On Further Reflection: 60 Years of Writing

by Jonathan Miller

Actor, doctor, TV presenter, film director, opera director, sculptor - Sir Jonathan Miller's careers cover a vast range. He is also a gifted and insightful writer, but his writings have been scattered across a series of books and articles over the last sixty years. This selection gives an idea of the depth and variety of his preoccupations, from mesmerism to neurology, film and theatre to art history and technique, parody to reportage. Each extract has an introduction by Miller, setting it in the context of his interests in the arts and sciences. With wit and perception, Miller casts light on many aspects of the world which we take for granted, and illuminates them with original insights. His writings incorporate ideas and techniques which have made Miller a unique presence on the cultural scene, gathered together here for the first time in one collection.

Genres: Essays, Biography

326 pages, Hardcover

First published July 10, 2014

About the author

Sir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE was a British theatre and opera director, author, television presenter, humorist and sculptor. Trained as a physician in the late 1950s, he first came to prominence in the 1960s with his role in the comedy review Beyond the Fringe with fellow writers and performers Peter Cook, Dudley Moore and Alan Bennett. Despite having seen few operas and not knowing how to read music, he began stage-directing them in the 1970s and became one of the world's leading opera directors with several classic productions to his credit. His best-known production is probably his 1982 "Mafia"-styled Rigoletto set in 1950s Little Italy, Manhattan. He was also a well-known television personality and familiar public intellectual in the UK and US.

Reviews

[Becky Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent compilation of works from previous publications, bits of script, articles and original writings. Particularly enjoyed the transcript of a conversation with Ernst Gombrich from States of Mind (which I have yet to track down a copy of), the article on a Rudolph Steiner school and the final two essays on the afterlives of theatrical productions and the nature of action. Also about the only book of Miller's that it is possible to read while commuting, without taking out fellow passengers.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A literate and urbane man. But the essays feel a bit dated, and occasional in a less than ideal way—random, a bit tossed together.