Roald Dahl
About the author

Roald Dahl

When he was at school Roald Dahl received terrible reports for his writing - with one teacher actually writing in his report, 'I have never met a boy who so persistently writes the exact opposite of what he means. He seems incapable of marshalling his thoughts on paper!' After finishing school Roald Dahl, in search of adventure, travelled to East Africa to work for a company called Shell. In Africa he learnt to speak Swahili, drove from diamond mines to gold mines, and survived a bout of malaria where his temperature reached 105.5 degrees (that's very high!). With the outbreak of the Second World War Roald Dahl joined the RAF. But being nearly two metres tall he found himself squashed into his fighter plane, knees around his ears and head jutting forward. Tragically of the 20 men in his squadron, Roald Dahl was one of only three to survive. Roald wrote about these experiences in his books Boy and Going Solo. Later in the war Roald Dahl was sent to America. It was there that he met famous author C.S. Forester (author of the Captain Hornblower series) who asked the young pilot to write down his war experiences for a story he was writing. Forester was amazed by the result, telling Roald 'I'm bowled over. Your piece is marvellous. It is the work of a gifted writer. I didn't touch a word of it.' (an opinion which would have been news to Roald's early teachers!). Forester sent Roald Dahl's work straight to the Saturday Evening Post. Roald Dahl's growing success as an author led him to meet many famous people including Walt Disney, Franklin Roosevelt, and the movie star Patricia Neal. Patricia and Roald were married only one year after they met! The couple bought a house in Great Missenden called Gipsy House. It was here that Roald Dahl began to tell his five children made-up bedtime stories and from those that he began to consider writing stories for children. An old wooden shed in the back garden, with a wingbacked armchair, a sleeping bag to keep out the cold, an old suitcase to prop his feet on and always, always six yellow pencils at his hand, was where Roald created the worlds of The BFG, The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and many, many more.

Books by Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl Articles

Prank-Filled Fun: Activity from How to Trick a Twit by Roald Dahl

Review | Book Life | News

31 March 2021

Prank-Filled Fun: Activity from How to Trick a Twit by Roald Dahl

Unconventional and crafty women: Read an extract from The Witches by Roald Dahl

Review | Extract

18 December 2020

Unconventional and crafty women: Read an extract from The Witches by Roald Dahl

Create and investigate: Activity pack from The Witches by Roald Dahl

News | Book Life

18 December 2020

Create and investigate: Activity pack from The Witches by Roald Dahl

Go on a gigantic adventure with an extract from The BFG by Roald Dahl

Review | Extract

10 September 2020

Go on a gigantic adventure with an extract from The BFG by Roald Dahl

Celebrate Roald Dahl Story Day with this wonderful activity pack

Review | Extract

10 September 2020

Celebrate Roald Dahl Story Day with this wonderful activity pack

Fearless Heroine, Nasty Villains, Hilarious Revenge: Review of Matilda by Roald Dahl

Review

2 April 2020

Fearless Heroine, Nasty Villains, Hilarious Revenge: Review of Matilda by Roald Dahl

Scrumdiddlyumptious Competition: Roald Dahl's Imaginormous Challenge

Kids & Ya

22 February 2019

Scrumdiddlyumptious Competition: Roald Dahl's Imaginormous Challenge

It's Roald Dahl Day 2017!

Kids & Ya

12 September 2017

It's Roald Dahl Day 2017!

Our Picks for the Most Wondercump Dahl Words

Kids & Ya

1 July 2016

Our Picks for the Most Wondercump Dahl Words

Book of the Week: the new whoppsy-whiffling Roald Dahl Dictionary

Kids & Ya

1 July 2016

Book of the Week: the new whoppsy-whiffling Roald Dahl Dictionary