Hookham, Felix Collection

Felix John Hookham, B.Sc., M. Inst.C.E., A.M.I. Mech. E., who was born in Clapham, London on 30 August 1889 and died in Jersey in January 1976, was an engineer, who worked for British American Tobacco (B.A.T.) in China. Felix Hookham left England for China on 5 November 1927. He married Hilda (aka Nita) and they were the parents of Margaret (who became the celebrated dancer Margot Fonteyn) and a son (also named Felix). The family lived in Tientsin and then Shanghai. In 1933, Hilda returned to London with Peggy, aged 14, to help her persue her career in ballet. Felix Hookham was interned by the Japanese from March 1943 to August 1945 at Lunghua Camp, Shanghai. After the war, Felix Hookham returned to the UK with his second wife Beatrice. Only a selection of this collection is currently online – more to come. See 'So this is fame!' Margot Fonteyn in China. HPC ref: Hh-s.