Fat Authors

[Phoenix]

Went to a talk about WW records, where we were told we could find Home Guard records if we knew the battalion.

I don't.

But, there was a fat and famous author in my father's battalion. When he got bored on exercises, he would declare himself wounded and be stretchered home. He was not liked.

I thought this was Leslie Chateris, but the official website states that he did not come to this country until the 1960s.

Can anyone suggest an author - I think writing pot-boiler thrillers - who would already be famous by WW2?

[kiterunner]

I was going to say Denis Wheatley, but Wikipedia says he was doing strategic stuff in WW2. Also he doesn't look very fat in his picture.

[Merry]

Whereabouts was this happening? Norfolk??

[kiterunner]

There are some names of famous people on this thread on another site but I don't think any quite fit your description:
http://walmington.proboards.com/thre...1#scrollTo=130

[Phoenix]

Originally Posted by Merry

Whereabouts was this happening? Norfolk??

Dad was at Imperial College, London and most of his exploits seem to have been in South Ken.

JB Priestley was probably the right weight, but I got the impression that this was a port-&-cigars chap who had a very cushy war.

[Langley Vale Sue]

Found this - http://www.theunknownwarriors.co.uk/...ers/4531933181

George Orwell (Real name - Eric Arthur Blair) - (1903-1950) Author of 1984 and Animal Farm, he was born in India during the British Raj, then spent some time as a colonial policeman. During the war he was in the Home Guard in London and put two men from his unit in hospital after mishandling a mortar. After his home was ruined by a V1 bomb he rescued his favourite books and carted them off in a wheelbarrow


Edit - probably not him though. Looking at photos he was too thin!

[Shona]

George Orwell was v thin - from the TB I think.

[Merry]

lol Sue - you have just helped me with my tree!

I don't know much about George Orwell, so looked at his Wikipedia page (mainly to check out what he looked like!). Read about his wives. Clicked to the wiki page for his first wife which mentioned one of her jobs was reading to Dame Elizabeth Cadbury. As I have an interest in chocolate () I clicked her page and saw she was the second wife of George Cadbury, chocolate manufacturer. Clicked his page and saw his first wife was one Mary Tylor, dau of Quaker author Charles Tylor. I have Quaker Tylors on my tree, but no authors as far as I knew, but had a look at my tree anyway. Turns out I do have Charles and his dau Mary on my tree, but just didn't know enough about them to realise they were the same people!! Now I have a lot to add and no time for looking for fat authors in Kensington! (sorry, Phoenix!!)

[Langley Vale Sue]

Glad to have helped someone at least Merry.

[Mary from Italy]

Evelyn Waugh? Not sure how fat he was in those days, but he was a famous author by then. From what I've read, he was quite enthusiastic about soldiering, though.