The Queen of the Tambourine

Jane Gardam (1928-2025) was an acclaimed English novelist and short story writer, best known for her Old Filth trilogy—Old Filth (2004), The Man in the Wooden Hat (2009), and Last Friends (2013)—and works like The Queen of the Tambourine (1991) and God on the Rocks (1978 Booker nominee). She won the Whitbread Award twice (The Hollow Land in children's category, The Queen of the Tambourine in adult), along with other honors including the David Higham Prize, OBE (2009), and FRSL fellowship.