In October 1953, celebrated author Daphne du Maurier and her husband Sir Tommy ‘Boy’ Browning spent a week at Balmoral Castle as guests of the Queen. Du Maurier, known by her family nickname Track and renowned worldwide for her bestselling 1938 novel Rebecca, later described the experience as “the longest week I have spent in my life.” Her account, revealed in an unseen letter to her daughter Flavia, offers an irreverent and candid glimpse into the visit and her complex personality.
Du Maurier’s husband, Sir Tommy Browning, was a distinguished military figure and sportsman, having received the Distinguished Service Order and the Croix de Guerre during the war and represented Great Britain in the Winter Olympics. At the time of the Balmoral visit, he served as treasurer to the Duke of Edinburgh.
The week at Balmoral involved traditional activities such as deer stalking in difficult weather conditions, formal dinners, and Scottish dancing. Du Maurier recounted struggles with etiquette and social expectations, noting moments like having to dress in full regalia precisely at 8:15 p.m. to meet the Queen and Prince Philip, and awkwardly missing customary courtesies after the main course. Dinner menus featured grouse that du Maurier described as “pinkish and barely edible.” She also found the customary games tiresome but took some amusement in playing Scrabble with Prince Philip, although the Queen reportedly looked disapproving while focused on a crossword puzzle.
She offered personal observations of the royal family, describing Prince Philip as warm and unpretentious, while characterizing Princess Margaret as “very attractive but rather frightening” due to what du Maurier called her vanity. Du Maurier dismissed rumors about opposition from the Queen and Prince Philip to Princess Margaret’s intended marriage to Peter Townsend, suggesting Townsend himself was relieved at the outcome. She remarked humorously that many young aristocrats appeared eager to leave the country amid the controversy.
The visit also included Scottish dancing, which du Maurier found confusing, leading to laughter from Prince Philip and instructions from the Queen. By the end of the week, she expressed relief at leaving Balmoral and noted there were no subsequent invitations extended.
Beyond the Balmoral episode, the letter reveals du Maurier’s reflections on her own “No 1 self” and “No 2 self,” a duality of personality she described as contrasting traits of quietness and shyness versus energy and a desire to be seen. She linked this internal conflict to the creative process behind her writing, especially in Rebecca, which explores themes of jealousy, class, and identity through the story of a second wife haunted by her husband’s first wife. The novel achieved immediate commercial success, selling tens of thousands of copies in its first month and becoming a lasting fixture in English literature, inspiring adaptations, notable public figures, and cultural references over decades.
Du Maurier’s family letter also touches on personal struggles, including her complex relationship with her father, Sir Gerald du Maurier, whom she described as controlling and obsessed, as well as her realization at 18 of her bisexuality. The biography in which these letters appear suggests she wrestled with mental health issues such as depression and paranoia later in life. Despite these challenges, du Maurier’s literary legacy endures, shaped by the interplay of her public persona and her private struggles.