The Sea, The Sea

Dazzlingly entertaining and inventive * The Times *
One of the most ambitious tours de force in many years… There are pages one races through to see what happens. She is a virtuoso at description * Daily Mail *
She was a brilliantly clever woman
There is no doubt in my mind that Iris Murdoch is one of the most important novelists now writing in English…The power of her imaginative vision, her intelligence and her awareness and revelation of human truth are quite remarkable * The Times *
A fabulous novel…funny and poignant and is arguably Murdoch’s finest hour * Daily Express *
An enjoyable, thought-provoking and unforgettable novel * Daily Mail *
A fantastic feat of imagination as well as a marvellous sustained piece of writing * Vogue *
My favourite novel * The Week *
I love the novels of Iris Murdoch
Absolutely exquisite * Daily Express *

Iris Murdoch (Author)

Iris Murdoch was born in Dublin in 1919. She read Classics at Somerville College, Oxford, and after working in the Treasury and abroad, was awarded a research studentship in Philosophy at Newnham College, Cambridge. In 1948 she returned to Oxford as fellow and tutor at St Anne’s College and later taught at the Royal College of Art. Until her death in 1999, she lived in Oxford with her husband, the academic and critic, John Bayley. She was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1987 and in the 1997 PEN Awards received the Gold Pen for Distinguished Service to Literature.

Daisy Johnson (Introducer)

Daisy Johnson was born in 1990. Her debut short-story collection, Fen, was published in 2016. In 2018 she became the youngest author ever to be shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize with her debut novel Everything Under. She is the winner of the Harper’s Bazaar Short Story Prize, A. M. Heath Prize and Edge Hill Short Story Prize. Her debut play, Viola’s Room, was produced in 2024 by the immersive theatre company Punchdrunk. She currently lives in Oxford by the river.

John Burnside (Introducer)

John Burnside was among the most acclaimed writers of his generation. His novels, short stories, poetry and memoirs won numerous awards, including the Geoffrey Faber Memorial, Saltire Scottish Book of the Year and, in 2023, he received the David Cohen Prize for a lifetime’s achievement in literature. In 2011 Black Cat Bone won both the Forward and the T.S. Eliot Prizes for poetry. He died in 2024.

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