Author Description

This illustrated biographical dictionary is a cornucopia of information on the men and women who helped to shape 20th-century Britain. It is a unique record of the lives of 645 individuals whose effect on their contemporaries or in their chosen professions was of exceptional interest and significance over the past 100 years, and who died between 1915 and 1980. Represented are people from all walks of life--from actors to zoologists--and from every area of society, including those few "black sheep" whose exploits or failures are so firmly enmeshed in recent history they could not be excluded. The information is based on the unrivalled authority of the famous Dictionary of National Biography and supplemented by unpublished material from DNB files as well as details from recent biographies and other modern sources. Entries are arranged alphabetically and comprehensive cross-referencing enables the reader to trace links between careers and developments within disciplines, and to discover personal and family relationships, friendships, rivalries, and influences. Photographs and drawings put faces to familiar names and illustrate the work of artists featured in the book.