Background information for applicants
This version: December 2015
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre opened to great acclaim on 11 June 2005 and has
so far welcomed over 580,000 visitors. Half term week in February 2015 has proven to be our
busiest ever, and we are looking forward to ‘Roald Dahl 100’, a year-long celebration of the
centenary of his birth in 2016.
Governance and structure
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre is a charitable company, limited by guarantee and,
as a registered charity, is governed by its memorandum and articles of association. The
directors of the charitable company are its trustees for the purpose of charity law. The Roald
Dahl Centre (Trading) Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of the main charity which
covenants its profits to the main charity. The shop and special events not directly related to
the charity’s objectives are run through the trading company. Café Twit is run by an external
contractor.
The Museum is part of the larger Roald Dahl group. We have a sister charity, Roald Dahl’s
Marvellous Children’s Charity, who help seriously ill children and their families to brave the
unknown, so they can enjoy a more marvellous life together. We also have strong links with
the Roald Dahl Literary Estate LLP, the management company that manages the copyrights
of Roald Dahl’s works, and runs www.roalddahl.com. Luke Kelly (Roald Dahl’s grandson) is
the Managing Director of the Roald Dahl Literary Estate and is a Trustee of the Museum and
Director of the Museum Trading Company.
Roald Dahl’s widow, Felicity Dahl (known as Liccy – pronounced ‘Lissy’) founded the Museum
and remains our President, and his third daughter, Ophelia Dahl, is Vice-President. The rest
of Roald Dahl’s family are not directly involved in the life of the Museum.
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre, along with Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's
Charity are able to bid to the Roald Dahl Charitable Trust (RDCT) for a share of 10% of all
royalties (net of commission) generated by Roald Dahl's works. This is a vital addition to our
earned income and represents generous support from the entire Dahl family.
The Museum
Our two biographical galleries tell the story of Roald Dahl’s life and work.
Boy gallery - with giant chocolate doors - covers his childhood and schooldays, telling the
story of ‘The Great Mouse Plot’ and features changing displays from the Roald Dahl archive.
Roald Dahl’s career as a writer arguably began with the many letters he sent home from
boarding school, in which he told tales that later grew into stories – including testing chocolate
for Cadbury’s!
Solo gallery covers his later life, including time in Africa with Shell and in the RAF. This gallery
was completely refurbished in 2012. The centrepiece of Solo is Roald Dahl’s Writing Hut,
complete with all its original contents and furnishings. Visitors can see the “little nest” exactly
as he had it set up, with all the extraordinary and fascinating objects he kept at hand for
contemplation and inspiration. Fantabulous interactive exhibits and displays surrounding the
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre | 81-83 High Street | Great Missenden | Bucks | HP16 0AL
T: 01494 892192 | F: 01494 892191 | www.roalddahl.com/museum
Registered charity number 1085853. A company limited by guarantee number 4178505.
This version: December 2015
Writing Hut throw light on the creative process: how Roald Dahl became a writer, and what
real-life experiences inspired him – the ‘stories behind the stories’.
The archive
Roald Dahl’s archive of manuscripts, letters and photographs is one of the most complete
literary archives of the twentieth century. It includes drafts of every major work, from the
handwritten beginnings to the later typed versions – often with sections of revised text
patched on using sticky tape. These manuscripts provide a fascinating insight into the
evolution of the writer’s work. Some of his best-loved stories, such as Charlie and the
Chocolate Factory and Matilda, changed very considerably. The hero of The BFG was,
originally, not a girl called Sophie but a little boy named Jody. Long before there was a giant
peach, there was a giant cherry.
Roald Dahl’s ideas can be traced back even further using his ‘Ideas Books’ where he jotted
down the seeds of future stories, revisiting them later – often years later. These books show
Roald Dahl to have been meticulous – ticking used ideas and helpfully noting which story they
grew into, whether an adult tale or a children’s story.
The archive gives further insight into Roald Dahl through his correspondence with agents and
editors and through his personal correspondence – most notably his letters to his mother.
Over 900 personal letters survive within the archive. The Museum provides access to this
precious material in the galleries, via our research support service and online at
www.roalddahl.com.
The Story Centre
The Story Centre is full of activities about reading, writing and creativity, building on Roald
Dahl’s work and using it as the beginning of a magical journey for all future authors. The Story
Centre includes a replica of Roald Dahl’s Writing Hut, where our special Hut Talks give
visitors an idea of Roald Dahl’s private, personal writing space, and how the objects around
him sparked into world-famous stories.
Inside there is also an orchard made up of giant artworks by Quentin Blake, Roald Dahl’s
principal illustrator. Fridge door games with magnetic pieces encourage the plotting and replotting of stories. Many of these games derive from techniques used by Roald Dahl and
other leading writers to develop character and plot. The Story Centre boasts original
contributions from many leading authors including Malorie Blackman, Jamila Gavin, Mark
Haddon, Anthony Horowitz, Shirley Hughes, Michael Morpurgo, Philip Pullman, Michael
Rosen, J K Rowling, Jacqueline Wilson and Benjamin Zephaniah, allowing visitors to discover
the similarities and differences in the way these leading talents work.
The Learning programme
Our aim is to inspire a love of creative writing in everyone, so our learning programme draws
on the works of Roald Dahl, the talents of our educators and the unique qualities of the
Museum to welcome over 10,000 schoolchildren each year. In a ninety-minute session,
students learn about Roald Dahl and supercharge their creativity through exploring the
different areas of the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre, combined with a special literacy
session in Miss Honey’s Classroom.
Artist residencies
We work with external agencies such as the Buckinghamshire Schools Improvement Service
to develop outreach programmes and additional services for those who are less likely to
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre | 81-83 High Street | Great Missenden | Bucks | HP16 0AL
Telephone 01494 892192 | roalddahl.com/museum
Registered charity number 1085853. A company limited by guarantee number 4178505. Edited December 2015
access what museums have to offer. Our main strand of work in this area has been the Artist
Residency programme. With past support from the Arts Council and other partners, we have
hosted residencies by writers, animators, a storyteller a composer, a poet and in 2014-15, a
food writer.
The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre | 81-83 High Street | Great Missenden | Bucks | HP16 0AL
Telephone 01494 892192 | roalddahl.com/museum
Registered charity number 1085853. A company limited by guarantee number 4178505. Edited December 2015