5th October - Gemma Winstanley J.B.Priestly was born in 1894, in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire. His full name was John Boynton Priestly. His father, Jonathan Priestly, was a prosperous schoolmaster; his mother died when he was a junior. Priestly attended Bradford Grammar School, but left his studies at the age of sixteen and began work as a junior clerk. He survived the front lines in Flanders, France during the First World War. He attended Cambridge University from 1919. In Bradford, Priestly wrote poetry and contributed articles to local and London papers. From 1922, he began work as a journalist in London. He wrote and became famous for the well-known novel ?The Good Companions? in 1929, and gained international popularity with this novel, a tale about the adventures of a troop of travelling players. He wrote many more novels, plays and essays during his life, but only began writing plays in the 1930?s. After the outbreak of World War II, Priestly gained fame as ?the voice of the common peo! ple?, a patriotic radio broadcaster, second only to Churchill. He was a well-known journalist, novelist, playwright and essayist. He was a blunt, no- nonsense socialist and was married three times. In 1977 he refused a knight hood and a peerage, but accepted the Order of Merit. As well as his fame for novels, plays, journalism and essays, he became known for his support for the campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. Altogether, during his career, Priestly wrote and published over 120 books, usually light and optimistic in their tone. J.B.Priestly died on 14th August in 1984.