After William Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) is the most quoted of writers. His epigrams turned conventions upside down and are part of our cultural inheritance. His personality defined an era. His popularity as a wit, a dramatist and an icon continues to grow.
One hundred years after Wilde's death, he is still the ideal dinner guest: entertaining and outlandish, talking about everything and nothing. Wilde's rise to prominence as an unparallelled playwright of high comedy, and his ego-driven fall from grace continue to fascinate. His life, famous trial and his death were played out in the full glare of the public's gaze.
The public image of Wilde is as mercurial as the man himself, constantly evolving, always fascinating, endlessly intriguing. This reappraisal of Wilde's life and work exposes him not as a tragic figure, martyr or self-destructive fop. Instead, it explores his sexuality in a more relaxed manner, opening up the gaps between the facts to portray Oscar Wilde in all his complexity, genius and humanity.
