John Boynton Priestley (1894-1984) grew up in the small, Northern industrial town of Bradford, England during the Late Victorian and Edwardian Era. He fought in France during WWI until he was exposed to a German gas attack and declared unfit for active service.

    After the war, Priestley studied at Cambridge, where he wrote articles for the Cambridge Review and completed a degree in Modern History and Political Science. His first job after college was writing theatre reviews for the Daily News. Priestley soon established a reputation as commentator on literature when he published as series of books entitled, The English Comic Character, The English Novel, and The English Humor. He then went on to publish several popular novels including, The Good Companions, and Angel Pavement. Over the course of his life, Priestley also wrote more than fifty plays; the most famous of which are, Dangerous Corner, When We Are Married, and An Inspector Calls.

    During WWII, Priestley hosted a BBC radiobroadcast called "Postscripts" which followed the nine o'clock Sunday news. The show built up such a following that within a few months an estimated forty percent of the British population was tuning into the program. However, when some members of the Conservative Party complained that Priestley was expressing "left-wing" opinions during his talks, the show was cancelled.
Despite this, Priestley continued to write and was an active commentator on current world affairs during WWII and throughout the rest of his life. He died on August 14, 1984.