Lawrence Durrell.

Born in Jullundur, Punjab, India on 27 February 1912 to Louisa and Lawrence Samuel Durrell, Lawrence Durrell spent his early years in the British Raj. He attended St. Joseph’s School in Darjeeling and later St Olave’s Grammar School in England. His father’s death cut short the family’s return to England, prompting a move to Corfu, an island that would shape his brother Gerald’s career as a naturalist.

Durrell’s literary breakthrough came with the publication of Justine in 1957, the first volume of his Alexandria Quartet. The series, set in pre-World War II Alexandria, established his reputation for lyrical prose and complex narrative structure. He later wrote the Avignon Quintet and several travel books, including Prospero’s Cell about Corfu. He also worked as an actor, appearing in the 1966 film Judith and the 1969 adaptation of his own novel Justine.

Durrell married four times: to Nancy Isobel Myers 1935-1947, to Eve Cohen 1947-1948, to Claude-Marie Vincendon 1948-1967, and to Ghislaine de Boysson 1961-1979. He had two daughters, Penelope and Sappho. His siblings included the zoologist Gerald Durrell and his sister Margaret, who wrote about their Corfu years.

The Alexandria Quartet, published between 1957 and 1960, established Durrell as a leading novelist and influenced writers such as John Fowles. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1968. His correspondence with Henry Miller, spanning 45 years, was published posthumously. His evocative descriptions of Mediterranean life and experimental narrative techniques define his legacy.