Patrick Evelyn Hugh Sadler Gale (born 31 January 1962) is a British novelist.
Gale was born in 1962 on the Isle of Wight, the youngest of four children. [1] [2] [3] His father was the prison governor of HM Prison Camp Hill on the Isle of Wight, and he was brought up in and around prisons. In 1969 the family moved to Winchester, Hampshire and his father became Under-Secretary of State for Prisons. [4] In his 2000 novel Rough Music, the lead character is the son of a prison governor.
In Winchester he was invited to join the Quiristers in the Winchester College Chapel Choir. [4] Before he turned ten, one of his siblings suffered a nervous breakdown and his mother almost died in a car accident that left her brain-damaged. [4] He was then educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford. [5]
His first two novels, The Aerodynamics of Pork and Ease, were published on the same day in 1985. [6] [4] In 2017 he made his screenwriting debut with Man in an Orange Shirt , a two part original drama which formed part of the BBC's Gay Britannia season. [7] The show won the 2018 International Emmy for Best Miniseries. [8]
His 2000 novel Rough Music is the most widely held of his books in libraries: in 2018 it was owned by 673 libraries, according to WorldCat. [9]
Describing himself as the "last novelist in England", he has lived in Cornwall since 1988, a county described repeatedly in his novels. [10] He is artistic director of the North Cornwall Book Festival, which he helped found. [11] He is a patron of the Charles Causley Trust, [12] the Penzance LitFest, [13] and Literature Works. [14]
Gale lives on a farm near Land's End, with his husband, the sculptor-farmer Aidan Hicks. There they raise beef cattle and grow barley. [15] He is a keen gardener and in April 2024 his garden at Land's End was featured on BBC's Gardeners' World . [16]
Jacques Heath Futrelle was an American journalist and mystery writer. He is best known for writing short detective stories featuring Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, also known as "The Thinking Machine" for his use of logic. He died in the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
Larry Jeff McMurtry was an American novelist, essayist, and screenwriter whose work was predominantly set in either the Old West or contemporary Texas. His novels included Horseman, Pass By (1962), The Last Picture Show (1966), and Terms of Endearment (1975), which were adapted into films. Films adapted from McMurtry's works earned 34 Oscar nominations. He was also a prominent book collector and bookseller.
Alan Fred Titchmarsh HonFSE is an English gardener and broadcaster. After working as a professional gardener and a gardening journalist, he became a writer, and a radio and television presenter.
Charles Stanley Causley CBE FRSL was a Cornish poet, school teacher and writer. His work is often noted for its simplicity and directness as well as its associations with folklore, legends and magic, especially when linked to his native Cornwall.
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Andre Dubus III is an American novelist and short story writer. He is a member of the faculty at the University of Massachusetts Lowell.
Zennor is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish includes the villages of Zennor, Boswednack and Porthmeor and the hamlet of Treen. Zennor lies on the north coast, about 6 miles (10 km) north of Penzance, along the B3306 road which connects St Ives to the A30 road. Alphabetically, the parish is the last in Britain. Its name comes from the Cornish name for the local saint, Saint Senara.
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing the counties of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in South East England.
This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 2007.
HM Prison Winchester is a Category B men's prison, located in Winchester, Hampshire, England. The prison is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service.
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Joseph Jefferson Farjeon was an English crime and mystery novelist, playwright and screenwriter. His father, brother and sister also developed successful careers in the literary world. His "Ben" novels were reissued in 2015 and 2016.
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Man in an Orange Shirt is a two-part British television movie from the BBC. It was produced by Kudos Film and Television and premiered on 31 July 2017 at BBC One. The film drama tells three love stories from two generations of a family, in the 1940s and in 2017.
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Geoffrey O'Neill Cochrane was a New Zealand poet, novelist and short story writer. He published 19 collections of poetry, a novel and a collection of short fiction. Many of his works were set in or around his hometown of Wellington, and his personal battles with alcoholism were a frequent source of inspiration.
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