Morgunblaðið 15th August 1969

‘Writer Desmond Bagley: Icelandic setting’.

Undoubtedly, many Icelanders are familiar with the novel Skriðan, (Landslide) which was published last Christmas. The author of this book, the Englishman Desmond Bagley, is currently touring Iceland in search of a plot and ideas for a new story. Bagley arrived in the country with his wife on 22nd July and will stay here until Saturday (16th August).

Bagley has published six books and four have been published in Icelandic, Fjallavirkið (High Citadel), Fellibylur (Wyatt’s Hurricane), Gullkjölurinn (The Golden Keel), and Skriðan (Landslide). He is currently working on a book, that will be set in Antarctica, but will then start working on the book to be set in Iceland.

Desmond Bagley was born in England in 1923, and has had worked in various fields throughout his life. He studied printing, worked in mining, became a journalist and finally began writing books, which have become very popular. Bagley’s books have been translated into 15 languages and there are plans to make films based on some of his stories.

During the interview, Bagley said that Iceland seems a good location, in particular the lava and volcanoes. However, he had no intention to weave the Icelandic ring (Lord of the Rings) into the story, because he had enough of it in England.

Bagley did not want to reveal what the plot would be in the forthcoming novel. “If I were to start explaining the plot, I would not stop until I revealed everything about the course of events, and then the story wouldn’t be exciting anymore”.

From here the couple rwill return to England, where Bagley will continue to work on his book set in Antarctica.

Notes

Image Caption: Writer Desmond Bagley and his wife.