Patrick Evelyn Hugh Sadler Gale (born 31 January 1962) is a British novelist. 20140620-X81B6638

Early life

Gale was born in 1962 on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

, the youngest of four children. His father was the prison governor of HM Prison Camp Hill on the Isle of Wight, and he was brought up in and around prisons. In 1969 the family moved to Winchester and his father became Under-Secretary of State for Prisons.Paul Veitch, Peter Karp, "Exploring love and marriage", ''Sunday Canberra Times'', 6 September 1998, p. 18 In his 2000 novel ''Rough Music'', the lead character is the son of a prison governor. In Winchester he was invited to join the Quiristers in the

Winchester College Chapel Choir Winchester College Chapel Choir is an historic British boys choir that sings in the Chapel of Winchester College. It contains boys under age 12 as well as older students from Winchester College. The Choir has performed on the radio and on intern ...

. Before he turned ten, one of his siblings suffered a nervous breakdown and his mother almost died in a car accident that left her brain-damaged. He was then educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of ...

and New College, Oxford.

Career

His first two novels, ''The Aerodynamics of Pork'', and ''Ease'', were published on the same day in 1985. In 2017 he made his screenwriting debut with ''

Man in an Orange Shirt ''Man in an Orange Shirt'' is a two-part British television movie from the BBC. It was produced by Kudos Film and Television and premiered on 31 July 2017 at BBC One. The film drama tells three love stories from two generations of a family, in ...

'', a two part original drama which formed part of the BBC's Gay Britannia season. The show won the 2018 International Emmy for Best Miniseries. His 2000 novel ''Rough Music'' is the most widely held of his books in libraries: in 2018 it was owned by 673 libraries, according to WorldCat. Describing himself as the "last novelist in England", he has lived in Cornwall since 1988, a county described repeatedly in his novels. He is artistic director of the North Cornwall Book Festival, which he helped found. He is a patron of the Charles Causley Trust, the Penzance LitFest and Literature Works.Literature Works
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Novels and short stories

*''The Aerodynamics of Pork'' (1985) *''Ease'' (1985) *''Kansas in August'' (1987) *''Facing the Tank'' (1988) *''Little Bits of Baby'' (1989) *''The Cat Sanctuary'' (1990) *''Caesar's Wife'' (1991) – novella contained in the collection Secret Lives, along with works by Tom Wakefield and Francis King *''The Facts of Life'' (1996) *''Dangerous Pleasures'' (1996) – short stories *''Tree Surgery for Beginners'' (1999) *''Rough Music'' (2000) *''A Sweet Obscurity'' (2003) *''Friendly Fire'' (2005) *''Notes from an Exhibition'' (2007) *''The Whole Day Through'' (2009) *''Gentleman's Relish'' (2009) – short stories *''A Perfectly Good Man'' (2012) *''A Place Called Winter'' (2015) *''Take Nothing With You'' (2018) *''Mother’s Boy'' (2022)

References

External links

Patrick Gale's website

* "BIGfib.com

* ''outuk.com'
Interview with Patrick Gale
* ''Dymocks Online'
Interview with Patrick Gale

Articles by Patrick Gale on the 5th Estate blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gale, Patrick 1962 births Living people 20th-century British novelists 21st-century British novelists English gay writers English LGBT novelists People educated at Winchester College People from Newport, Isle of Wight Alumni of New College, Oxford Novelists from Cornwall English male novelists 20th-century English male writers 21st-century English male writers