Authority control databases
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
Dilly Court | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1940 (age 83–84) London, England |
| Pen name | Lily Baxter |
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Website | |
| dillycourt | |
Dilly Court (born 1940) is an English author of popular historical fiction and family saga novels also writing under the pseudonym of Lily Baxter.[1] She published her first book when she was 65 and, as of 2023[update], her novels have sold more than four million copies.[1]
Court grew up in north east London, leaving school when she was 16 to work as a secretary at broadcaster Associated-Rediffusion.[1] Working in the advertising department, she was able to move into a copywriting position, which allowed her to exercise her love of writing.[1]
Court did not begin writing novels until 1997, and it took until 2005 and a string of rejections before one was accepted for publication: Mermaids Singing.[1] As of 2020 she has published more than 30 novels, and had multiple titles on The Sunday Times Bestseller List including The Button Box, which reached #2 in 2017.[2][3][4] In 2023, her novel Dolly's Dream reached #2 on The Bookseller's Official Top 50 UK chart and #1 on their Mass Market Fiction chart.[5]
Despite her impressive sales, her books have largely been ignored by critics. In 2020, Robbie Millen, literary editor for The Times, admitted that he hadn't previously heard of Court and that his paper had never reviewed any of her titles, nor had other major British newspapers.[6]
Court has been married twice (in 1967, to a sea captain, and in 1995, to a dentist) and has two children.[1] As of 2023[update] she resides in Dorset.[1]
