Letter from Orwell to Rayner Heppenstall

Orwell turns down an offer of work from Rayner Heppenstall, a friend and BBC producer, as he needs to have a break and then concentrate on writing a book. The novel was, in fact, 'Nineteen Eighty-Four'. Orwell goes on to describe the somewhat basic living conditions in the house where he is staying on Jura.

Read the reply to this letter.

Orwell moved to Barnhill on Jura, an island off the west coast of Scotland, in May 1946. David Astor, the editor of 'The Observer', offered Orwell a loan of his remote house and estate so that the author could recuperate from his long illness and concentrate on writing his novel. Orwell had worked for Astor on 'The Observer' as a book reviewer and correspondent and the two men had become good friends.