Bloomsbury ballerina

Bloomsbury Ballerina tells the story of the unpredictable Russian dancer who ruffled the feathers of the Bloomsbury set and became the wife of John Maynard Keynes. Born in 1891 in St. Petersburg, Lydia Lopokova lived a long and remarkable life. Just five feet tall and a natural comedian, her vivacious personality and the sheer force of her charm propelled her to the top of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. Through a combination of luck, determination and talent, Lydia became a star in Paris, a vaudeville favourite in America, the toast of Britain and then, most unexpectedly, she married the world-renowned economist, and formerly homosexual, John Maynard Keynes. Lydia's story is an extraordinary one, linking ballet and the Bloomsbury group, war, revolution and the economic policies of the super-powers.