Howard Spring - Revision history

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	==Biography==		==Biography==
	Howard Spring was born in [[Cardiff]], the son of a jobbing gardener. He was forced to leave school at the age of twelve, when his father died, to start work as an errand boy.<ref>{{Cite web \|url=http://reading19001950.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/the-autobiography-of-howard-spring-1972/ \|title=The Autobiography of Howard Spring (1972) \|work=Reading 1900-1950\|date=16 September 2013}}</ref> He later became an office boy at a firm of chartered accountants in Cardiff Docks and then a messenger at the offices of the ''[[South Wales Daily News]]''. He was keen to train as a reporter, and spent his leisure time learning shorthand and taking evening classes at [[Cardiff University]], where he studied English, French, Latin, mathematics and history. He graduated to be a reporter on both the morning and evening editions of the ''South Wales Daily News''.		Howard Spring was born in [[Cardiff]], the son of a jobbing gardener. He was forced to leave school at the age of twelve, when his father died, to start work as an errand boy.<ref name=ABHS>{{Cite web \|url=http://reading19001950.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/the-autobiography-of-howard-spring-1972/ \|title=The Autobiography of Howard Spring (1972) \|work=Reading 1900-1950\|date=16 September 2013}}</ref> He later became an office boy at a firm of chartered accountants in Cardiff Docks and then a messenger at the offices of the ''[[South Wales Daily News]]''. He was keen to train as a reporter, and spent his leisure time learning shorthand and taking evening classes at [[Cardiff University]], where he studied English, French, Latin, mathematics and history. He graduated to be a reporter on both the morning and evening editions of the ''South Wales Daily News''.

	In 1911 he joined the ''Yorkshire Observer'' in [[Bradford]] before moving in 1915 to the ''[[Manchester Guardian]]'', but was there only a few months before he was called up for the [[Royal Army Service Corps]] as a shorthand ~~typist~~.		In 1911 he joined the ''Yorkshire Observer'' in [[Bradford]] before moving in 1915 to the ''[[Manchester Guardian]]'', but was there only a few months before he was called up for the [[Royal Army Service Corps\|Army Service Corps]] as a shorthand trained clerk, serving in France in [[Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig\|Douglas Haig]]'s General Headquarters.<ref name=ABHS/>

	After the war, he returned to the ''Guardian'', where he worked as a reporter. [[C. P. Scott]], the editor, apparently regarded Spring's reporting skills highly; he wrote of Spring that: "Nobody does a better 'descriptive' or a better condensation of a difficult address." Whilst working for the ''Guardian'', Spring lived in the suburb of [[Didsbury]]. In 1931, after reporting on a political meeting at which [[Lord Beaverbrook]] was the speaker, Beaverbrook was so impressed by Spring's piece (Spring described Beaverbrook as "a pedlar of dreams", which took Beaverbrook's fancy) that he arranged for him to be offered a post with the ''[[Evening Standard]]'' in London as a book reviewer. Spring described the offer as "irresistible", and the appointment proved successful.		After the war, he returned to the ''Guardian'', where he worked as a reporter. [[C. P. Scott]], the editor, apparently regarded Spring's reporting skills highly; he wrote of Spring that: "Nobody does a better 'descriptive' or a better condensation of a difficult address." Whilst working for the ''Guardian'', Spring lived in the suburb of [[Didsbury]]. In 1931, after reporting on a political meeting at which [[Lord Beaverbrook]] was the speaker, Beaverbrook was so impressed by Spring's piece (Spring described Beaverbrook as "a pedlar of dreams", which took Beaverbrook's fancy) that he arranged for him to be offered a post with the ''[[Evening Standard]]'' in London as a book reviewer. Spring described the offer as "irresistible", and the appointment proved successful.
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	*''Book Parade'', (1938)		*''Book Parade'', (1938)
	*''Heaven Lies About Us'', (1939)		*''Heaven Lies About Us'', (1939)
	*''Fame Is the Spur'', (1940)		*''[[Fame Is the Spur]]'', (1940)
	*''Tumbledown Dick: All People And No Plot'', (1939)		*''Tumbledown Dick: All People And No Plot'', (1939)
	*''All They Like Sheep'', (1940)		*''All They Like Sheep'', (1940)
	*''In The Meantime'', (1942)		*''In The Meantime'', (1942)
	*''This War We Wage'', (1942) [with E M DELAFIELD & Herbert MORRISON]		*''This War We Wage'', (1942) [with E M DELAFIELD & Herbert MORRISON]
	*''Hard Facts'', (1944)		*''[[Hard Facts]]'', (1944)
	*''And Another Thing'', (1946)		*''And Another Thing'', (1946)
	*''Dunkerley's'', (1946)		*''Dunkerley's'', (1946)
	*''There Is No Armour'', (1948)		*''[[There Is No Armour]]'', (1948)
	*''Christmas Honeymoon'', (1949)		*''Christmas Honeymoon'', (1949)
	*''Christmas Awake'', (1949)		*''Christmas Awake'', (1949)
	*''[[The Houses in Between]]'', (1951)		*''[[The Houses in Between]]'', (1951)
	*''Jinny Morgan'', (1952, play)		*''Jinny Morgan'', (1952, play)
	*''A Sunset Touch'', (1953)		*''[[A Sunset Touch]]'', (1953)
	*''Three Plays'', (1953) [Jinny Morgan; The Gentle Assassin; St George...]		*''Three Plays'', (1953) [Jinny Morgan; The Gentle Assassin; St George...]
	*''These Lovers Fled Away'', (1955)		*''[[These Lovers Fled Away]]'', (1955)
	*''Time and the Hour'', (1957)		*''[[Time and the Hour]]'', (1957)
	*''All the Day Long'', (1959)		*''[[All the Day Long]]'', (1959)
	*''I Met a Lady'', (1961)		*''[[I Met a Lady]]'', (1961)
	*''[[Winds of the Day]]'', (1964)		*''[[Winds of the Day]]'', (1964)

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v2.05b - Bot T20 CW#61 - Fix errors for CW project (Reference before punctuation)

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{{Short description|Welsh writer (1889–1965)}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2012}}
{{Use British English |date=August 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
[[File:Writer Howard Spring.jpg|thumb|right|Howard Spring]]

'''Howard Spring''' (10 February 1889 – 3 May 1965) was a Welsh author and journalist.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abfar.org.uk/ref/?Author_notes_and_lists:Howard_Spring |title=Biography and bibliography of Howard Spring – Howard Spring |work=abfar.org.uk}}</ref> He began his writing career as a [[journalism|journalist]] but from 1934 produced a series of best-selling novels for adults and children. The most successful was ''[[Fame Is the Spur (novel)|Fame Is the Spur]]'' (1940), which was later adapted into [[Fame Is the Spur (film)|a film]] starring [[Michael Redgrave]], and later still a [[Fame is the Spur (TV series)|BBC TV series]] (1982) starring [[Tim Pigott-Smith]] and [[David Hayman]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2ba423457e |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722213210/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2ba423457e |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 July 2012 |title=Howard Spring |work=BFI}}</ref>

==Biography==
Howard Spring was born in [[Cardiff]], the son of a jobbing gardener. He was forced to leave school at the age of twelve, when his father died, to start work as an errand boy.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://reading19001950.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/the-autobiography-of-howard-spring-1972/ |title=The Autobiography of Howard Spring (1972) |work=Reading 1900-1950|date=16 September 2013}}</ref> He later became an office boy at a firm of chartered accountants in Cardiff Docks and then a messenger at the offices of the ''[[South Wales Daily News]]''. He was keen to train as a reporter, and spent his leisure time learning shorthand and taking evening classes at [[Cardiff University]], where he studied English, French, Latin, mathematics and history. He graduated to be a reporter on both the morning and evening editions of the ''South Wales Daily News''.

In 1911 he joined the ''Yorkshire Observer'' in [[Bradford]] before moving in 1915 to the ''[[Manchester Guardian]]'', but was there only a few months before he was called up for the [[Royal Army Service Corps]] as a shorthand typist.

After the war, he returned to the ''Guardian'', where he worked as a reporter. [[C. P. Scott]], the editor, apparently regarded Spring's reporting skills highly; he wrote of Spring that: "Nobody does a better 'descriptive' or a better condensation of a difficult address." Whilst working for the ''Guardian'', Spring lived in the suburb of [[Didsbury]]. In 1931, after reporting on a political meeting at which [[Lord Beaverbrook]] was the speaker, Beaverbrook was so impressed by Spring's piece (Spring described Beaverbrook as "a pedlar of dreams", which took Beaverbrook's fancy) that he arranged for him to be offered a post with the ''[[Evening Standard]]'' in London as a book reviewer. Spring described the offer as "irresistible", and the appointment proved successful.

At the same time, Spring was developing his ambitions as a writer; his first book, ''Darkie and Co.'', a children's story, came out in 1932, followed by his first novel, ''[[Shabby Tiger]]'', which was set in Manchester, published by [[William Collins, Sons]] in 1934. ''Shabby Tiger'' was adapted as a [[Shabby Tiger (TV series)|television series of the same title]] produced by [[Granada Television]] in 1973. It starred [[John Nolan (British actor)|John Nolan]] as Nick and [[Prunella Gee]] as Anna, with [[Sharon Maughan]] making her TV debut as the glamorous and ambitious Rachel Rosing. A sequel to the novel followed a year later, ''[[Rachel Rosing]]'' (Collins, 1935). Both were published in the US in 1936.

The children's story ''Sampson's Circus'', illustrated by [[Steven Spurrier (artist)|Steven Spurrier]] and published by [[Faber & Faber]] in 1936, was one of two commended runners up for the [[CILIP|Library Association]]'s inaugural [[Carnegie Medal (literary award)|Carnegie Medal]], recognising the year's outstanding contribution to children's literature by a British subject.<ref name=ccsu>[http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/CarnegieMedal.htm "Carnegie Medal Award"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327101434/http://web.ccsu.edu/library/nadeau/award%20books/CarnegieMedal.htm |date=27 March 2019 }}. 2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library. [[Central Connecticut State University]]. Retrieved 19 June 2012.</ref>

His first major success in the adult market came with ''[[My Son, My Son (novel)|My Son, My Son]]'' (1937), originally titled ''O Absalom''.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/561295/Howard-Spring |title=Howard Spring |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref> It gained success in America, listed as a national fiction best seller in [[English Journal|''The English Journal'']] for eight consecutive months, starting in July 1948.<ref>{{cite journal |title=News and Notes |journal=The English Journal |date=September 1938 |volume=27 |issue=7 |page=617 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/806358}}</ref> The novel was [[film adaptation|adapted]] as the American 1940 film ''[[My Son, My Son!]]'' and later made for television by the BBC in 1977. [[WorldCat]] libraries report editions in Chinese, German, Hebrew and four other languages.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.worldcat.org/title/my-son-my-son/oclc/296037/editions?cookie=&start_edition=1&sd=asc&se=yr&referer=di&qt=show_more_ln%3A&editionsView=true&fq=&fc=ln%3A_25 |title="Formats and Editions of My son, my son". WorldCat. Retrieved 22 August 2012.}}</ref>

In 1939 Spring moved to [[Mylor, Cornwall|Mylor]] in [[Cornwall]] to become a full-time writer. (His wife Marion's father had a house at [[St Mawes]].) In 1940, his best-known work appeared: ''[[Fame Is the Spur (novel)|Fame Is the Spur]]'', the story of a Labour leader's rise to power. During the war years Spring wrote two other novels, ''[[Hard Facts]]'' (1944) and ''Dunkerley's'' (1946).

In 1947 Spring and his wife moved to [[Falmouth, Cornwall|Falmouth]], The White Cottage in Fenwick Road,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.countrylife.co.uk/property/beautiful-surprisingly-unlisted-falmouth-house-inspired-welsh-author-howard-springs-best-loved-settings-189335. |title=Country Life.}}</ref> and in the post-war period he published ''[[There Is No Armour]]'' (1948), ''[[The Houses in Between]]'' (1951), ''[[A Sunset Touch]]'' (1953), ''[[These Lovers Fled Away]]'' (1955), ''[[Time and the Hour]]'' (1957), ''[[All the Day Long]] '' (1959), ''[[I Met a Lady]]'' (1961), and his last book was ''[[Winds of the Day]]'' (1964). Spring also produced three volumes of autobiography: ''Heaven Lies About Us, A Fragment of Infancy'' (1939); ''In the Meantime'' (1942); and ''And Another Thing'' (1946), later published in one volume as ''The Autobiography of Howard Spring'' (Collins, 1972).<ref>[http://www.worldcat.org/title/autobiography-of-howard-spring/oclc/515254/editions?start_edition=1&sd=asc&referer=di&se=yr&qt=sort_yr_asc&editionsView=true&fq= "Formats and Editions of The autobiography of Howard Spring"]. WorldCat. Retrieved 22 August 2012.</ref>

During this period Spring served eight years as President of the prestigious [[Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society]] and as a Director of the [[University College Falmouth|Falmouth School of Art]] and President of the Cornish Drama League. The last was well known for producing plays at the open-air [[Minack Theatre]] on the cliffs near Land's End.

Spring was a successful writer, who combined a wide understanding of human character with technical skill as a novelist. His method of composition was painstaking. Each morning he would shut himself in his room and write a thousand words, steadily building up to novels of around 150,000 words. He rarely made major alterations to his writings.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/440079.Howard_Spring |title=Howard Spring |work=Goodreads}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=Goodreads is considered generally unreliable, as per WP:RSPSS. |date=September 2024}}

Howard Spring died of a stroke. In 1967, his widow, Marion Spring, wrote an affectionate story of their life together, called ''Howard'', with a foreword by [[A. L. Rowse]]. It was published by Collins.

==Works==
*''Darkie And Co'', (1932)
*''[[Shabby Tiger]]'', (1934)
*''The World's Greatest Detective Stories'', (1934)
*''[[Rachel Rosing]]'', (1935)
*''Sampson's Circus'', (1936)
*''O Absalom (title in US: [[My Son, My Son (novel)|My Son, My Son]])'', (1938)
*''Book Parade'', (1938)
*''Heaven Lies About Us'', (1939)
*''Fame Is the Spur'', (1940)
*''Tumbledown Dick: All People And No Plot'', (1939)
*''All They Like Sheep'', (1940)
*''In The Meantime'', (1942)
*''This War We Wage'', (1942) [with E M DELAFIELD & Herbert MORRISON]
*''Hard Facts'', (1944)
*''And Another Thing'', (1946)
*''Dunkerley's'', (1946)
*''There Is No Armour'', (1948)
*''Christmas Honeymoon'', (1949)
*''Christmas Awake'', (1949)
*''[[The Houses in Between]]'', (1951)
*''Jinny Morgan'', (1952, play)
*''A Sunset Touch'', (1953)
*''Three Plays'', (1953) [Jinny Morgan; The Gentle Assassin; St George...]
*''These Lovers Fled Away'', (1955)
*''Time and the Hour'', (1957)
*''All the Day Long'', (1959)
*''I Met a Lady'', (1961)
*''[[Winds of the Day]]'', (1964)

Source:<ref name=authorandbook>{{Cite web |title=Author – (Robert) Howard Spring |url=http://www.authorandbookinfo.com/cgi-bin/auth.pl?S005962 |publisher=Author and Book Info}}</ref>

==See also==
*''[[The Queen's Book of the Red Cross]]''

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{FadedPage|id=Spring, Howard|name=Howard Spring|author=yes}}
*[https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/7603150 "Formats and Editions of ''Sampson's Circus''"] at [[WorldCat]]
* [https://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/rylands/special-collections/a-to-z/detail/?mms_id=992983876705901631 Howard Spring Manuscripts] at the [[John Rylands Library]], Manchester.

{{Portal bar|Novels|Children's literature|Cornwall}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spring, Howard}}
[[Category:1889 births]]
[[Category:1965 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Welsh novelists]]
[[Category:Academics of Falmouth University]]
[[Category:Writers from Cornwall]]
[[Category:Journalists from Cardiff]]
[[Category:Welsh children's writers]]
[[Category:Welsh novelists]]
[[Category:Writers from Cardiff]]
[[Category:British Army personnel of World War I]]
[[Category:Royal Army Service Corps soldiers]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Cardiff]]