Roger Lewis (born 26 February 1960) is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

, biographer and journalist.

Biography

Lewis was raised in

Bedwas Bedwas is a town situated two miles north-east of Caerphilly, south Wales, situated in the Caerphilly county borough, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. Bedwas neighbours Trethomas, Graig-y-Rhacca and Machen, and forms a council ...

, Monmouthshire, and educated at Bassaleg School in

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

. He then attended the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

, graduating MA, then Magdalen College, Oxford, where he gained the MLitt degree, both with

first class honours The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied (sometimes with significant variat ...

. He became a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

Wolfson College, Oxford Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Located in north Oxford along the River Cherwell, Wolfson is an all-graduate college with around sixty governing body fellows, in addition to both research an ...

, in 1984.Stephen Masty
"Roger Lewis – Modernist, Moralist and Wit"
'' The Imaginative Conservative'', 30 May 2012, accessed 28 October 2021 Lewis has written biographies of

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...

(1994), 1108 pages. Charles Hawtrey (2001),

Anthony Burgess John Anthony Burgess Wilson, (; 25 February 1917 – 22 November 1993), who published under the name Anthony Burgess, was an English writer and composer. Although Burgess was primarily a comic writer, his dystopian satire '' A Clockwork ...

(2003), and

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage o ...

(2007). His book on Sellers was dramatized by HBO as ''

The Life and Death of Peter Sellers ''The Life and Death of Peter Sellers'' is a 2004 television film about the life of English comedian Peter Sellers, based on Roger Lewis's book of the same name. 1108 pagesPublished in the U.S. via Applause BooksA very comprehensive biography, ...

'', which won a

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

and was nominated for the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

at the

2004 Cannes Film Festival The 57th Cannes Film Festival started on 12 and ran until 23 May 2004. The Palme d'Or went to the American film ''Fahrenheit 9/11'' by Michael Moore. The festival opened with '' La mala educación'', directed by Pedro Almodóvar and closed with ' ...

Personal life

Lewis is married, with children, and lives in Hastings, with a holiday apartment in

Bad Ischl Bad Ischl (Austrian German ) is a spa town in Austria. It lies in the southern part of Upper Austria, at the Traun River in the centre of the Salzkammergut region. The town consists of the Katastralgemeinden ''Ahorn'', ''Bad Ischl'', ''Haide ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. He is a lover of good art and

bullfighting Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms w ...

Controversies

Writing a book review for the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' in August 2011, Lewis expressed a dislike of the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

, calling it an "appalling and moribund monkey language".

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

politician

Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards may refer to: Musicians *Jonathan and Darlene Edwards, pseudonym of bandleader Paul Weston and his wife, singer Jo Stafford *Jonathan Edwards (musician) (born 1946), American musician ** ''Jonathan Edwards'' (album), debut album ...

reported Lewis's comments to the police and to the

Press Complaints Commission The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) was a voluntary Regulation, regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. The PCC closed on Monday 8 September 2014, and was replaced ...

. In 2014 comments about lesbians Lewis made in a '' Spectator'' article led to publishers Biteback Publishing withdrawing an offer of a book deal.

Books

* * * * * * * *

References

External links

www.telegraph.co.uk
1960 births Living people People from Newport, Wales People from Caerphilly People educated at Bassaleg School Alumni of the University of St Andrews Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Fellows of Wolfson College, Oxford Welsh scholars and academics Welsh biographers Welsh journalists Daily Mail journalists {{UK-nonfiction-writer-stub