Oscar Wilde grandson to collect reissued British Library pass / Photo: © AFP
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Oscar Wilde grandson to collect reissued British Library pass
The grandson of Oscar Wilde will Thursday collect a British Library pass symbolically reinstated to the celebrated Irish writer 130 years after it was revoked when he was convicted for being gay.
In 1895 the storied London library's trustees banned Wilde -- one of the greatest playwrights and all-round wits of that century -- after he had been imprisoned for "gross indecency".
Same-sex relationships were a criminal offence at the time.
The library -- then known as the British Museum's Reading Room -- said in June it would honour Wilde by reissuing his so-called reader pass, timing the announcement to coincide with Pride Month.
Merlin Holland, Wilde's only grandson, will formally retrieve a contemporary pass bearing his grandfather's name and photo at a Thursday evening event at the library also celebrating his new book about him.
The biography, "After Oscar: the Legacy of a Scandal", details the posthumous rehabilitation of the 19th century icon, whose glittering career ended in poverty and disgrace following his conviction.
"The restitution of his ticket is a lovely gesture of forgiveness and I'm sure his spirit will be touched and delighted," Holland said in a statement ahead of the event.
T.Ziegler--VB