Donald Lamont Jack (6 December 1924 – 2 June 2003) was an English and Canadian novelist and playwright.

Life

Jack was born in Radcliffe, Bury, England and grew up in Britain, attending the well regarded

Bury Grammar School Bury Grammar School is a 3–18 private day school for boys in Bury, Greater Manchester, England, that has existed since c.1570. It is now part of a group of schools for preschool, junior, senior and sixth form studies. Since 2017, when Bu ...

and

Marr College Marr College is a co-educational secondary school in Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Marr College is the third largest secondary school in South Ayrshire, with 1,127 pupils enrolled at the school in 2023–2024. The building itself is owned by ...

and later serving in the RAF in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(1943–47). After the war he emigrated to Canada in 1951, and became a Canadian citizen in 1964. From 1955 to 1957 he was a scriptwriter for

Crawley Films Crawley () is a town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a populat ...

. After 1957 he became a full-time freelance writer. He wrote for the stage, radio, and for television programs such as ''

General Motors Theatre ''General Motors Theatre'' (also known as ''CBC Theatre'', ''Encounter'', ''Ford Television Theatre'', and ''General Motors Presents'') was a Canadian television anthology drama series of television plays, which ran on CBC Television under vari ...

'', ''

The Unforeseen ''The Unforeseen'' is a Canadian drama television series which aired on CBC Television from 1958 to 1960. Premise This anthology series featured stories of suspense or plots with surprise endings. Donald Jack and executive producer Peter Franci ...

'', ''Playdate'', ''

Hatch's Mill ''Hatch's Mill'' was a short-lived Canadian comedy television show that aired on CBC Television in 1967. Premise This filmed comedy series was among CBC Television's first colour productions. It was set in the 1830s and portrayed the life of th ...

'', '' The Forest Rangers'', and '' On Camera'', but he is most famous for his novels, the ''Bandy Papers'', which recount the humorous adventures of Bartholomew Bandy, a

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

fighter pilot. His play '' The Canvas Barricade'' was the first Canadian play produced at the

Stratford Festival of Canada The Stratford Festival is a repertory theatre organization that operates from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shak ...

. Other stage plays included ''Exit Muttering'', ''Crash'', and ''Minuet for Brass Band''. He had 39 TV plays produced, 22 radio plays, and numerous documentaries. Most of Jack's book-length works are being re-published, or published for the first time, by Sybertooth. Jack died of a stroke at his home in Warwickshire, England in June 2003.

The Bandy Papers series

*''Three Cheers for Me'' – 1962 (Winner of the 1963

Stephen Leacock Award The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, also known as the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour or just the Leacock Medal, is an annual Canadian literary award presented for the best book of humour written in English by a Canadian writer, publis ...

) *''Three Cheers for Me'' (revised & expanded edition) – 1973 *''That's Me in the Middle'' – 1973 (Winner of the 1974 Stephen Leacock Award) *''It's Me Again'' - 1975 (Also published as two volumes, ''It's Me Again'' & ''Me Among the Ruins'') *''Me Bandy, You Cissie'' - 1979 (Winner of the 1980 Stephen Leacock Award) *''Me Too'' - 1983 *''This One's on Me'' - 1987 *''Me So Far'' – 1989 *''Hitler Versus Me: The Return of Bartholomew Bandy'' – 1996 *''Stalin Versus Me'' – 2005 *''Hitler Versus Me'' paperback combining H vs M with the author's novelette, "Where Did Rafe Madison Go?" – 2006 *''Me Bandy, You Cissie'' paperback combining the novel with the author's radio play ''Banner's Headline'' – 2009 *''Three Cheers for Me'' 50th anniversary edition of the original 1962 version, with a foreword by Paul Marlowe – 2011

Other published works

*'' Exit Muttering'' – 1972 *''Sinc, Betty and the Morning Man'' – 1977 (non-fiction) *''Rogues, Rebels, and Geniuses: The Story of Canadian Medicine'' – 1981 (non-fiction) *'' The Canvas Barricade'' – 2007 (stage play)

Stageplays

* ''Humbly, for Fyodor'' (1953) * ''Minuet for Brass Band'' (1953) A 3-act play first performed at the Canadian Theatre School in Toronto, founded by Sterndale Bennett. * ''Flamacue Serenade'' * '' The Canvas Barricade'' (1961) A 2-act comedy about an artist defying materialism. Set on the Quebec-Ontario border, and in Toronto. Performed in 1961 at the

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a repertory theatre organization that operates from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shak ...

, where it was the first original Canadian play performed. Music by Harry Freedman * ''Exit Muttering'' (1962) A 2-act comedy first performed at the Grenville Street Playhouse, directed by Hugh Webster, with set design by Vincent Vaitiekunas. Published 1974. * ''Reckless'' (1969/1971) * ''Folly'' (1985) Alternate titles: Love in Business Hours; Pension Play. * ''Blast'' (1988) Comedy about espionage at an English country house. * ''Crash'' A 2-act comedy about a timpanist who inherits a funeral home. First performed at the Ontario Playwrights' Showcase.

Radio Plays

* Three Cheers for Me (CBC Theatre 10:30, 1972) * Your Tiny Head is Frozen (for

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

Stage) * Grave Tidings (for Sunday Theatre) * Banner's Headline *

More Joy in Heaven ''More Joy in Heaven'' is a novel written by Canadian author Morley Callaghan and published in 1937. The central figure, Kip Caley, was inspired by Norman Ryan (1895-1936), a criminal who had committed a number of robberies in Quebec, Ontario an ...

(dramatization of

Morley Callaghan Edward Morley Callaghan (February 22, 1903 – August 25, 1990) was a Canadian novelist, short story writer, playwright, and Television, TV and radio personality. Biography Of Canadian/English-immigrant parentage,Clara Thomas, ''Canadian No ...

's novel for Theatre 10:30)

Notes

External links

Web site about Donald Jack's books
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jack, Donald 1924 births 2003 deaths Canadian male novelists 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian novelists Canadian non-fiction writers English humorists English emigrants to Canada 20th-century English novelists English dramatists and playwrights English non-fiction writers Naturalized citizens of Canada People from Radcliffe, Greater Manchester People educated at Bury Grammar School Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Stephen Leacock Award winners People educated at Marr College Canadian male dramatists and playwrights English male novelists 20th-century Canadian male writers Canadian male non-fiction writers English male non-fiction writers 20th-century British non-fiction writers 20th-century English male writers Novelists from Ontario