No Binding. Condition: Very Good. Cecil Beaton An extensive archive of correspondence from Cecil Beaton to his gardener and housekeeper Mr and Mrs John Smallpeice. The garden at Reddish House Cottage was a consuming passion of Beaton's throughout his life there. The correspondence documents the increasingly close relationship between Beaton and his gardener as it develops over time. Beginning in 1960 with a post card from Tripoli and spanning more than two decades, the archive offers a unique and personal insight into Beaton's thoughts on horticulture and how important the beauty of the garden at Reddish House was to him. Letter in autograph from the Hotel Bel Air, dated April 16th 1963 written while working for Warner Bros. on My Fair Lady . In Warner Bros. airmail envelope addressed to Mr John Smallpeice Reddish House Cottage , Broadchalke, Salisbury, Wilts. England and franked Burbank April 18 1963 'Dear Smallpeice I was very pleased to get your interesting letter. It has been a great shock to me to find,on arrival here, that I would not be returning home until the picture is finished. At first it was to be made in Hollywood & London & I certainly envisaged being home during July. But it seems that, cruel as it is, I will have to miss seeing the garden the entire season & you can both imagine how sad I am about this. It is something that I really would not have considered if I had known. It's good to hear news of the peace in my absence & I was very pleased to know that the appalling winter has not done too much damage. The bulbs will be coming on soon & so very welcome- unlike this place which is so artificial & where everything comes out at the same time. Within 2 weeks we had daffodils, lilies & roses. The sun is scorching & the wretched things grow to enormous sizes but it is the same with the fruit and vegetable everything looks so healthy but the flowers (even azaleas) have no scent and the fruit and vegetables very little flavour. This is a country that has everything, and yet to me very little. The light is so hard and ugly that all the flowers look course and even the roses do not seem like roses. A few of the herbaceous flowers are wonderful - particularly the ranunculus which grow in a variety & size that we have never seen. I have asked for some seeds of these but I am too late for this Summer so will bring them with me when I return. I am glad to hear from Miss. Hose that everything is ship shape at Broadchalke and I only trust the time will soon come round when I can get back there. I have not been away for so long except during the war - & working for a film is not too unlike a war! With best wishes and kindest regards to you both and again thank you for your letter. Yours faithfully, Cecil Beaton.' A further autograph letter from the Hotel Bel Air Los Angeles dated 21st July 1963 64,postcards sent from various glamourous international destinations including, Tahiti, Tangier and Rabat a further autograph letter and 3 Christmas cards, one with a Hockney illustration the other 2 illustrated by Beaton. All with autograph messages and signed or initialed by Beaton. 70 items in total. Inscribed by Author(s).