Simon Watson Taylor (15 May 1923 – 4 November 2005) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

translator Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...

, often associated with the

Surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

movement Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

. He was born in

Wallingford, Oxfordshire Wallingford () is a historic market town and civil parish located between Oxford and Reading on the River Thames in England. Although belonging to the historic county of Berkshire, it is within the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire for adminis ...

and died in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. He was secretary for the

British Surrealist Group The British Surrealist Group was involved in the organisation of the International Surrealist Exhibition in London in 1936. The ''London Bulletin'' was published by the Surrealist Group in England, according to the June 1940 edition (nos. 18-19- ...

and edited the English language surrealist review ''Free Unions / Unions Libres'' but later became a key player in the "science" of

Pataphysics Pataphysics (french: 'pataphysique) is a " philosophy" of science invented by French writer Alfred Jarry (1873–1907) intended to be a parody of science. Difficult to be simply defined or pinned down, it has been described as the "science of im ...

. He was educated in England, France, Switzerland, Germany and Austria. Taylor lived in Paris in 1946-7, working for the English section of

Radiodiffusion Française Radiodiffusion Française (RDF) was a French public institution responsible for public service broadcasting. Created in 1944 as a state monopoly (replacing Radiodiffusion Nationale), RDF worked to rebuild its extensive network, destroyed during t ...

. Taylor's extensive work as a translator of modern and avant-garde French literature and books about art included ''Surrealism and Painting'' by

André Breton André Robert Breton (; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first ''Surrealist Manifesto'' (''Manifeste du surréalisme'') o ...

and plays by

Boris Vian Boris Vian (; 10 March 1920 – 23 June 1959) was a French polymath: writer, poet, musician, singer, translator, critic, actor, inventor and engineer who is primarily remembered for his novels. Those published under the pseudonym Vernon Sulliva ...

including ''The Empire Builders'', ''The Generals' Tea Party'' and ''The Knackers' ABC''. Others were ''The Cenci'' by

Antonin Artaud Antoine Marie Joseph Paul Artaud, better known as Antonin Artaud (; 4 September 1896 – 4 March 1948), was a French writer, poet, dramatist, visual artist, essayist, actor and theatre director. He is widely recognized as a major figure of the E ...

, ''Paris Peasant'' by

Louis Aragon Louis Aragon (, , 3 October 1897 – 24 December 1982) was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review ''Littérature''. He wa ...

and numerous works by

Alfred Jarry Alfred Jarry (; 8 September 1873 – 1 November 1907) was a French symbolist writer who is best known for his play ''Ubu Roi'' (1896). He also coined the term and philosophical concept of 'pataphysics. Jarry was born in Laval, Mayenne, France, ...

. His collection of Jarry's ''The Ubu Plays'' (Methuen, London, 1968) included translations by himself and

Cyril Connolly Cyril Vernon Connolly CBE (10 September 1903 – 26 November 1974) was an English literary critic and writer. He was the editor of the influential literary magazine ''Horizon'' (1940–49) and wrote '' Enemies of Promise'' (1938), which combin ...

and remains in print. In 1968 Taylor edited ''French Writing Today'', published in the United Kingdom by Penguin and in 1969 by Grove Press in the United States. Taylor was an editorial advisor and frequent contributor to the London-based magazine ''Art and Artists'' and was the guest co-editor (with Roger Shattuck) of a special issue (May–June 1960) of the American literary magazine ''

Evergreen Review ''The Evergreen Review'' is a U.S.-based literary magazine. Its publisher is John Oakes and its editor-in-chief is Dale Peck. The ''Evergreen Review'' was founded by Barney Rosset, publisher of Grove Press. It existed in print from 1957 until 19 ...

;'' titled ''What is Pataphysics?'' With Shattuck he also edited ''The Selected Works of Alfred Jarry'' (Methuen & Co, London, 1965). Taylor's papers are in a collection at

The University of Tulsa The University of Tulsa (TU) is a private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and the campus architectural style is predominantly Collegiate Gothic. The school traces its origin ...

External links

* Obituary by

George Melly Alan George Heywood Melly (17 August 1926 – 5 July 2007) was an English jazz and blues singer, critic, writer, and lecturer. From 1965 to 1973 he was a film and television critic for ''The Observer''; he also lectured on art history, with an e ...

in ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' (U.K.), 16 November 2005
"Simon Watson Taylor: Surrealist turned anarchist, Pataphysician and hippie"
* Simon Watson Taylor
Growing up with anarchists, surrealists and pataphysicians (with some comments on Surrealism in Britain by Michael Remy)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson Taylor, Simon 1923 births 2005 deaths 20th-century British translators British surrealist writers People from Wallingford, Oxfordshire Translators from French British expatriates in Germany British expatriates in France British expatriates in Switzerland British expatriates in Austria