Aileen Armitage

Aileen Armitage is a writer of historical romances, gothic novels and family sagas. Many of them are set in Yorkshire. As a child her father would take her to Lindley Moor, near Huddersfield, to show her the old family house and tell her stories about her grandfather who had owned a mill in the area. After studying German at Hull University she became a teacher. Unfortunately she had to give this up as she developed serious problems with her eye sight. Married with four young children, she started writing late at night on a jotter with a felt tip pen. Her first novel was accepted by a publisher and she was asked to write more books. Most of her stories are about women with problems and their struggle to overcome them. Her novel Hawksmoor is set in Huddersfield and follows a family through three generations. The grandmother Maria is a strong woman who holds the family together. In 1987 Aileen won the "Woman of the Year Award". Married to the writer Derek Longden, their most recent project has been co -writing a play for television together. Click on the sound bites to hear extracts of an interview with Aileen Armitage about her life and work. The complete transcript of the interview is available as a PDF download.

Entertainment, Family, Health, Literature, Studying, Women at work, Woollen manufacturing, Writer

Interview with Aileen Armitage   streaming audio

View at WYAS: Kirklees, Huddersfield Central Library