The Fortnight in September chronicles one family's seaside holiday. Though they visit every year, the joy of the familiar is not without its challenges. Sherriff's writing is full of minute detail, capturing the sounds, smells and sights of everyday life for ordinary people.
Every year the Stevens family pack their things and enjoy two weeks' holiday in Bognor Regis. Their journey starts at home in Dulwich, where everyone takes pride in fine-tuning holiday preparations, from marshalling helpful neighbours to carefully boarding the emptiest train carriage. The family always stay in "Seaview", an increasingly shabby boarding house, complete with ageing landlady Mrs Huggett. Whilst Mr Stevens hopes nothing has changed, and his wife hides her fear of the sea, their two teenage children Dick and Mary steal away in search of adventure and romance.
The Fortnight in September is part of the Persephone Audiobook Collection, a series of forgotten classics including neglected fiction and non-fiction by women writers. First published in 1931, this edition is prefaced by an extract from the author's 1968 memoir, No Leading Lady. Robert Cedric Sherriff was born in Middlesex in 1896. After finishing school he worked as an insurance clerk. When WW1 broke out Sherriff joined the East Surrey regiment and was badly wounded fighting in Belgium in 1917. Having returned to working in insurance after the war, he began writing plays for local amateur groups. One play, Journey's End (1929), took direct inspiration from Sherriff's experience of fighting on the front line. It had immediate success, initially featuring Laurence Olivier in the starring role. In the 1930s Sheriff travelled to Hollywood to write and contribute to various movie scripts, including: The Invisible Man, Mrs Miniver, Goodbye Mr Chips, and The Dam Busters. He wrote several novels, including The Fortnight in September (1931), Greengates (1936), and The Hopkins Manuscript (1939). Sherriff died in Esher in 1975. A family delight in their holiday by the sea.
