February 25th: Birth of Anthony Burgess

Anthony Burgess, the author of Clockwork Orange, was born on this date in 1917. Here are 10 facts about him:

1. His full name was John Anthony Burgess Wilson. The name Anthony was added at his confirmation.
2. He was known in childhood as Jack, Little Jack, and Johnny Eagle.
3. Although best known for his writing, he was also a composer, and felt that he was primarily a composer, not a writer.
4. He taught himself to play the piano when he was 14, and wanted to study music at university. However, he didn't get in, because his grades in physics weren't good enough. So he studied English literature instead.
5. He served in the army during World War II and reached the rank of sergeant major.
6. Writing was more of a hobby to him at first, "a sort of gentlemanly hobby because I knew there wasn't any money in it".
7. His first novels were written while he was working as a teacher in Malaya. They were: Time for a Tiger, The Enemy in the Blanket and Beds in the East. These became known as The Malayan Trilogy and were later published in one volume as The Long Day Wanes.
8. In 1958, he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour while teaching in Brunei. Thinking that he was dying, he wrote several more novels to provide an income for his wife. However, on return to England, doctors found no trace of any illness. After that, Burgess became a full time writer.
9. He was a tax exile - to avoid high rates of tax, he and his second wife, Liana, travelled around Europe in a motor-home. Liana drove while Anthony sat in the back, writing.
10. Burgess's epitaph reads "Abba Abba," which means "Father, father" in several Semitic languages. It is also the title of Burgess's 22nd novel, about the death of Keats.