Elizabeth Montagu(1909-2002)

Elizabeth Montagu was born in 1909, the second daughter of Lord John Montagu of Beaulieu. Initially groomed as heir to the family estate, she accepted the role dutifully, but was greatly relieved her half-brother Edward (the present Lord Montagu) was born as this gave her the freedom to make her own way in the world. Following her season as a reluctant debutante, she rebelled and went on stage, soon appearing in London's West End. She spent much of the 1930s studying music in Switzerland and travelling across Europe; here she met many leading writers of the period and witnessed the rise of the Nazis in Germany. At the outbreak of war, she declined a job with The Times in favour of driving an ambulance in France, but when the British evacuated in June 1940, Elizabeth astonished her family by staying behind. After a period of living in hiding, she escaped to Switzerland, only narrowly avoiding arrest by the Gestapo. In Switzerland she was recruited to work in intelligence, de-briefing a top Nazi double-agent. As a cover job, she formed a successful theatre group which led to work in the film industry as a script writer and dialogue director. This was the beginning of her post-war career. When Graham Greene visited Vienna in 1948, she acted as his guide, a trip which led to the writing of 'The Third Man', on which she worked. In the late 1950s, she co-founded Francis-Montagu, an award-winning television film company.

Music was an important thread running through Elizabeth's life. She served as an assistant to Toscanini during his visits to London in 1937-8, helped to found the Philharmonia Orchestra in the 1950s, and was a member of Benjamin Britten's English Opera Group. She was particularly proud of her libretto for Rolf Liebermann's School for Wives and Paul Burkhard's 'Oh My Papa!' Despite numerous suitors and love affairs, Elizabeth remained resolutely independent until she met Colonel Arthur Varley in 1962. Her marriage to this leading figure from the world of advertising started a new chapter in her life. As Mrs Varley, she settled in Devon where she discovered she had a half-sister living just a few miles away.