Perceval Gibbon was an author and journalist, serving for the Rand Daily Mail in South Africa, as well as for other publications. He is best remembered for his short stories, the best of which often contained an ironic twist at the end.

He was born in Trelech

Trelech

Trelech is a village in Carmarthenshire, south-west Wales.Modern Trelech has one pub and a shop and Post Office which is now closed, based on its very rural and lightly populated status....

, Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...

, Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

, and was educated in the Moravian School, in Koenigsfeld of Baden, Germany. Gibbon worked as a merchant mariner, traveling in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. Perceval Gibbon was a friend to the writer Joseph Conrad, and dedicated his book "Flower o' the Peach" to Joseph Conrad and Jessie Conrad.

Gibbon's early works were influenced by his extensive travels throughout Europe, America, and Africa.

During World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 he was a war correspondent

War correspondent

A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories firsthand from a war zone. In the 19th century they were also called Special Correspondents.-Methods:...

 with the Italian Army from 1917-1918. In 1918-1919, Perceval Gibbon was a Major in the British Royal Marines

Royal Marines

The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...

.

In 2007 the work "Margaret Harding" was adapted into a screenplay by Meg Rickards who directed the mini-series and the made-for-TV feature film for SABC.

Selected works

• African Items, 1903 (verse)
• Souls In Bondage, 1904
• Salvator, 1905
• Vrouw Grobelaar's Leading Cases, 1905 (stories)
• Flower o' the Peach, 1911
• The Adventures Of Miss Gregory, 1911 (stories)
• Margaret Harding, 1912
• The Triumph of the Royal Navy: Official Record of the Surrender of the German Fleet, 1918, Hodder & Stoughton, 48pp.
• The Dark Places, 1926 (stories)

External links

• Perceval Gibbon Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
  Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
  The Harry Ransom Center is a library and archive at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the United States and Europe. The Ransom Center houses 36 million literary manuscripts, 1 million rare books, 5 million photographs, and more...
  
  
• Film based on "Margaret Harding"
• Film based on "Margaret Harding"
• Short Stories by Perceval Gibbon at manybooks.net