R. C. Sherriff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
R. C. Sherriff
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| Born | Robert Cedric Sherriff 6 June 1896 Hampton Wick, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 13 November 1975 (aged 79) Kingston upon Thames, England |
| Occupation | Playwright and screenwriter |
| Nationality | British |
| Period | 1920s to 1960s |
Robert Cedric Sherriff (born June 6, 1896 – died November 13, 1975) was an English writer. He is best known for his play Journey's End. This play was inspired by his time as an army officer in the First World War. Sherriff wrote many plays, novels, and movie scripts. He was even nominated for important awards like an Academy Award and two BAFTA awards.
Contents
About R. C. Sherriff
His Early Life
Robert Cedric Sherriff was born in Hampton Wick, Middlesex, England. His father, Herbert Hankin Sherriff, worked for an insurance company. Robert went to Kingston Grammar School in Kingston upon Thames from 1905 to 1913.
After school, Sherriff worked in an insurance office. He was a clerk and later an insurance adjuster. When the First World War started, he joined the army. He became an officer in the 9th battalion of the East Surrey Regiment. Sherriff fought in important battles like Vimy Ridge and Loos. He was badly wounded in 1917 near Ypres.
Later, Sherriff studied history at New College, Oxford from 1931 to 1934. He was also a member of important groups like the Royal Society of Literature.
His Writing Career
Sherriff started writing plays to help his local rowing club raise money. His seventh play, Journey's End, became very famous. He wrote it in 1928, and it was based on his experiences in the war.
The play was first performed in London in 1928. A young actor named Laurence Olivier played the main role. It was so popular that it ran for two years in the Savoy Theatre.
Novels by Sherriff
Sherriff also wrote books. He helped turn Journey's End into a novel in 1930. His 1939 novel, The Hopkins Manuscript, is a science fiction story. It's about Earth after it crashes into the Moon. This book influenced later science fiction writers.
Another novel, The Fortnight in September (1931), tells a more realistic story. It's about a normal family from Dulwich enjoying a holiday in Bognor Regis. A famous writer, Kazuo Ishiguro, called it an "uplifting" book.
His 1936 novel Green Gates is about a middle-aged couple moving to a new suburb.
Awards and Nominations
R. C. Sherriff was recognized for his great writing. He was nominated for an Academy Award in 1939. This was for his work on the movie Goodbye, Mr. Chips. He shared this nomination with Eric Maschwitz and Claudine West.
In 1955, he was nominated for two BAFTA awards. These nominations were for his screenplays for the films The Dam Busters and The Night My Number Came Up.
List of Works
Plays
- 1921: A Hitch in the Proceedings
- 1922: The Woods of Meadowside
- 1923: Profit and Loss
- 1924: Cornlow-in-the-Downs
- 1925: The Feudal System
- 1926: Mr. Bridie's Finger
- 1928: Journey's End
- 1930: Badger's Green
- 1933: Windfall
- 1934: Two Hearts Doubled
- 1936: St Helena
- 1948: Miss Mabel
- 1950: Home at Seven
- 1953: The White Carnation
- 1955: The Long Sunset
- 1957: The Telescope
- 1960: A Shred of Evidence (or The Strip of Steel)
Film Scripts
- 1919: The Toilers
- 1933: The Invisible Man
- 1934: One More River
- 1937: The Road Back
- 1939: Goodbye, Mr. Chips
- 1939: The Four Feathers
- 1941: That Hamilton Woman
- 1942: This Above All
- 1945: Odd Man Out
- 1948: Quartet
- 1950: Trio (film)
- 1950: No Highway
- 1955: The Dam Busters
- 1955: The Night My Number Came Up
- 1955: Cards with Uncle Tom (TV)
- 1963: The Ogburn Story (TV)
Books
- 1930: Journey's End (with Vernon Bartlett)
- 1931: The Fortnight in September
- 1936: Green Gates
- 1939: The Hopkins Manuscript
- 1948: Another Year
- 1951: The White Carnation (novel of his play)
- 1955: The Long Sunset (novel of his play)
- 1962: The Cataclysm (reissue of The Hopkins Manuscript)
- 1968: No Leading Lady (his autobiography)
