Caro by Hannah Jarvis

Lady Caroline Lamb: found on Twitter 

Title: Caro

Author: Hannah Jarvis 

Publisher: Not known 

Source book: Arcadia by Tom Stoppard

Hannah Jarvis has written a book, Caro, about Lady Caroline Lamb. 

In case you don’t know, Lady Caroline Lamb was one of those people who are born related to half the world, and grow up to know the other half. Only the people who matter, of course. She married William Lamb (who inherited his father’s title to become 2nd Viscount Melbourne* and also became Prime Minister; but not until after his wife died), and famously she had a scandalous affair with Lord Byron. She also wrote bestselling novels. What a great subject for a biography. Although a bestseller, Caro is not well received by the critics.

Hannah’s book contains a rather good description of Lady Caroline’s gardens at Brocket Hall and she is now considering writing a history of the gardens at Sidley Park, or perhaps not the gardens exactly, but the hermit who lived there and died in 1834.

Then there’s Ezra Chater, a sometime poet and longtime guest at Sidley Park. He is the author of two verse narratives, The Maid of Turkey, written in 1808, and The Couch of Eros, 1809 (dedicated to ‘My friend Septimus Hodge’), which was reviewed in the Piccadilly Recreation.

Also I read online that Arcadia features an unfinished book by Hannah Jarvis called The Genius of the Place. I can’t think how I failed to notice it. Apparently I also failed to notice The Peaks Traveller and Gazetteer by James Godolphin.

See Wikipedia, or see the play if it is performed near you.

Here’s some modern stuff about Brockett Hall and/or car fraud.

* Lord Melbourne took his title from a small town in Derbyshire, and Melbourne in Australia was named after him.

William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne: thanks to Wikipedia