Birthday profile

Paul Bailey (British writer)

Paul Bailey, British novelist, critic, and biographer

Born
February 16, 1937
Age in 2026
89
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Birth year
1937

About Paul Bailey (British writer)

Peter Harry "Paul" Bailey was an English novelist and critic, as well as a biographer of Cynthia Payne and Quentin Crisp. He won a scholarship to the Central School of Speech and Drama in 1953 and worked as an actor between 1956 and 1964, during which he adopted the name Paul Bailey. Bailey began to pursue writing in between acting jobs, and his first novel, At the Jerusalem, was published in 1967. The book, set in an old people's home, won a Somerset Maugham Award and an Arts Council Writers' Award. Forster Award in 1974 and in 1978 he won the George Orwell Memorial Prize for his essay "The Limitations of Despair", first published in The Listener magazine.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Paul Bailey (British writer) timeline

  1. He won a scholarship to the Central School of Speech and Drama in 1953 and worked as an actor between 1956 and 1964, during which he adopted the name Paul Bailey.
  2. Bailey began to pursue writing in between acting jobs, and his first novel, At the Jerusalem, was published in 1967.
  3. Forster Award in 1974 and in 1978 he won the George Orwell Memorial Prize for his essay "The Limitations of Despair", first published in The Listener magazine.

The world when Paul Bailey (British writer) was born

Paul Bailey (British writer) was born in 1937. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1937

  • #1 song"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" – Ella Fitzgerald
  • Top movieSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs
  • Best-selling bookOf Mice and Men – John Steinbeck

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentJoe Louis becomes heavyweight champion
  • Top headlineHindenburg zeppelin explodes in New Jersey
  • Technology milestoneGolden Gate Bridge opens in San Francisco
  • Defining fadSwing music
  • Notable inventionShopping cart
  • World population2.30 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • U.S. population128.8M

1937 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Paul Bailey (British writer)'s birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19372026
Gas$0.20$3.45/gal
Average home$5,200$435,000
Average income$3,000$67,500
Minimum wage$0.25$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population128.8M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.