Biography
Emma Townshend was the first child born to Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend and his wife Karen (née Astley) in 1969. Pete Townshend was the eldest son of jazz musician Cliff Townshend and his wife Betty Dennis who sang with The Squadronaires during World War II. Karen Astley was the daughter of composer Ted Astley, best known for TV themes for shows including The Saint, and his wife Hazel Balbirnie, and also sister of record producer Jon Astley and singer/songwriter Virginia Astley. The couple met while attending Ealing School of Art and married in 1968. Emma has one sister, Aminta (b. 1971), and a brother, Joseph (b. 1989).
Of Townshend's four grandparents, three were professional musicians, all of whom had been in armed forces entertainment during the war. Emma's father Pete Townshend was the lead guitarist and principal songwriter of the rock band The Who.
Emma studied history at King's College, Cambridge then specialised in history of science, receiving a Masters from Imperial College, London. She then returned to Cambridge for a Ph.D. She has taught for Oxford University's Department of Continuing Education since 2000 and is also a Visiting Lecturer at City University, London.
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“The best part of a writer’s biography is not the record of his adventures but the story of his style.”
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