31 Facts About Mona Douglas

Mona Douglas was a Manx cultural activist, folklorist, poet, novelist and journalist.

Mona Douglas is recognised as the main driving force behind the modern revival of Manx culture and is acknowledged as the most influential Manx poet of the 20th century, but she is best known for her often controversial work to preserve and revive traditional Manx folk music and dance.

Mona Douglas was involved in a great number of initiatives to revive interest and activity in Manx culture, including societies, classes, publications and youth groups.

Constance Mona Douglas was born on 18 September 1898 at 49 Allerton Road, Much Woolton, Lancashire.

Mona Douglas was the daughter of Manx parents, Frank Beardman Douglas and Frances Mona.

Mona Douglas's parents had left the Isle of Man to find work in England, eventually setting up a bakery and confectioners in Birkenhead.

Music was a central part of Mona Douglas' upbringing, most notably through the musical evenings which took place at her parents' house when she visited them.

On Sunday evenings, from when Mona Douglas was six years old, a number of other cultured people from the community would gather at their house "for poetry readings, discussion and music".

Mona Douglas received a copy of Grimms' Fairy Tales aged four, obtained a public library ticket aged five and received her first collection of poetry aged seven.

Mona Douglas said, 'You know, you ought to write down some of these things that people tell you and sing to you.

Mona Douglas began to publish her poetry at this time, submitting poems to and often winning competitions in publications such as The Girl's Realm, Lady's Pictorial, The Lady and The Gentlewoman.

Mona Douglas's poetry took a stylistic shift in 1908 when she discovered the writing of W B Yeats, who would influence her writing for the rest of her life.

Whilst in England, at the age of sixteen, Mona Douglas had her first collection of poetry published; Manx Song and Maiden Song, published under a London imprint of Erskine Macdonald in 1915.

Mona Douglas had earlier contributed folklore notes to previous editions of the journal, including her first published piece on folklore.

Whilst staying with O'Farrelly in Rathgar, Mona Douglas took a short course in Irish Literature; she studied a course in librarianism, with the intention of getting a job at the Library of the Manx Museum, which was to open in 1922.

Whilst in Dublin, Douglas met George Russell, who influenced and encouraged her interest in Manannan, as well as seeing W B Yeats whilst visiting the Abbey Theatre.

In 1925 Mona Douglas moved to Harlech, Wales, to work as secretary to the poet Alfred Perceval Graves, while he wrote his autobiography, To Return to All That.

Graves then encouraged Mona Douglas to go to London to broaden her horizons.

In London Mona Douglas worked for around three years as a freelance journalist and even for a time for a producer at the Elstree Film Studios.

In 1929 Douglas contributed folklore connected to wells in Lonan to W Walter Gill's seminal work, A Manx Scrapbook.

However, Mona Douglas was able to pull together various notes on Manx dance into a form fit to be presented to the Society.

Again in collaboration with Arnold Foster, Mona Douglas published two volumes of Manx dances, in 1936 and 1953.

Controversy surrounds the authenticity of Mona Douglas' folk collecting, particularly of folk song and dance.

Mona Douglas made her intention for the journal clear in her preface to the first edition:.

In 1976 Mona Douglas published a novel, Song of Mannin, illustrated by Paul Austwick.

In 1977, Mona Douglas organised the first meeting of Yn Chruinnaght.

In 1982, Mona Douglas received an MBE, awarded for her outstanding services to Manx culture.

Mona Douglas was cremated in Douglas a few days later.

In recognition of their lasting national importance, Mona Douglas' papers had been deposited with the archives of the Manx National Heritage Library at her death.

In 2012, the 25th anniversary of Mona Douglas' death was marked with a series of events on the Isle of Man, including a special concert of songs and dances held in Peel and recorded for subsequent release on DVD and CD, and a talk on her life and work in Ramsey.

Mona's Isle: The Legacy of Mona Douglas featured many leading contemporary Manx musicians, including Aalin Clague, Annie Kissack, Bob Carswell, Breesha Maddrell, Clare Kilgallon, Dave Kilgallon, Dave Mclean, Greg Joughin and Mandy Griffin.