Derek Rossitter

Splendour Postponed: A Family at War with Itself Derek Rossitter

Bea is born with an artistic genius which is cruelly suppressed by her tyrant of a father. The father dies in circumstances for which her brother, Simon, bitterly lays the blame upon Bea. A terrible family rift ensues. Simon achieves great wealth and success in business. Meanwhile she receives support in developing her artisitic talents from both her rich but eccentric aunt Jessica and Anthony Gabriel, a well known artist. Anthony's ambition is to be elected to the Royal Academy, but his achievements are never deemed to be quite sufficient. Although Anthony is very much the older, Bea, from an early age, has fallen deeply in love with him. Eventually she marries him, fired with an absolute determination to see that he does achieve what she is convinced to be his due. To this end she makes an amazing decision to conceal her own much superior work and devote herself to bringing out the potential she knows to be within him. This culminates in his painting a truly remarkable portrait of her, which secures his election to the Academy with great acclaim. A reconciliation between Bea and Simon results. However it is only when Anthony dies and Bea is married again, this time to a famous art critic, that the secret treasure house of her magnificent paintings is dramatically revealed. Great fame for her follows. But tragedy, in the person of her errant godson, Ambrose, has always been lurking in the background. His sudden and unexpected reappearance from obscurity leads to a dramatic and tragic conclusion to the story. The tale unfolds against the background of two world wars and is played out in London, Paris, and rural Yorkshire and Kent.