by Steve Newman

Created on: January 11, 2011   Last Updated: January 12, 2011

Nevil Shute was one of the world's best selling authors during the 1950s – he'd been writing since the 1920s - with titles such as On The Beach and A Town Like Alice made into blockbuster films starring Gregory Peck and Peter Finch. After his death, in 1960, Shute's popularity slowly began to slip until, by the 1980s, most of his twenty-three novels - and one autobiography - were out of print, although a couple of small publishing houses kept the flame alive until, in 2009, Vintage (part of Random House) started the epic job of reprinting Shute's exciting, emotional, and extraordinary well written books.

 But Nevil Shute Norway (his full name) had been much more than a novelist.

 And although considered by many to have been an Australian – he only settled there after WWII – Shute was actually born in Ealing London in 1899, just six months or so before Ernest Hemingway. But, unlike Hemingway, Shute revelled in education, studying at the Dragon School – one of Oxford's best prep schools - then at the influential Shrewsbury School, still considered one of the finest public schools in Britain. After Shrewsbury Shute studied Engineering Science at Balliol College, Oxford.

 Then, with the coming of World War One, Shute was, due to a pronounced stammer, unable to obtain a commission in the Royal Flying Corps, having to make do with serving in the infantry.

 After the war Shute joined the de Havilland Aircraft Company where, in the 1920s, he may have been partly responsible for the later development of the de Havilland Rapide twin-engined passenger aircraft, which, with its distinctive wedge nose, became one of the most famous short haul aircraft around the world, and an aircraft that can still be seen flying today.

 After de Havilland Shute joined Vickers, where, with Barnes Wallis (the inventor of the Wellington bomber and the so called 'Bouncing Bomb' which was used on the famous Dam Busters raid during WWII) he helped in the design and development of airships, most notably the R100, which made at least one safe journey across the Atlantic to Canada and back. Sadly, when the R101 (filled with explosive hydrogen) crashed the British airship programme was scrapped.

 After leaving Vickers in 1931 Shute created his own company, Airspeed Ltd, where he designed a rival to the Rapide.

 During World War Two Shute was involved in secret weapons development. .

 After the war Shute spent more and more of his time writing, resulting, in 1950, in perhaps his most emotional novel, A Town Like Alice, which deals, in graphic detail, with Japanese POWs during WWII; it's also one of the finest love stories ever written.

 Anyway, my darling wife bought me three Shute novels for Christmas this year, and I'm now a good half way through Requiem For A Wren - which is set in Australia after the war, and in the UK during WWII – which was first published in 1955. And like the work of Somerset Maugham – who was a great influence on Shute – it is a superb read that rewards hugely.

 If you've never read any Nevil Shute now is the time to start.

Learn more about this author, Steve Newman.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.