The valise threads prominently about the narrative of S. as though it is a character itself. It occurred that perhaps the valise rearranged present some new threads to follow. But the word "valise" presents a challenge as it doesn't easily rearrange itself to obvious alternatives. As I was working on this post, I wondered if it could also be a reference to Philip K. Dick (do a little research and you should be able to find the connection on your own, it won't be difficult).
In any case, valise does rearrange to "savile" which is the name of a street in London, Savile Row and the Savile Club, a gentlemen's club, also of London, founded in 1856. Wikipedia helpfully included a list of notable members. A few of those members I have discussed in prior blog posts. This list here is not complete, so I strongly urge you to explore the list at wikipedia.
- Remember C.P. Snow? He is the author of The Light and the Dark, which was the closest I've come to a reference ad for the McKay's Magazine review that included the ad for The Light by Stefan Tate. Snow was also a member of the Inklings, the literary club of C. S. Lewis and his circle.
- A large number of notable composers.
- Leo Abse
- William Alwyn
- Richard Arnell
- Malcolm Arnold
- Arthur Benjamin
- Edward Elgar, well known for his Enigma Variations
- J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan and The Little White Bird.
- Max Beerbohm, known for his parodies and caricatures. One of his better known works is Zuleika Dobson.
- Humphrey Berkley, politician and reformer. Also known for sending out several prank letters to high ranking members of society.
- Sidney Bernstein, media baron, known for founding Granada TV.
- Malcolm Bradbury, historian and author.
- John Browne, former chief executive of BP Oil.
- Charlie Chaplin was an honorary member, briefly.
- Erskine Childers, author of what is considered the first spy novel, The Riddle of the Sands.
- Sidney Colvin, art and literary critic. He was close friends with Edward Fitzgerald, translator of The Rubayat of Omar Khayyam.
- Mandell Creighton, historian and married to suffragette, Louise Creighton.
- Bernard Crick, political theorist, who created the Orwell Lecture Series and later, the Orwell Prize. His first wife Joyce Crick, was the translator for Thomas Mann and Sigmund Freud.
- Valentine Dyall, character actor. In a parody on BBC radio, he played "the man in gray" due to an unfortunate incident at a cut rate dry cleaner.
- John Le Carre, spy novelist.
- H. G. Wells, science fiction author.
- W. B. Yeats, poet.
