- Born
- Birth nameBernard Wiggins
- Bernard Cornwell was born on February 23, 1944 in London, England, UK. He is a writer and actor, known for The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die (2023), Sharpe (1993) and Rebel (2016).
- Became a writer after the US government would not give him a work permit.
- Was adopted in infancy by the Wiggins family. In his adulthood, he changed his name to his birth mother's maiden name: Cornwell.
- Educated at London University and now lives in Chatham, Massachusetts. Also wrote under the name of Susannah Kells.
- A character named Rifleman Matthew Dodd appears in several of Bernard Cornwell's early (chronologically) Sharpe's novels, set during the Peninsular War. This is a passing nod to author C.S. Forester who wrote a novel featuring a British rifleman named Dodd, titled "Death to the French" (aka: "Rifleman Dodd"). Cornwell himself has said that his character is meant to be the same person as Forester's character.
- Announced that 'Sharpe's Peril' will begin filming in India in March 2008. The film, which stars Sean Bean, is an original story not based on one of Cornwell's novels.
- Actually I moved to New Jersey in 1980 and didn't discover Chatham until 1990, by which time the books were selling, but it was still a daft decision, based solely on love.
- Agents will read unpublished work because they might make money, and that's their job. It isn't mine.
- And though I've lived in the States for over 25 years and am now an American citizen, I still hear British voices in my head.
- And yes, there's a simplicity to writing books because you're not a member of a team, so you make all the decisions yourself instead of deferring to a committee.
- Anyone who claims to have an entirely clear conscience is almost certainly a bore.
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