Nichols, Beverley
Entry updated 12 September 2022. Tagged: Author.
(1898-1983) UK author, perhaps best known for a series of nonfiction books about gardens and gardening. Of his fifty or so books, one of the most interesting is the ghostwritten autobiography – Melodies and Memories (1925) – of the most famous prima donna of the day, Nellie Melba, whom he had accompanied on tour for several years. He is of direct sf interest for a Near Future Dystopian "When the Crash Comes: A Play in Three Acts and a Prologue" (in Failures: Three Plays, coll 1933), in which there has been a Communist takeover of Britain. He also wrote some Fantasy for children, including the Magic Wood sequence beginning with the witty classic The Tree That Sat Down (1945). [JC/PN]
John Beverley Nichols
born Bristol, England: 9 September 1898
died Kingston, Surrey: 15 September 1983
works
series
Magic Wood
- The Tree That Sat Down (London: Jonathan Cape, 1945) [Magic Wood: illus/hb/Isobel and John Morton Sale]
- The Stream That Stood Still (London: Jonathan Cape, 1948) [Magic Wood: illus/hb/Richard Kennedy]
- The Mountain of Magic (London: Jonathan Cape, 1950) [Magic Wood: illus/hb/Peggy Fortnum]
- The Wickedest Witch in the World: A Story for Children of All Ages (London: W H Allen, 1971) [Magic Wood: illus/hb/Robin Jacques]
individual titles
- Failures: Three Plays (London: Jonathan Cape, 1933) [plays: coll: hb/]
links
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