Her father was the playwrightFrederick Lonsdale and her mother was Leslie Brooke (née Hoggan). She made an unsuccessful marriage to Ronald McKenzie Cardwell in 1927. In 1935, she married her second husband,John George Stuart Donaldson, known as Jack, who became Baron Donaldson of Kingsbridge in 1967. They had three children,[1] a daughter and two sons.[2]
During the Second World War when her husband was away she successfully took up farming,[2] producing record crop and milk yields. She was invited to broadcast in wartime[citation needed] and wrote several books about her experiences.[1][2]
Frances Donaldson: A Woman's War (2017) — An edition of her letters, written in 1939–1945 to her husband Jack. These precede all her published works, and although not originally written for publication, show her literary talent and interesting comment on events.[citation needed]
