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The Roald Dahl Day is a whole day dedicated to the fantastic author. Entertaining both children and adults over the past century, it would actually have been his 100th birthday in 2016.
When Is Roald Dahl Day?
Roald Dahl Day falls on 13th September each year and has been celebrated since 2006.
When Is Roald Dahl Day in 2019?
Roald Dahl Day will be celebrated on Friday 13th September in 2019.
What Is Roald Dahl Day All About?
Roald Dahl Day is a day designated to celebrate the author and his works. There’s no set way to celebrate, but as he’s so revered here at EducationCity, we’ve developed a fantastic free Roald Dahl Day Topical Teaching Resources pack to give you some ideas of activities you can get involved in.
Who Was Roald Dahl?
Roald Dahl was born in Llandaff, near Cardiff, in Wales on 13th September, 1916. Born to Norwegian parents, he was named after the Norwegian polar explorer, Roald Amundsen, who had been the first man to reach the South Pole just four years earlier.
His early years were difficult as both his older sister, Astri, and his father died, so his mother decided to send him to boarding school first in Weston-super-Mare, then to Repton in Derbyshire. Upon finishing school, he followed his desire to travel, going first to Canada then East Africa while working for Shell Oil Company. When World War II broke out when he was 23, he enlisted in the Royal Air Force, where he was nicknamed Lofty because at 6 foot 6 inches (200cm), he was very tall.
Roald Dahl: The Writer
Roald Dahl first began writing during the war while working at the British Embassy in Washington D.C., U.S. His first book was about his experiences as a World War II fighter pilot, but when he had a family of his own after the war – he had five children, Olivia, Chantal, Theo, Ophelia and Lucy – he began writing children’s stories.
Our infographic shows his most popular seventeen books and when they were written.
In addition to these, he also wrote the screenplays for You Only Live Twice and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and fiction for adults too.
Roald Dahl: The Word Inventor
Roald Dahl invented over 250 new words to delight his young readers, including phizz-whizzing and sizzle-pan. Some of these have now been included in the standard Oxford Dictionary, whilst the full set of words and more, appear in their very own dictionary, the Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary.
How Many Books Did Roald Dahl Write?
Roald Dahl managed to complete 34 books, with four being published after his death – these were all published in 1991.
He also wrote (or co-wrote) five play scripts and screenplays. Read our review on Roald Dahl’s The Witches Book Review here.
Roald Dahl’s Legacy
Roald Dahl died on 23rd November 1990 at the age of 74, shortly before the Minpins was published. He died from a rare cancer of the blood. His body is buried in the cemetery of St Peter and St Paul’s Church in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, the village where he lived most of his life.
In terms of legacy, Roald Dahl has left behind him a whole menagerie of characters, which are amongst the most recognised in the world, and he remains for many the world’s greatest storyteller. His books have been translated into 59 languages and it’s estimated that his worldwide sales have reached 200 million! What’s more, many of his stories have been made into films, stage plays and musicals.
He’s also left behind a passion for the English language and writing, which The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden has been set up to celebrate. The museum houses the Writing Hut from the bottom of Roald Dahl’s garden and organises workshops and storytelling sessions to inspire younger generations.
Inspired by Roald Dahl and his achievements? Why not take a look at our infographic and delve deeper into his many books with our free Roald Dahl Day pack? Or enter our Roald Dahl book review competition.