Born in 1930, in the fashionable Rosedale district of Toronto, Findley wanted to be an artist, studying both dance and acting. It was while in London, England as part of the cast of The Matchmaker that the young actor was convinced that his true vocation was as a writer.
Back in Canada, Findley wrote scripts for film, radio, and television, including the CBC’s highly acclaimed historical docu-drama, The National Dream. The mini-series earned Findley and his writing partner, William Whitehead, an ACTRA award.
When Findley’s third book, The Wars, hit the shelves in 1977, it gave him both recognition as a major Canadian writer and the Governor General’s Literature Award. Based partly on the wartime correspondence of his Uncle Thomas, the book explores many of the obsessions that colour all his writing: violence, loneliness, a concern for animal rights, and the survival of the individual in a world of madness.
Findley believed that a writer has a responsibility to speak out about what is wrong with society, and was active in the Canadian writing community, helping to found the Writers’ Union of Canada and serving as the president of the Canadian chapter of P.E.N. International.
The author acted out his complex life and passion in the 1992 National Film Board of Canada production, Timothy Findley: Anatomy of a Writer.
Findley’s impressive body of work includes 10 novels, a memoir, three collections of short stories, plays, and screenplays including the 1981 movie version of The Wars. He has also received numerous awards and honours including the Officer of the Order of Canada.
