The Dennis Wheatley 'Museum' - The Women in DW's life

Nancy : DW's First Wife

With Nancy, it was love at first sight.

They met in November 1921 when DW's parents threw a dinner party and he sat next to her at dinner. Within a week they were engaged to be married.

The wedding took place 17th June 1922, not long after Gordon Tombe's disappearance, and some eighteen months later DW's only child was born - his son Anthony.

While the marriage began well, over time their interests diverged and they drifted apart. DW started seeing other women, including Gwen (see the next exhibit). DW and Nancy finally parted company in 1930 and they were divorced in 1931.

Nevertheless DW later talked of "having been married (to Nancy) for nine years, most of which had been very happy ones".

References : 'The Young Man Said' page 37.
'Officer and Temporary Gentleman' pp 229,244.
'Drink and Ink' pp 40-7,50-2,54,57,59,61,73,76-9,84,86,90,92,98,99,100,109-10,128,237.
Phil Baker pp 175-6, 198,203,204,210,212,217,218,227,229,230,231,233,
234,242,246,248,249,256,257,261,263,265,272,274,277,278.

Provenance:

Photograph - 'Drink and Ink' Letter and book - Private Collections