J. B. Priestley

John Boynton Priestley, OM (September 13, 1894, Bradford, England - August 14, 1984, Stratford-upon-Avon) was an English writer and broadcaster.

Related Topics:
OM - September 13 - 1894 - Bradford, England - August 14 - 1984 - Stratford-upon-Avon - English

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Priestley was educated at Cambridge University, and by the age of thirty had established a reputation as a humorous writer and critic. His first major success came with a novel, The Good Companions (1929), but he became better known as a dramatist. Without doubt, his best-known play is An Inspector Calls (1946). This was later made into a film starring Alastair Sim (1954). His novel Angel Pavement (1930) further established him as a successful popular novelist, but his plays are more varied in tone, several being influenced by J.W. Dunne's theory of time, which plays a part in the plots of Dangerous Corner (1932) and Time and the Conways (1937). He married the archaeologist Jacquetta Hawkes, with whom he co-wrote some minor works.

Related Topics:
Cambridge University - The Good Companions - 1929 - Dramatist - An Inspector Calls - 1946 - Alastair Sim - 1954 - Angel Pavement - 1930 - J.W. Dunne's - 1932 - 1937 - Jacquetta Hawkes

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During World War II he was a regular broadcaster on the BBC but his talks were cancelled as a result of complaints that they were too left wing. He chaired the 1941 Committee and, in 1942, he was a co-founder of the socialist Common Wealth Party.

Related Topics:
World War II - BBC - 1941 Committee - 1942 - Common Wealth Party

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