Ten things you never knew about... Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl was born on September 13, 1916 and today’s date is celebrated by many fans of the author around the world as Roald Dahl Day.

1. In the Second World War, Dahl was a fighter pilot and a spy, working alongside Ian Fleming.

2. He later wrote the screenplays for Fleming’s Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and You Only Live Twice.

3. Dahl’s parents were Norwegian immigrants. His first language during childhood was Norwegian.

4. The Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary includes almost 8,000 words found in the works by Dahl, including many he invented himself.

5. Dahl called the language of his invented words “Gobblefunk”, which includes ‘propsposterous’, ‘whizzpopping’, ‘delumptious’ and ‘frobscottle’.

6. The only Dahl invention in the Oxford English Dictionary itself is “Oompa Loompa”.

7. “Scrumdiddlyumptious” is also in the OED but was seen in a 1942 slang dictionary long before Dahl used it.

8. Dahl died in 1990 and was buried with a power drill, chocolate, snooker cues and HB pencils.

9. Dahl always wrote from 10.30am-noon then had lunch and a snooze and resumed from 4-6pm.

10. He always wrote on yellow paper with a yellow pencil with a rubber on the end and always began with six sharpened pencils in a jar.