-
It is 184 years today since Thomas Hardy was born.
The English author Thomas Hardy was born in Stinsford near Dorchester in Dorset, the son of a stonemason and local builder. Hardy trained as an architect before moving to London when he was twenty-two years old. He returned to Dorset where he began to write his first novel. Hardy was interested in the writings of Charles Darwin and in naturalism. During his long life he became famous for his...
-
It is 111 years today since Barbara Pym was born.
Barbara Mary Crampton Pym was born in Oswestry, Shropshire, near the Welsh border where she grew up with her younger sister Hilary. Her father was a lawyer and her mother the organist in the local church. Many of the vicars and lay clergy that visited their home later turned up in Pym's books. She was privately educated, first at a girl's school and later at boarding school. After reading...
-
It is 75 years today since Ingrid Hedström was born.
TThe Swedish journalist and author Ingrid Hedström were born in Söderhamn in the central Swedish province of Hälsingland, and then moved to Avesta in nearby Dalarna when she was five years old. She is said to be one of the 1960’s so-called "welfare-state princesses", meaning that she was the first in her family to graduate from high school. She completed her final exam at Avesta Grammar School in...
Sample of Authors
Allbeury, Ted
1917 - 2005
The British author of espionage fiction Theodore Edward le Bouthillier Allbeury was born in Stockport, Cheshire. His father...
Further reading
Andersen, H.C.
1805 - 1875
Hans Christian Andersen is Denmark’s best-known author. Born in Odense on the island of Funen, he had an extraordinary w...
Further reading
Behan, Brendan
1923 - 1964
The Irish poet, author and playwright Brendan Behan was born in the poor inner city district of Dublin in 1923. His father,...
Further reading
Boyd, William
1952 -
The British author William Boyd was born in Accra, Ghana. His father, a doctor, and his mother, a teacher, moved to The...
Further reading