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From modest beginnings, Anton Chekhov didn't expect his fame to last, yet as both a short story writer and a dramatist, born 150 years ago, he is one of the immortals, writes EILEEN BATTERSBY

ANTON CHEKHOV once told a friend that he expected to be forgotten within seven years of his death. He could not have been more wrong. Whenever the art of the short story is discussed his is the name most often mentioned. In the context of drama, only Shakespeare has proved more influential. Either way, as storyteller or playwright, he is immortal.