This biography is republished from The Dictionary of Irish Biography and was written by Bridget Hourican. Shared by permission in line with Creative Commons ‘Attribution’ (CC BY) licencing.
Born: 11 July 1895, United Kingdom
Died: 10 April 1941
Country most active: United Kingdom and France
Also known as: Dolly Wilde
Dorothy Ierne Wilde (1895–1941), who greatly resembled her father and uncle. She divided her time between London and Paris, where she was, for a time, the toast of salons, celebrated for her wit, intelligence, and physical likeness to her uncle, as whom she used to dress up. Unfortunately she inherited all the family dissipation and lived a ramshackle, bohemian life, carrying on affairs with men and women – she preferred the latter – and becoming a morphine addict. Her literary legacy was even less significant than her father’s: she survives only in a few witty letters and reminiscences, privately printed as In memory of Dorothy Ierne Wilde: Oscaria (1951). She died in London, a recluse, on 10 April 1941.