Patrick Gale is a British novelist who lives in Cornwall

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

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His father was the prison governor

Prison Governor

In the UK, a Prison Governor is responsible for the management and security of a prison, jail, remand centre and young offenders' institution. In India and Pakistan, the head of a District, Central, Women or special Prison/Jail is called Superintendent of Jail, Superintendent Jail, Senior...

 of Camp Hill

Camp Hill (HM Prison)

HMP Isle of Wight - Camp Hill Barracks is a Category C men's prison, located on the outskirts of Newport, Isle of Wight. The prison lies adjacent to Albany and Parkhurst. These have now joined together to form HMP Isle of Wight, and the combined prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison...

 Prison on the Isle of Wight when Gale was born, and he was brought up in and around prisons. In his 2000 novel Rough Music

Rough music

Rough music, also known as ran-tan or ran-tanning, is an English folk custom, a practice in which a humiliating and loud public punishment is inflicted upon one or more people who have violated the standards of the rest of the community...

, the lead character is the son of a prison governor.

Gale was educated at The Pilgrims' School

The Pilgrims' School

The Pilgrims' School, Winchester, is a boys' preparatory school - with a co-ed pre-prep extension - in the Cathedral Close in Winchester, Hampshire - an ancient capital of England. The school is famous for The Pilgrims' Hall, which contains England's oldest surviving wood double hammer-beamed roof,...

, the choir

Choir

A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...

 college for both Winchester Cathedral

Winchester Cathedral

Winchester Cathedral at Winchester in Hampshire is one of the largest cathedrals in England, with the longest nave and overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe...

 and Winchester College

Winchester College

Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...

, then at Winchester College

Winchester College

Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...

 and at New College

New College, Oxford

New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...

, Oxford. Following university he had a range of jobs while he sang for the London Philharmonic Choir

London Philharmonic Choir

The London Philharmonic Choir is one of the leading independent British choirs in the United Kingdom based in London. The Patron is Princess Alexandra, The Hon Lady Ogilvy and Sir Roger Norrington is President. The choir, comprising over 200 members, holds charitable status and is governed by a...

 and wrote his first novel, The Aerodynamics of Pork while working as a waiter in an all-night restaurant. He now lives on his partner's farm near Land's End.

Novels

• The Aerodynamics of Pork (1985)
• Ease (1985)
• Kansas in August (1987)
• Facing the Tank (1988)
• Little Bits of Baby (1989)
• The Cat Sanctuary (1990)
• The Facts of Life (1996)
• Dangerous Pleasures (1996)
• Tree Surgery for Beginners (1999)
• Rough Music
  Rough music
  Rough music, also known as ran-tan or ran-tanning, is an English folk custom, a practice in which a humiliating and loud public punishment is inflicted upon one or more people who have violated the standards of the rest of the community...
  
  (2000) This is his most widely held book in libraries, owned by 673 libraries according to WorldCat
• A Sweet Obscurity (2003)
• Friendly Fire (2005)
• Notes from an Exhibition (2007)
• The Whole Day Through (2009)
• Gentleman's Relish (2009)

He has also written a number of short stories and novellas in addition to a non-fiction book about the American novelist Armistead Maupin

Armistead Maupin

Armistead Jones Maupin, Jr. is an American writer, best known for his Tales of the City series of novels, based in San Francisco.-Early life:...

, with whom he has a close friendship, He is also a book reviewer for The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...

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External links

• Patrick Gale's website
• Patrick Gale bibliography
• "BIGfib.com" Patrick Gale Interview
• outuk.com Interview with Patrick Gale
• Dymocks Online Interview with Patrick Gale
• Articles by Patrick Gale on the 5th Estate blog