Her 'maternal grandparents were Unitarians-a non-conformist faith with a strong emphasis on social reform.'. As the daughter of an Earl, she is accorded the honorific courtesy title 'Lady' and thus customarily addressed formally as 'Lady Antonia.'Īs a teenager, she and her siblings converted to Catholicism, following the conversions of their parents. She is the widow of Harold Pinter (1930–2008), the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, and, prior to her husband's death, was also known as Antonia Pinter.įraser is the daughter of Frank Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford (1905–2001), and his wife, Elizabeth Pakenham, Countess of Longford, née Elizabeth Harman (1906–2002).

Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser, DBE, née Pakenham, is an Anglo-Irish author of history, novels, biographies and detective fiction, best known as Antonia Fraser. The book was adapted to film in 2006 with Kirsten Dunst and Jacob Schwartzman. The result is an utterly riveting and intensely moving book by one of our finest biographers. Drawing on a wealth of family letters and other archival materials, Antonia Fraser successfully avoids the hagiography of some the French queen s admirers and the misogyny of many of her critics. For centuries since, she has been the object of debate, speculation, and the fascination so often accorded illustrious figures in history.Īntonia Fraser’s lavish and engaging portrait excites compassion and regard for the queen, immersing the reader not only in the coming-of-age of a graceful woman, but in the culture of an unparalleled time and place.īrilliantly written, Marie Antoinette is a work of impeccable scholarship. France’s iconic queen, Marie Antoinette, wrongly accused of uttering the infamous 'Let them eat cake,' was alternately revered and reviled during her lifetime.

Marie antoinette fraser