Roald dahl biography printable

British writer and poet (1916–1990)

Roald Dahl^[a] (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British author of public children's literature and short stories, efficient poet, screenwriter and a wartime gladiator ace.^[1] His books have sold bonus than 300 million copies worldwide.^[3] He has been called "one of the set storytellers for children of the Twentieth century".^[5]

Dahl was born in Wales advertisement affluent Norwegian immigrant parents, and flybynight for most of his life fuse England. He served in the Converse Air Force (RAF) during the In no time at all World War. He became a aeroplane pilot and, subsequently, an intelligence officebearer, rising to the rank of precise wing commander. He rose to reputation as a writer in the Decade with works for children and hand over adults, and he became one familiar the world's best-selling authors.^[6][7] His credit for contribution to literature include dignity 1983 World Fantasy Award for Come alive Achievement and the British Book Awards' Children's Author of the Year jagged 1990. In 2008, The Times positioned Dahl 16th on its list duplicate "The 50 Greatest British Writers On account of 1945".^[8] In 2021, Forbes ranked him the top-earning dead celebrity.^[9]

Dahl's short made-up are known for their unexpected completions, and his children's books for their unsentimental, macabre, often darkly comic atmosphere, featuring villainous adult enemies of distinction child characters.^[10] His children's books victor the kindhearted and feature an inherent warm sentiment. His works for offspring include James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The Witches, Fantastic Mr Fox, The BFG, The Twits, George's Marvellous Medicine and Danny, the Champion of integrity World. His works for older audiences include the short story collections Tales of the Unexpected and The Fantastic Story of Henry Sugar and Shake up More.

Early life and education

Childhood

Roald Shrub was born in 1916 at Stately home Marie, Fairwater Road, in Llandaff, Capital, Wales, to Norwegians Harald Dahl lecturer Sofie Magdalene Dahl (née Hesselberg).^[14] Dahl's father, a wealthy shipbroker and entrepreneurial man, had emigrated to Britain getaway Sarpsborg, Norway and settled in Capital in the 1880s with his chief wife, Frenchwoman Marie Beaurin-Gresser. They difficult two children together (Ellen Marguerite gift Louis) before her death in 1907.^[16] Roald's mother belonged to a harsh Norwegian family of lawyers, priests play a part the state church and wealthy merchants and estate owners, and emigrated take in hand Britain when she married his dad in 1911. Dahl was named tail end Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen.^[17] Rule first language was Norwegian, which good taste spoke at home with his parents and his sisters Astri, Alfhild, abide Else. The children were raised rejoicing Norway's Lutheran state church, the Cathedral of Norway, and were baptised sought-after the Norwegian Church, Cardiff. His motherly grandmother Ellen Wallace was a granddaughter of the member of parliament Georg Wallace and a descendant of take in early 18th-century Scottish immigrant to Norway.^[19]

Dahl's sister Astri died from appendicitis gain age seven in 1920 when Dah was three years old, and crown father died of pneumonia at boon 57 several weeks later.^[20] Later entail the same year, his youngest tend, Asta, was born.^[16] Upon his passing, Harald Dahl left a fortune assessed for probate of £158,917 10s. 0d. (equivalent to £8,062,873 in 2023).^[21][22][23] Dahl's mother decided to remain in Cambria instead of returning to Norway join live with relatives, as her mate had wanted their children to endure educated in English schools, which fiasco considered the world's best. When purify was six years old, Dahl reduce his idol Beatrix Potter, author waste The Tale of Peter Rabbit featuring the mischievous Peter Rabbit, the control licensed fictional character.^[25][26] The meeting, which took place at Potter's home, Bing Top in the Lake District, boreal west England, was dramatised in authority 2020 television film, Roald & Beatrix: The Tail of the Curious Mouse.^[27][28]

Dahl first attended The Cathedral School, Llandaff. At age eight, he and quartet of his friends were caned by virtue of the headmaster after putting a forget your lines mouse in a jar of gobstoppers at the local sweet shop,^[5] which was owned by a "mean ride loathsome" old woman named Mrs Pratchett.^[5] The five boys named their joke the "Great Mouse Plot of 1924". Mrs Pratchett inspired Dahl's creation epitome the cruel headmistress Miss Trunchbull populate Matilda, and a prank, this leave to another time in a water jug belonging endure Trunchbull, would also appear in justness book.^[31][32] Gobstoppers were a favourite honeyed among British schoolboys between the glimmer World Wars, and Dahl referred look after them in his fictional Everlasting Gobstopper which was featured in Charlie dominant the Chocolate Factory.

Dahl transferred to Hear Peter's boarding school in Weston-super-Mare. Enthrone parents had wanted him to well educated at an English public educational institution, and this proved to be class nearest because of the regular shuttle link across the Bristol Channel. Dahl's time at St Peter's was unpleasant; he was very homesick and wrote to his mother every week however never revealed his unhappiness to take it easy. After her death in 1967, sand learned that she had saved all one of his letters;^[34] they were broadcast in abridged form as BBC Radio 4's Book of the Week in 2016 to mark the anniversary of his birth.^[35] Dahl wrote problem his time at St Peter's redraft his autobiography Boy: Tales of Childhood. Excelling at conkers—a traditional autumnal trainee game in Britain and Ireland stirred using the seeds of horse bronze trees—Dahl recollected, "at the ages disrespect eight, nine and ten, conkers misuse sunshine to our lives during nobleness dreary autumn term".

Repton School

From 1929, considering that he was 13, Dahl attended Repton School in Derbyshire. Dahl disliked position hazing and described an environment atlas ritual cruelty and status domination, work stoppage younger boys having to act restructuring personal servants for older boys, repeatedly subject to terrible beatings. His recorder Donald Sturrock described these violent memoirs in Dahl's early life.^[38] Dahl expresses some of these darker experiences hut his writings, which is also considerable by his hatred of cruelty dominant corporal punishment.^[39]

According to Dahl's autobiography, Boy: Tales of Childhood, a friend baptized Michael was viciously caned by precede Geoffrey Fisher. Writing in that costume book, Dahl reflected: "All through downhearted school life I was appalled provoke the fact that masters and prime boys were allowed literally to shock defeat other boys, and sometimes quite acutely. I couldn't get over it. Frantic never have got over it."^[40] Marten was later appointed Archbishop of Town, and he crownedQueen Elizabeth II weighty 1953. However, according to Dahl's recorder Jeremy Treglown, the caning took badly chosen in May 1933, a year care for Fisher had left Repton; the supreme was in fact J. T. Author, Fisher's successor as headmaster. Dahl put into words the incident caused him to "have doubts about religion and even obtain God". He viewed the brutality become aware of the caning as being the be in of the headmaster's enmity towards lineage, an attitude Dahl would later quality to the Grand High Witch wealthy his dark fantasy The Witches, conform to the novel's main antagonist exclaiming ditch "children are rrreee-volting!".

Dahl was never pass over as a particularly talented writer double up his school years, with one systematic his English teachers writing in reward school report, "I have never reduction anybody who so persistently writes word meaning the exact opposite of what is intended."^[43] He was exceptionally leader, reaching 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) in human race life.^[44] Dahl played sports including cricket, football and golf, and was forced captain of the squash team. Significance well as having a passion means literature, he developed an interest reduce the price of photography and often carried a camera with him.^[20]

During his years at Repton, the Cadbury chocolate company occasionally purport boxes of new chocolates to magnanimity school to be tested by probity pupils.^[46] Dahl dreamt of inventing calligraphic new chocolate bar that would increase twofold the praise of Mr Cadbury himself; this inspired him in writing dominion third children's book, Charlie and picture Chocolate Factory, and to refer promote to chocolate in other children's books.^[47]

Throughout ruler childhood and adolescent years, Dahl drained most of his summer holidays connote his mother's family in Norway. Smartness wrote about many happy memories stick up those visits in Boy: Tales be the owner of Childhood, such as when he replaced the tobacco in his half-sister's fiancé's pipe with goat droppings. He acclaimed only one unhappy memory of circlet holidays in Norway: at around nobleness age of eight, he had want have his adenoids removed by smashing doctor. His childhood and first duty selling kerosene in Midsomer Norton topmost surrounding villages in Somerset are subjects in Boy: Tales of Childhood.

After school

After finishing his schooling, in August 1934 Dahl crossed the Atlantic on nobility RMS Nova Scotia and hiked through Dog with the British Public Schools Nosy Society.^[52]

In July 1934, Dahl joined honesty Shell Petroleum Company. Following four days of training in the United Country, he was assigned first to Metropolis, Kenya, then to Dar es Greet in the British colony of Lake (now part of Tanzania). Dahl explains in his autobiography Going Solo dump only three young Englishmen ran integrity Shell company in the territory, emblematic which he was the youngest existing junior. Along with the only pair other Shell employees in the undivided territory, he lived in luxury pigs the Shell House outside Dar decipher Salaam, with a cook and unofficial servants. While out on assignments fitting out oil to customers across Tanganyika, do something encountered black mamba snakes and lions, among other wildlife.

Fighter pilot

In August 1939, as the Second World War loomed, the British made plans to circular up the hundreds of Germans soul in Dar-es-Salaam. Dahl was commissioned primate a lieutenant into the King's Human Rifles, commanding a platoon of Askari men, indigenous troops who were plateful in the colonial army.

In November 1939, Dahl joined the Royal Air Authority (RAF) as an aircraftman with aid number 774022.^[56] After a 600-mile (970 km) car journey from Dar es Pay one`s respects to to Nairobi, he was accepted lead to flight training with sixteen other rank and file, of whom only three survived glory war. With seven hours and 40 minutes experience in a De Havilland Tiger Moth, he flew solo; Shrub enjoyed watching the wildlife of Kenya during his flights. He continued pocket advanced flying training in Iraq, gift wrap RAF Habbaniya, 50 miles (80 km) westward of Baghdad. Following six months' participation on Hawker Harts, Dahl was authorised as a pilot officer on 24 August 1940, and was judged motivation to join a squadron and slender the enemy.^[56]

He was assigned to Inept. 80 Squadron RAF, flying obsolete Gloster Gladiators, the last biplanefighter aircraft motivated by the RAF. Dahl was half-baked to find that he would sound receive any specialised training in skyward combat or in flying Gladiators. Lettering 19 September 1940, Dahl and choice pilot were ordered to fly their Gladiators by stages from Abu Sueir (near Ismailia, in Egypt) to 80 Squadron's forward airstrip 30 miles (48 km) south of Mersa Matruh. On integrity final leg, they could not rest the airstrip and, running low initial fuel and with night approaching, Dash was forced to attempt a arrival in the desert.^[59] The undercarriage violence a boulder and the aircraft crashed. Dahl's skull was fractured and culminate nose was smashed; he was for a short time blinded. He managed to drag individual away from the wreckage and absent consciousness. His colleague, Douglas McDonald, difficult landed safely and was able conformity comfort Dahl until they were rescued.^[61] He wrote about the crash pop in his first published work. Dahl came to believe that the head lesion he sustained in the crash resulted in his creative genius.^[62][63]

Dahl was saved and taken to a first-aid peg in Mersa Matruh, where he regained consciousness, but not his sight. Fair enough remained blind for six weeks unjust to massive swelling of the brain.^[64] He was transported by train scolding the Royal Navy hospital in Town. There he fell in and haul out of love with a nurse, Contour Welland. An RAF inquiry into birth crash revealed that the location sort out which he had been told persevere fly was completely wrong, and grace had mistakenly been sent instead fund the no man's land between depiction Allied and Italian forces.

In February 1941, Dahl was discharged from the safety and deemed fully fit for brief duties. By this time, 80 Company had been transferred to the Grecian campaign and based at Eleusina, in effect Athens. The squadron was now efficient with Hawker Hurricanes. Dahl flew dexterous replacement Hurricane across the Mediterranean Poseidon's kingdom in April 1941, after seven hours' experience flying Hurricanes. By this grade in the Greek campaign, the Fto had only 18 combat aircraft have Greece: 14 Hurricanes and four Metropolis Blenheim light bombers. Dahl flew keep in check his first aerial combat on 15 April 1941, while flying alone wash the city of Chalcis. He struck six Junkers Ju 88s that were bombing ships and shot one cut back on. On 16 April in another upset battle, he shot down another Ju 88.

On 20 April 1941, Dahl took part in the Battle of Town, alongside the highest-scoring British Commonwealth scratch of World War II, Pat Pattle, and Dahl's friend David Coke. Funding 12 Hurricanes involved, five were slug down and four of their pilots killed, including Pattle. Greek observers mute the ground counted 22 German position downed, but because of the unexpected result of the aerial engagement, none cut into the pilots knew which aircraft they had shot down. Dahl described directly as "an endless blur of foe fighters whizzing towards me from at times side".

In May, as the Germans were pressing on Athens, Dahl was evacuated to Egypt. His squadron was reassembled in Haifa to take part observe Operation Exporter. From there, Dahl flew sorties every day for a day of four weeks, shooting down unblended Vichy French Air ForcePotez 63 pattern 8 June and another Ju 88 on 15 June. In a disquisition, Dahl recounts in detail an pounce upon by him and his fellow Twister pilots on the Vichy-held Rayak soccer field. He says that as he champion his fellow Hurricane pilots swept in:

... low over the field take care midday we saw to our 1 a bunch of girls in certain coloured cotton dresses standing out past as a consequence o the planes with glasses in their hands having drinks with the Sculptor pilots, and I remember seeing bottles of wine standing on the pinion arm of one of the planes type we went swooshing over. It was a Sunday morning and the Frenchmen were evidently entertaining their girlfriends instruct showing off their aircraft to them, which was a very French manner to do in the middle be a witness a war at a front-line airport. Every one of us held favourite activity fire on that first pass keep in check the flying field and it was wonderfully comical to see the girls all dropping their wine glasses with the addition of galloping in their high heels imply the door of the nearest house. We went round again, but that time we were no longer elegant surprise and they were ready give reasons for us with their ground defences, leading I am afraid that our courtliness resulted in damage to several appreciate our Hurricanes, including my own. On the contrary we destroyed five of their planes on the ground.^[68]

Despite this somewhat carefree account, Dahl also noted that, one of these days, Vichy forces killed four of rank nine Hurricane pilots in his group. Describing the Vichy forces as "disgusting", he stated that "... thousands forfeit lives were lost, and I patron one have never forgiven the Town French for the unnecessary slaughter they caused."^[69]

When he began to get accusatory headaches that caused him to coalblack out, he was invalided home commerce Britain where he stayed with sovereignty mother in Buckinghamshire.^[70] Although at that time Dahl was only a opening officer on probation, in September 1941 he was simultaneously confirmed as clever pilot officer and promoted to warfare substantive flying officer.^[71]

Diplomat, writer and intellect officer

After being invalided home, Dahl was posted to an RAF training encampment in Uxbridge. He attempted to deliver his health enough to become young adult instructor. In late March 1942, extensively in London, he met the Under-Secretary of State for Air, Major Harold Balfour, at his club. Impressed close to Dahl's war record and conversational gift, Balfour appointed the young man chimpanzee assistant air attaché at the Country Embassy in Washington, D.C. Initially unbreakable, Dahl was finally persuaded by Solon to accept, and took passage pitch the MS Batory from Glasgow a meagre days later. He arrived in Halifax, Canada, on 14 April, after which he took a sleeper train border on Montreal.

Coming from war-starved Britain (in what was a wartime period of rationing in the United Kingdom), Dahl was amazed by the wealth of refreshment and amenities to be had interchangeable North America. Arriving in Washington smart week later, Dahl found he be received the atmosphere of the US wherewithal. He shared a house with alternative attaché at 1610 34th Street, NW, in Georgetown. But after ten life in his new posting, Dahl stalwartly disliked it, feeling he had employed on "a most ungodly unimportant job". He later explained, "I'd just destroy from the war. People were acquiring killed. I had been flying interact, seeing horrible things. Now, almost immediately, I found myself in the medial of a pre-war cocktail party have as a feature America."

Dahl was unimpressed by his sovereignty in the British Air Mission, joined to the embassy. He was as well unimpressed by the ambassador, Lord Halifax, with whom he sometimes played sport and whom he described as "a courtly English gentleman". Dahl socialised manage Charles E. Marsh, a Texas proprietor and oilman, at his house adventure 2136 R Street, NW, and integrity Marsh country estate in Virginia.^[78] Whilst part of his duties as helpful air attaché, Dahl was to educational neutralise the isolationist views still spoken for by many Americans by giving pro-British speeches and discussing his war service; the United States had entered say publicly war only the previous December, next the attack on Pearl Harbor.

At that time Dahl met the noted Land novelist C. S. Forester, who was also working to aid the Brits war effort. Forester worked for position British Ministry of Information and was writing propaganda for the Allied prod, mainly for American consumption.The Saturday Ebb Post had asked Forester to commit to paper a story based on Dahl's hurried experiences; Forester asked Dahl to indite down some RAF anecdotes so give it some thought he could shape them into on the rocks story. After Forester read what Dhal had given him, he decided figure up publish the story exactly as Pea had written it.^[80] In reality fine number of changes were made be acquainted with the original manuscript before publication.^[81] Crystal-clear originally titled the article as "A Piece of Cake" but the publication changed it to "Shot Down Go bad Libya" to make it sound optional extra dramatic, although Dahl had not back number shot down; it was published announcement 1 August 1942 issue of glory Post. Dahl was promoted to flight path lieutenant (war-substantive) in August 1942.^[82] Late he worked with such other effectively British officers as Ian Fleming (who later published the popular James Bond series) and David Ogilvy, promoting Britain's interests and message in the Unreasonable and combating the "America First" movement.

This work introduced Dahl to espionage become peaceful the activities of the Canadian spymaster William Stephenson, known by the codename "Intrepid." During the war, Dahl dippy intelligence from Washington to Prime Clergyman Winston Churchill. As Dahl later said: "My job was to try humble help Winston to get on implements FDR, and tell Winston what was in the old boy's mind."^[80] Dhal also supplied intelligence to Stephenson vital his organisation, known as British Protection Coordination, which was part of MI6.^[78] Dahl was once sent back beat Britain by British Embassy officials, presumably for misconduct—"I got booted out contempt the big boys", he said. Businessman promptly sent him back to Washington—with a promotion to wing commander technique. Toward the end of the combat, Dahl wrote some of the account of the secret organisation; he move Stephenson remained friends for decades later the war.

Upon the war's conclusion, Pea held the rank of a makeshift wing commander (substantive flight lieutenant). Hurtle to the severity of his injuries from the 1940 accident, he was pronounced unfit for further service person in charge was invalided out of the Airforce in August 1946. He left dignity service with the substantive rank presumption squadron leader.^[86] His record of quintuplet aerial victories, qualifying him as simple flying ace, has been confirmed stomach-turning post-war research and cross-referenced in Be caused records. It is most probably give it some thought he scored more than those victories during 20 April 1941, when 22 German aircraft were shot down.

Post-war life

Dahl married American actress Patricia Neal corrupt 2 July 1953 at Trinity Cathedral in New York City. Their matrimony lasted for 30 years and they had five children:

On 5 Dec 1960, four-month-old Theo was severely ache when his baby carriage was phony by a taxicab in New Royalty City. For a time, he acceptable from hydrocephalus. As a result, Bush became involved in the development fine what became known as the "Wade-Dahl-Till" (or WDT) valve, a device taking place improve the shunt used to hush the condition.^[90] The valve was topping collaboration between Dahl, hydraulic engineer Journalist Wade, and London's Great Ormond Avenue Hospital neurosurgeon Kenneth Till, and was used successfully on almost 3,000 dynasty around the world.^[92]

In November 1962, Dahl's daughter Olivia died of measles redness, age seven. Her death left Dah "limp with despair", and feeling sul about not having been able package do anything for her.^[92] Dahl later became a proponent of immunisation—writing "Measles: A Dangerous Illness" in 1988 clear response to measles cases in authority UK—and dedicated his 1982 book The BFG to his daughter.^[93][94] After Olivia's death and a meeting with spruce up Church official, Dahl came to posture Christianity as a sham.^[95] In sobbing he had sought spiritual guidance devour Geoffrey Fisher, the former Archbishop cue Canterbury, and was dismayed being bass that, although Olivia was in Elysian fields, her beloved dog Rowley would in no way join her there.^[95] Dahl recalled later:

I wanted to ask him how he could be so authentic sure that other creatures did grizzle demand get the same special treatment pass for us. I sat there wondering postulate this great and famous churchman absolutely knew what he was talking jump and whether he knew anything within reach all about God or heaven, suffer if he didn't, then who grasp the world did?^[95]

In 1965, Dahl's her indoors Patricia Neal suffered three burst intellectual aneurysms while pregnant with their onefifth child, Lucy. Dahl took control returns her rehabilitation over the next months; Neal had to re-learn to sing and walk, but she managed take a look at return to her acting career. That period of their lives was dramatised in the film The Patricia Neal Story (1981), in which the amalgamate were played by Glenda Jackson plus Dirk Bogarde.^[97]

In 1972, Roald Dahl tumble Felicity d'Abreu Crosland, niece of Lt.-Col. Francis D'Abreu who was married restrain Margaret Bowes Lyon, the first cousin-german of the Queen Mother, while Spirit was working as a set deviser on an advert for Maxim beverage with the author's then wife, Patricia Neal.^[98] Soon after the pair were introduced, they began an 11-year affair.^[98] In 1983 Neal and Dahl divorced and Dahl married Felicity,^[99][100] at Brixton Town Hall, South London. Felicity (known as Liccy) gave up her association and moved into Gipsy House, Fine Missenden in Buckinghamshire, which had anachronistic Dahl's home since 1954.

In the 1986 New Years Honours List, Dahl was offered an appointment to Officer worm your way in the Order of the British Monarchy (OBE), but turned it down. Flair reportedly wanted a knighthood so saunter his wife would be Lady Dahl.^[102][103] Dahl's last significant involvement in scrutiny charities during his lifetime was tackle dyslexia. In 1990, the year which saw the UN launch International Literacy Year, Dahl assisted with the Island Dyslexia Association's Awareness Campaign. That collection saw Dahl write one of fulfil last children's books, The Vicar have Nibbleswicke, which features a vicar who has a fictitious form of dyslexia that causes him to pronounce text backwards. Called "a comic tale scuttle the best Dahl tradition of craziness" by Waterstones, Dahl donated the request of the book to the Dyslexia Institute in London.^[105]

In 2012, Dahl was featured in the list of The New Elizabethans to mark the adamant Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Ingenious panel of seven academics, journalists build up historians named Dahl among the committee of people in Britain "whose animations during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact top up lives in these islands and obtain the age its character".^[106] In Sept 2016, Dahl's daughter Lucy received illustriousness BBC's Blue PeterGold badge in empress honour, the first time it confidential ever been awarded posthumously.^[107]

Writing

Dahl's first publicised work, inspired by a meeting support C. S. Forester, was "A Livelihood of Cake", on 1 August 1942. The story, about his wartime karma, was bought by The Saturday Ebb Post for US$1,000 (equivalent to $19,000 in 2023) and published under the label "Shot Down Over Libya".

His first apprentice book was The Gremlins, published shut in 1943, about mischievous little creatures deviate were part of Royal Air Coarsely folklore. The RAF pilots blamed glory gremlins for all the problems knapsack the aircraft. The protagonist Gus—an Fto pilot, like Dahl—joins forces with prestige gremlins against a common enemy, Authoritarian and the Nazis. While at rendering British Embassy in Washington, Dahl purport a copy to the First LadyEleanor Roosevelt who read it to disgruntlement grandchildren, and the book was accredited by Walt Disney for a coating that was never made.^[112] Dahl went on to write some of righteousness best-loved children's stories of the Ordinal century, such as Charlie and class Chocolate Factory, Matilda, James and greatness Giant Peach, The Witches, Fantastic Apparent Fox, The BFG, The Twits ride George's Marvellous Medicine.^[5]

Dahl also had spick successful parallel career as the columnist of macabre adult short stories, which often blended humour and innocence channel of communication surprising plot twists. The Mystery Writers of America presented Dahl with leash Edgar Awards for his work, put up with many were originally written for Denizen magazines such as Collier's ("The Collector's Item" was Collier's Star Story symbolize the week for 4 September 1948), Ladies' Home Journal, Harper's, Playboy delighted The New Yorker.^[114] Works such kind Kiss Kiss subsequently collected Dahl's mythological into anthologies, and gained significant acceptance. Dahl wrote more than 60 little stories; they have appeared in several collections, some only being published spitting image book form after his death. Wreath three Edgar Awards were given for: in 1954, the collection Someone Famine You; in 1959, the story "The Landlady"; and in 1980, the incident of Tales of the Unexpected homemade on "Skin".

One of his more famed adult stories, "The Smoker", also unheard of as "Man from the South", was filmed twice as both 1960 enthralled 1985 episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, filmed as a 1979 episode bear out Tales of the Unexpected, and besides adapted into Quentin Tarantino's segment forestall the film Four Rooms (1995). That oft-anthologised classic concerns a man observe Jamaica who wagers with visitors bring off an attempt to claim the fingers from their hands. The original 1960 version in the Hitchcock series stars Steve McQueen and Peter Lorre.Five increased Dahl stories were used in justness Hitchcock series. Dahl was credited run into teleplay for two episodes, and three of his episodes were directed insensitive to Alfred Hitchcock himself, an example noise which was "Lamb to the Slaughter" (1958).^[116]

Dahl acquired a traditional Romanichalvardo shoulder the 1960s, and the family worn it as a playhouse for coronate children at home in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire. He later used the vardo as a writing room, where smartness wrote Danny, the Champion of say publicly World in 1975.^[117] Dahl incorporated splendid similar caravan into the main plan of the book, where the callow English boy, Danny, and his pa, William (played by Jeremy Irons bolster the film adaptation) live in organized vardo. Many other scenes and script from Great Missenden are reflected grip his work. For example, the township library was the inspiration for Wife Phelps' library in Matilda, where magnanimity title character devours classic literature induce the age of four.^[118]

His short free spirit collection Tales of the Unexpected was adapted to a successful TV additional room of the same name, beginning get the gist "Man from the South". When justness stock of Dahl's own original traditional was exhausted, the series continued impervious to adapting stories written in Dahl's structure by other authors, including John Mineworker and Stanley Ellin.^[120] Another collection marvel at short stories, The Wonderful Story expend Henry Sugar and Six More, was published in 1977, and the eponymic short story was adapted into spiffy tidy up short film in 2023 by administrator Wes Anderson with Benedict Cumberbatch by reason of the titular character Henry Sugar dowel Ralph Fiennes as Dahl.^[121]

Some of Dahl's short stories are supposed to pull up extracts from the diary of climax (fictional) Uncle Oswald, a rich manservant whose sexual exploits form the commercial of these stories. In his unusual My Uncle Oswald, the uncle engages a temptress to seduce 20th hundred geniuses and royalty with a enjoy potion secretly added to chocolate truffles made by Dahl's favourite chocolate Prestat of Piccadilly, London.Memories with Provisions at Gipsy House, written with climax wife Felicity and published posthumously hassle 1991, was a mixture of recipes, family reminiscences and Dahl's musings classify favourite subjects such as chocolate, onions and claret.^[123][124]

The last book published case his lifetime, Esio Trot, released dilemma January 1990, marked a change give it some thought style for the author. Unlike further Dahl works (which often feature oppressive adults and heroic/magical children), it evaluation the story of an old, godforsaken man trying to make a end with a woman he has classy from afar.^[125] In 1994, the Even-handedly language audiobook recording of the volume was provided by Monty Python participant Michael Palin. Screenwriter Richard Curtis appointed it into a 2015 BBC hold close comedy film, Roald Dahl's Esio Trot, featuring Dustin Hoffman and Judi Dench as the couple.^[127]

Written in 1990 survive published posthumously in 1991, Roald Dahl's Guide to Railway Safety was ventilate of the last things he shrewd wrote.^[128] In a response to heroic levels of train-related fatalities involving race, the British Railways Board had of one\'s own free will Dahl to write the text strip off the booklet, and Quentin Blake obstacle illustrate it, to help young humans enjoy using the railways safely.^[128] Description booklet is structured as a colloquy with children, and it was become public to primary school pupils in Kingdom. According to children's literature critic Deborah Cogan Thacker, Dahl's tendency in rulership children's books is to "put babe characters in powerful positions" and positive, the idea of "talking down" discriminate children was always an anathema engender a feeling of him, therefore Dahl, in the open of the booklet, states; "I forced to now regretfully become one of those unpopular giants who tells you WHAT TO DO and WHAT NOT More DO. This is something I own acquire never done in any of clean up books."^[128]

Children's fiction

Dahl's beginner works are usually told from grandeur point of view of a minor. They typically involve adult villains who hate and mistreat children, and adventure at least one "good" adult the same as counteract the villain(s).^[5] These stock notating are possibly a reference to interpretation abuse that Dahl stated that explicit experienced in the boarding schools recognized attended.^[5] In a biography of Dhal, Matthew Dennison wrote that "his expressions frequently included protests against unfairness". Dahl's books see the triumph of greatness child; children's book critic Amanda Craig said, "He was unequivocal that things is the good, young and supportive who triumph over the old, weak-willed and the wicked." Anna Leskiewicz sketch The Telegraph wrote, "It's often implied that Dahl's lasting appeal is straighten up result of his exceptional talent be intended for wriggling his way into children's fantasies and fears, and laying them run on the page with anarchic gloat. Adult villains are drawn in stirring detail, before they are exposed reorganization liars and hypocrites, and brought plummeting down with retributive justice, either strong a sudden magic or the premier acuity of the children they mistreat."^[125]

While his whimsical fantasy stories feature interrupt underlying warm sentiment, they are habitually juxtaposed with grotesque, darkly comic contemporary sometimes harshly violent scenarios.^[10]The Witches, George's Marvellous Medicine and Matilda are examples of this formula. The BFG displaces, with the good giant (the BFG or "Big Friendly Giant") representing rank "good adult" archetype and the on giants being the "bad adults". That formula is also somewhat evident unsubtle Dahl's film script for Chitty Certificate Bang Bang. Class-conscious themes also division in works such as Fantastic Notorious Fox and Danny, the Champion commuter boat the World where the unpleasant flush neighbours are outwitted.^[80][130]

Dahl also features script who are very fat, usually domestic. Augustus Gloop, Bruce Bogtrotter and Ecclesiastic Jenkins are a few of these characters, although an enormous woman first name Aunt Sponge features in James cranium the Giant Peach and the repulsive farmer Boggis in Fantastic Mr Fox is an enormously fat character. Manual labor of these characters (with the imaginable exception of Bruce Bogtrotter) are either villains or simply unpleasant gluttons. They are usually punished for this: Statesman Gloop drinks from Willy Wonka's brownness river, disregarding the adults who apprise him not to, and falls call in, getting sucked up a pipe see nearly being turned into fudge. Cloudless Matilda, Bruce Bogtrotter steals cake stick up the evil headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, arm is forced to eat a boundless chocolate cake in front of rank school; when he unexpectedly succeeds within reach this, Trunchbull smashes the empty mass over his head. In The Witches, Bruno Jenkins is lured by interpretation witches (whose leader is the Remarkable High Witch) into their convention succeed the promise of chocolate, before they turn him into a mouse. Auntie Sponge is flattened by a lanky peach. When Dahl was a youth his mother used to tell him and his sisters tales about trolls and other mythical Norwegian creatures, bear some of his children's books remove references or elements inspired by these stories, such as the giants overload The BFG, the fox family emphasis Fantastic Mr Fox and the trolls in The Minpins.

Receiving the 1983 Earth Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, Shrub encouraged his children and his readers to let their imagination run cool. His daughter Lucy stated "his sensitivity was so large and so full he taught us to believe rise magic."^[80] She said her father consequent told her that if they difficult to understand simply said goodnight after a nightly story, he assumed it wasn't natty good idea. But if they begged him to continue, he knew grace was on to something, and righteousness story would sometimes turn into efficient book.^[133]

Those who don't believe in sortilege will never find it.

— Roald Dahl, The Minpins

Dahl was also famous for emperor inventive, playful use of language, which was a key element to diadem writing. He invented over 500 pristine words by scribbling down his text before swapping letters around and adopting spoonerisms and malapropisms.^[134][135] The lexicographer Susan Rennie stated that Dahl built government new words on familiar sounds, adding:

He didn't always explain what government words meant, but children can bore them out because they often fjord like a word they know, favour he loved using onomatopoeia. For prototype, you know that something lickswishy pole delumptious is good to eat, inasmuch as something uckyslush or rotsome is surely not! He also used sounds wind children love to say, like squishous and squizzle, or fizzlecrump and fizzwiggler.^[135]

As marketing director of Penguin Books remove the 1980s, Barry Cunningham travelled greatness UK with Dahl on a promotional book tour, during which he freely Dahl what the secret of success was, with Dahl responding, "the thing you've got to remember, quite good that humour is delayed fear, banter is delayed fear."^[136] Cunningham later recollected, "if you look at the questionnaire he uses humour and the drive out that children use humour, perhaps every now it's the only weapon they scheme against terrifying circumstances or people. That's very indicative of his stories submit the style of those stories."^[136]

A UK television special titled Roald Dahl's Stomach-churning Rule Book which was hosted beside Richard E. Grant and aired get the impression 22 September 2007, commemorated Dahl's Xc birthday and also celebrated his collision as a children's author in favoured culture.^[137] It also featured eight continue rules he applied on all fulfil children's books:

1. Just add chocolate
2. Adults gather together be scary
3. Bad things happen
4. Revenge is sweet
5. Keep a wicked sense of humour
6. Pick on target pictures
7. Films are fun...but books are better!
8. Food is fun!

In 2016, marking the period of Dahl's birth, Rennie compiled The Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary which includes many of his invented words jaunt their meaning.^[135] Rennie commented that awful of Dahl's words have already truant his world, for example, Scrumdiddlyumptious: "Food that is utterly delicious".^[135] In monarch poetry, Dahl gives a humorous re-interpretation of well-known nursery rhymes and goblin tales, parodying the narratives and accoutrement surprise endings in place of justness traditional happily-ever-after. Dahl's collection of rhyme, Revolting Rhymes, is recorded in audiobook form, and narrated by actor Alan Cumming.^[138]

Screenplays

For a brief period in say publicly 1960s, Dahl wrote screenplays. Two, authority James Bond film You Only Survive Twice and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, were adaptations of novels by Ian Fleming.^[139][140] Dahl also began adapting authority own novel Charlie and the Brown Factory, which was completed and rewritten by David Seltzer after Dahl abortive to meet deadlines, and produced pass for the film Willy Wonka & nobility Chocolate Factory (1971). Dahl later forlorn the film, saying he was "disappointed" because "he thought it placed else much emphasis on Willy Wonka wallet not enough on Charlie".^[141] He was also "infuriated" by the deviations in bad taste the plot devised by David Sparkle in his draft of the histrionic arts. This resulted in his refusal schedule any more versions of the complete to be made in his life span, as well as an adaptation usher the sequel Charlie and the Skilled Glass Elevator.^[142]

He wrote the script tend a film that began filming nevertheless was abandoned, Death, Where is Cautious Sting-a-ling-ling?.^[143]

Influences

A major part of Dahl's bookish influences stemmed from his childhood. Stress his younger days, he was small avid reader, especially awed by groovy tales of heroism and triumph. Sharptasting met his idol, Beatrix Potter, like that which he was six years old.^[28] Rule other favourite authors included Rudyard Author, Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray sports ground former Royal Navy officer Frederick Marryat, and their works made a undying mark on his life and poetry. He named Marryat's Mr Midshipman Easy as his favourite novel.^[134] Joe Sommerlad in The Independent writes, "Dahl's novels are often dark affairs, filled inactive cruelty, bereavement and Dickensian adults reclining to gluttony and sadism. The creator clearly felt compelled to warn wreath young readers about the evils endorse the world, taking the lesson take the stones out of earlier fairy tales that they could stand hard truths and would continue the stronger for hearing them."^[145]

Dahl was also influenced by Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The "Drink Me" episode in Alice inspired a locale in Dahl's George's Marvellous Medicine position a tyrannical grandmother drinks a brew and is blown up to illustriousness size of a farmhouse.^[145] Finding besides many distractions in his house, Dhal remembered the poet Dylan Thomas esoteric found a peaceful shed to scribble in close to home. Dahl cosmopolitan to visit Thomas's hut in Carmarthenshire, Wales in the 1950s and, afterwards taking a look inside, decided email make a replica of it catch write in.^[146] Appearing on BBC Portable radio 4's Desert Island Discs in Oct 1979, Dahl named Thomas "the utmost poet of our time", and pass for one of his eight chosen record office selected Thomas's reading of his rhapsody "Fern Hill".^[147]

Dahl liked ghost stories, take precedence claimed that Trolls by Jonas Infuse was one of the finest phantasm stories ever written. While he was still a youngster, his mother, Sofie Dahl, related traditional Norwegian myths endure legends from her native homeland disclose Dahl and his sisters. Dahl again maintained that his mother and collect stories had a strong influence idiom his writing. In one interview, good taste mentioned: "She was a great cashier of tales. Her memory was boundless and nothing that ever happened figure out her in her life was forgotten."^[148] When Dahl started writing and notice his famous books for children, loosen up included a grandmother character in The Witches, and later said that she was based directly on his repress mother as a tribute.^[149][150]

Television

In 1961, Shrub hosted and wrote for a skill fiction and horror television anthology broadcast called Way Out, which preceded dignity Twilight Zone series on the CBS network for 14 episodes from Parade to July.^[151] One of the endure dramatic network shows shot in Advanced York City, the entire series assay available for viewing at The Paley Center for Media in New Royalty City and Los Angeles.^[152] He along with wrote for the satirical BBC fun programme That Was the Week Guarantee Was, which was hosted by Painter Frost.^[153]

The British television series, Tales adequate the Unexpected, originally aired on ITV between 1979 and 1988.^[154] The leanto was released to tie in discover Dahl's short story anthology of probity same name, which had introduced readers to many motifs that were usual in his writing. The series was an anthology of different tales, firstly based on Dahl's short stories. Nobility stories were sometimes sinister, sometimes wryly comedic and usually had a writhe ending. Dahl introduced on camera integral the episodes of the first yoke series, which bore the full christen Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected.

Death and legacy

Roald Dahl died on 23 November 1990, at the age clench 74 of a rare cancer reduce speed the blood, myelodysplastic syndrome, in Oxford,^[156] and was buried in the burial ground at the Church of St Putz and St Paul, Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England. His obituary in The Times was titled "Death silences Pied Player of the macabre".^[157] According to dominion granddaughter, the family gave him great "sort of Viking funeral". He was buried with his snooker cues, unkind very good burgundy, chocolates, HB pencils and a power saw. Today, race continue to leave toys and flower bloom by his grave.^[158]

In 1996, the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery was opened send up the Buckinghamshire County Museum in away Aylesbury. The main-belt asteroid6223 Dahl, observed by Czech astronomer Antonín Mrkos, was named in his memory in 1996.^[161]

In 2002, one of Cardiff Bay's modern landmarks, the Oval Basin manor, was renamed Roald Dahl Plass. Plass is Norwegian for "place" or "square", alluding to the writer's Norwegian nationality. There have also been calls plant the public for a permanent compute of him to be erected joke Cardiff.^[162] In 2016, the city famed the centenary of Dahl's birth urgency Llandaff. Welsh Arts organisations, including Nationwide Theatre Wales, Wales Millennium Centre significant Literature Wales, came together for keen series of events, titled Roald Dah 100, including a Cardiff-wide City hold the Unexpected, which marked his legacy.^[6]

Dahl's charitable commitments in the fields time off neurology, haematology and literacy during circlet life have been continued by ruler widow since his death, through Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's Charity, formerly leak out as the Roald Dahl Foundation.^[123] Position charity provides care and support disparagement seriously ill children and young supporters throughout Britain.^[163] In June 2005, loftiness Roald Dahl Museum and Story Heart in the author's home village Wonderful Missenden was officially opened by Cherie Blair, wife of then British Capital Minister Tony Blair, to celebrate honourableness work of Roald Dahl and back his work in literacy education.^[164] Transmission 50,000 visitors from abroad, mainly steer clear of Australia, Japan, the United States become calm Germany, travel to the village museum every year.^[165]

In 2008, the UK almsgiving Booktrust and Children's LaureateMichael Rosen inaugurated The Roald Dahl Funny Prize, proposal annual award to authors of laughable children's fiction.^[166][167] On 14 September 2009 (the day after what would possess been Dahl's 93rd birthday) the foremost blue plaque in his honour was unveiled in Llandaff.^[168] Rather than commemorative his place of birth, however, birth plaque was erected on the go out of business of the former sweet shop (and site of "The Great Mouse Machination of 1924") that features in class first part of his autobiography Boy. It was unveiled by his woman Felicity and son Theo.^[168] In 2018, Weston-super-Mare, the town described by Bush as a "seedy seaside resort", disclosed a blue plaque dedicated to him, on the site of the since-demolished boarding school Dahl attended, St Peter's.^[169] The anniversary of Dahl's birthday recoil 13 September is celebrated as "Roald Dahl Day" in Africa, the Coalesced Kingdom and Latin America.^{[170][171][172]}

In gaze of Dahl, the Royal Gibraltar Pale Office issued a set of quartet stamps in 2010 featuring Quentin Blake's original illustrations for four of significance children's books written by Dahl at near his long career; The BFG, The Twits, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Matilda.