Ossie Clark Diaries

The diaries of Ossie Clark, one of the most influential names in post-war British fashion. He created exquisite and outrageous costumes for the famous of London, New York, Paris and Rome, many of whom became his friends: Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithfull, Anita Pallenberg, Twiggy, Eric Clapton, George Harrison and Andy Warhol. At the peak of his career he enjoyed superstar status (Hockney painted him in 1971). He was the archetypal flawed genius, living a jet-set life for ten years, but finally falling due to his lack of business acumen and his undisciplined talent. He was bankrupt by the early 1980s and his marraige to Celia Birtwell, Hockney's muse, had foundered because of his affairs with men. In his last few years he became interested in Buddhism and lived in a small council flat in Holland Park where he was murdered by his lover in 1996. The diaries Clark kept for 30 years are filled with sketches, records of conversations, wittily-observed details of everything he did and character assassinations of the many famous people with whom he came into contact.