William Golding was born in Newquay, Cornwall, on 19 September 1911. He became one of the best-known British novelists of the post-war period. However, his first novel did not appear until his early forties.

Golding wanted to become a writer from childhood. At Oxford he initially studied natural sciences before turning to English literature. He later worked as a teacher and joined the Royal Navy in 1940, serving during the Second World War.

After the war, he returned to teaching and continued writing. His first novel, Lord of the Flies, was published in 1954 after several publishers rejected it. The story of schoolboys stranded without adults became an international success and established Golding’s reputation.

He continued to publish novels including The Inheritors, Pincher Martin and Rites of Passage. His work often examined human behaviour in situations where familiar social structures had been removed or disrupted.

Golding was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983. He died in Cornwall on 19 June 1993, aged 81.