour in February, are to be published this summer by New Writing North under the title Eating the Elephant and Other Plays. Her most recent play, Manifesto for a New City, began its life as part of a collaboration with other writers from the department called Flying Homages.
As those origins indicate, Julia played a very active role in the programme of readings organised by the school – both her poetry collections were launched on campus to large and delighted audiences, and she worked with other writers in devising performances combining poetry, humour and music. She made these readings unique and memorable for both the audience and her fellow participants, and effortlessly dissolved the boundary between university and town.
She also played an influential role in teaching Creative Writing, working with Cynthia Fuller and Rima Handley on the Writing and Health course, which stemmed from her passionate concern with the relationship between doctor and patient and her belief in the power of words, when used creatively, to provide healing. She was also a founder member of Operating Theatre, the University based group of writers, health care professionals, actors and educators who use stories, drama and writing to assist learning on health matters. With Cynthia, she was editor of the new Bloodaxe anthology, The Poetry Cure.
Julia had an unfailing generosity of spirit which enlivened everyone she met, and she contributed hugely to the creative life of the School as to the region. We feel privileged that she made the School her writing ‘home’ for this last period of her life and grateful for all her remarkable contributions to the life of the University. Our thoughts are with her family.
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Article submitted by: Professor Linda Anderson and Dr Bill Herbert, School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics.
published on: 15th April 2005