Roald Dahl never learned how to type, and all of his stories were written in pencil on bright yellow paper. His secretary would type up his work for him. [1]
Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, and screenwriter who died on 23 November 1990, at the age of 74.
Earlier in November 1990, he had been admitted to Hospital in Oxford with myelodysplastic syndrome, a rare cancer of the blood and passed away after 11 days in the hospital. According to one report, Dahl tried to get his pet dog ‘Chopper’ lifted up to his window in a basket while he was in hospital.
Dahl was buried in the cemetery at the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England. During the funeral, the poem, Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night was read aloud. This poem was written by Dylan Thomas who was Dahl’s friend and supporter, and the reading of the poem served as the closing act of their long friendship. Dahl’s family arranged a Viking-style funeral which involved him being buried with some of his favourite things including some fine burgundy wine, chocolate, his HB pencils, a few snooker cues, and a power saw. Next to Dahl’s gravesite is a memorial bench that encircles a tree with the names of Dahl’s five children and three stepchildren inscribed on each seat, and BFG footprints walk to his grave. Visiting children often leave toys and flowers.
Roald Dahl rose to prominence as a writer in the 1940s and has been called “one of the greatest storytellers for children of the 20th century”. His short stories are known for their unexpected endings, and his children’s books for their unsentimental, macabre, often darkly comic mood, featuring villainous adult enemies of the child characters. He was extremely prolific and versatile, and his books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. In 2021, Forbes ranked him the top-earning dead celebrity.
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