who had to leave school early, but who had since shown an interest in and capacity for further study. Later life She retired in 1946, but the next thirty years were filled with creative activity. She began to travel, some of her accounts of which were later published in Countrywoman's Occasions. She later moved, with Margaret Philips, to a farmhouse in Bledington, near Stow on the Wold. It was here that she wrote Joseph Ashby of Tysoe, which was published in 1961. It was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for biography in that year. However, the accolade which she perhaps most appreciated was the tribute paid by E. P. Thompson, the Marxist historian of the English working class. He so admired the book that he made a point of seeking the acquaintance of the author, and paid several visits to Bledington. Her next literary venture was to write a history of Bledington, 'The Changing English Village. She was successively President of the Women's Institute and Chairman of the Parish Council at Bledington. She died 16 October 1975 in an Oxford nursing home. Key works Joseph Ashby of Tysoe. Cambridge University Press, 1961; reissued by Merlin Press, London, 1974 Countrywoman's Occasions The Country School: its problems and practice The Changing English Village References Edith Lyle, "M.K. Ashby, a Commemorative Portrait" (privately produced, available for loan from Gloucestershire libraries) 1892 births 1975 deaths Alumni of the University of Birmingham Alumni of the University of Manchester James Tait Black Memorial Prize recipients People from Bledington