Setter, an eminent Harley Street consultant, is trusted and admired by his circle of friends, devoting himself to the rehabilitation of the lonely and the misunderstood. But deep within himself Setter recognizes a latent streak of sadistic cruelty which enables him to perceive the truth about a delinquent youth whom he suspects of having taken part in a particularly repellent and senseless crime. It is for Setter to choose a punishment – and enforce it. An Error of Judgement is a subtle study of human weakness and conflict. Partly a wry social comedy and partly a study in good and evil, it is brilliantly written and observed, assured and skilful, a truly modern work by one of the most underrated novelists of the last century.

Olivia Laing's review of An Error of Judgement in The Guardian, 1st March 2008


‘One of the best novels in English since 1939.’ Anthony Burgess

‘I think the peculiar force of An Error of Judgement derives from the fact that the truths [Hansford Johnson] wants to tell are not only psychological but in some sense religious… A remarkable craftswoman, arranging her scenes and images with an unassertive wit and economy.’ AS Byatt

Pamela Hansford Johnson - Pamela Hansford Johnson was born into a theatrical family in south London in 1912. She was educated at Clapham County Girls Secondary School. After leaving school at the age of 16, she took a secretarial course and worked for several years in the London branch of an American bank. She began her literary career by writing poems. In 1933, Pamela wrote to Dylan Thomas, and a friendship developed. Marriage was considered, but the idea abandoned. In 1936 she married Australian writer Gordon Neil and In 1950 C.P. Snow. Her first novel, This Bed Thy Centre, was published in 1935, inaugurating a long and varied career as a published author of fiction, essays and plays. Her other books include the ‘Dorothy Merlin’ trilogy (The Unspeakable Skipton, 1959; Night and Silence, Who is Here, 1962; and Cork Street, Next to the Hatter’s, 1965), The Humbler Creation (1959) and The Good Listener (1975), and works of criticism on Thomas Wolfe and Ivy Compton-Burnett. She held visiting academic positions at American universities including Wesleyan and Yale. She reviewed and broadcast extensively. In 1975 she received the CBE. She dies in 1981.

Pamela Hansford Johnson and Dylan Thomas



Ann Widdecombe - As shadow home secretary from 1998 to 2001, Ann Widdecombe earned a reputation as one of Britain’s liveliest and most direct politicians. Her achievements outside politics include becoming a popular novelist, as well as presenting television programmes. Ann Widdecombe, a devout Catholic, has a life-long love for G.K. Chesterton’s Father Brown adventures.

To learn more about Ann Widdecombe please visit her website.

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By the same author or foreword writer:
The Incredulity of Father Brown By G K Chesterton;  Ann Widdecombe (Foreword)