1. Charles William Donaldson was a British satirist, writer, playboy and, under the pseudonym of Henry Root, author of The Henry Root Letters.
15 Facts About William Donaldson
1. 2.
Son of Charles Glen Donaldson and Elizabeth, Donaldson enjoyed a privileged upbringing in Sunningdale, Berkshire.
3.
William Donaldson's father was Managing Director of the Glasgow-based family shipping line, Donaldson Line, which until its sale in the early 1960s, was one of the largest passenger lines in the world.
4.
William Donaldson was educated at Winchester College and Magdalene College, Cambridge.
5.
William Donaldson spent some money supporting young writers such as his contemporaries Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath.
6.
William Donaldson completed his National Service in the Royal Navy in the late 1950s, reaching the rank of Sub-Lieutenant.
7.
On his return to civilian life, Donaldson became associated with the set surrounding Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, and worked as a theatrical producer.
8.
William Donaldson lived at 139 Elm Park Mansions on Park Walk, Chelsea, London SW10, from which address all the Root letters were sent.
9.
The phenomenal success of the Henry Root books, especially the first, enabled William Donaldson to resume his earlier chaotic lifestyle, and in the mid-1980s he began using crack cocaine.
10.
William Donaldson continued its use for more than a decade, but insisted he was not addicted.
11.
William Donaldson wrote under other names, including Dr Kit Bryson, Jean-Luc Legris, and Selina Fitzherbert, Talbot Church, and Liz Reed.
12.
William Donaldson married Sonia Avory in 1957 and they had a son named Charlie.
13.
William Donaldson left her for Jacki Ellis, then the wife of Jeffrey Bernard, but in due course she left him.
14.
William Donaldson left Miles for Simon, whom he described as "the answer to any sane man's prayers; funny, quick, erotic, extravagantly talented", but this did not prevent him from jilting her while they were engaged and returning to Miles.
15.
In 1968, William Donaldson inherited another fortune and married Claire Gordon.