Mostly consists of correspondence relating to the estate of his brother, John Wyndham. Also contains manuscripts and typescripts of Vivian Beynon Harris' own work, including his memoirs of his brother.
Vivian Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris (1906-1987) was the younger brother of the celebrated science fiction writer John Wyndham (Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris). The two brothers were very close all their lives, experiencing an unsettled childhood together following the separation of their parents in 1911, then attending the same boarding school - Bedales, near Petersfield, Hampshire.
Vivian Beynon Harris initially pursued a career as an actor, studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1925-27 but, under encouragement from his brother, tried writing. Vivian published four novels: Trouble at Hanard (1948), Confusion at Camden Trig (1948), One Thing Constant (1949) and Song for a Siren (1951). Vivian's success seems to have spurred his brother on, as it was at this time that Wyndham revised his style and published The Day of the Triffids, followed by a sequence of novels that were to become enduring classics of science fiction.
The two brothers remained in almost daily contact until Wyndham's death in 1969 and it is perhaps Vivian's memoirs of his brother that are his greatest legacy. There is evidence in the archive that Vivian was planning to write a biography of Wyndham. His manuscripts of Jack and me: growing up with John Wyndham and John Wyndham, 1903-1969 are short but provide rare insights into the life of his famous brother. After Wyndham's death, Vivian Beynon Harris became one of the executors of his brother's literary estate until Vivian himself died in 1987.
The Vivian Beynon Harris Archive mainly consists of business papers relating to the John Wyndham Estate. There are albums of press cuttings about John Wyndham's work and copies of articles about the author. Vivian Beynon Harris' own manuscripts, mostly of incomplete and unpublished works, including, most notably, his memoirs of his brother, are also contained in the Archive.
The archive is fully listed and an online Vivian Beynon Harris Finding Aid including further biographical information is available for browsing or searching.
All material in the Archive is available to scholars for consultation in the University Library's Special Collections and Archives Reading Room by prior arrangement. Please refer to visiting & using SC&A.
The Papers of Vivian Beynon Harris complement the John Wyndham Archive, also held in University of Liverpool Library's Special Collections & Archives. Several items from the Vivian Beynon Harris Archive, including the memoir [My Brother,] John Wyndham, 1903-1969 have been published with some editing in Foundation no. 75 (Spring 1999).
