The Modern Novel

Biography

Timothy Findley was born in Toronto in 1930. He finished his formal schooling at age sixteen, planning to becoming a dancer. A fused disc put an end to that ambition so he turned to acting. He participated in the first season of the Stratford Festival in Ontario where he was coached by Alec Guinness who helped him to get a place at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. After touring in Thornton Wilder‘s The Matchmaker, Wilder became a mentor through the intercession of actress Ruth Gordon, for whom he wrote his first short story. Findley soon turned to writing full time, though he also wrote plays – for the theatre, television and radio.

Initially his writing brought him little success but with the publication of The Wars, set in the First World War, he received international acclaim. His writing is overtly anti-fascist and he is particularly critical of those who condemn what they see as “deviant” behaviour. He died in 2002.

Books about Timothy Findley

Diana Brydon: Timothy Findley
Carol Roberts: Timothy Findley: Stories from a Life
Carol Roberts and Lynne Macdonald: Timothy Findley: An Annotated Bibliography

Other links

Timothy Findley
Timothy Findley
Timothy Findley
Timothy Findley Biography
Findley, Timothy
< Timothy Findley, Canadian Author, Dies at 71
Timothy Findley’s public face and private space
Interview