“After Oscar”: A Conversation with Merlin Holland about Family, Scandal, and Legacies

Oscar Wilde died in November 1900, exiled in Paris and exhausted by scandal and prison life. The details of his life in the limelight are well known; what has regularly been ignored are the reverberations of the scandal for decades after his death: the challenges his descendants faced, the myths and legends, the quarrels between his friends and enemies, and the court cases.

During this special event, Wilde’s only grandson, Merlin Holland, will speak with Rebecca Fenning Marschall, Manuscripts & Archives Librarian, about his new book, After Oscar: The Legacy of a Scandal, which details the remarkable posthumous life of one of the most celebrated literary and cultural figures. With pathos, humor, and his grandfather’s signature wit, Holland charts the extraordinary afterlife of the legendary writer and thinker, tracing the dramatic fluctuations in Wilde’s posthumous reputation and exposing a century of bigotry and hypocrisy within the cultural establishment.

An account of Oscar’s “posthumous life,” After Oscar: The Legacy of a Scandal, showing that his grandfather has caused even more trouble after his death than when he was alive, will be published in the United States on April 7, 2026. One of the most important works on Wilde in over fifty years, After Oscar exposes decades of sensationalist conjecture surrounding the Wilde family, and documents a century of homophobia within the British establishment. Illuminating and heartbreaking, Holland has written a book that will amuse, infuriate, fascinate, and shock. Mr. Holland will be available to sign copies of his new book at this event. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own copy; a limited number of books will be available at the event.

After Oscar Wilde’s conviction in 1895, his wife, Constance, and their two sons were forced to move abroad and change their name to Holland. The family has never reverted to the name Wilde. Merlin Holland writes, lectures, and broadcasts regularly on the subject of his grandfather’s life. Publications include Irish Peacock and Scarlet Marquess, the first complete record of the libel trial which ultimately brought Oscar Wilde to ruin and social disgrace, and The Wilde Album, a pictorial biography of Oscar Wilde. He is also the co-editor of The Complete Letters of Oscar Wilde and author of Conversations with Oscar Wilde, a series of imaginary conversations between him and his grandfather.

The Oscar Wilde holdings at the Clark Library are the largest and most significant in the world and include nearly every edition of every printed book by and about Wilde, in addition to a large number of his literary manuscripts and correspondence. The Library collects Wilde’s works in translation in as many languages as possible, as well as materials related to his wider social circle and the generations of artists, writers, and queer activists immediately before and after Wilde. Other collections are related to contemporary social movements, theater, bibliophilic clubs, and university life. A display of books and manuscripts from this collection will be available for viewing in the north and south book rooms prior to the conversation.

The event is free to attend with advance registration. It will be held in-person at the Clark Library and livestreamed on the Center’s YouTube Channel. No registration is required to watch the livestream. Seating is limited at the Clark Library; walk-in registrants are welcome as space permits.

Visit the event webpage to register.