Who is Robert Aickman?

Robert Fordyce Aickman (27 June 1914 – 26 February 1981) was an English writer and conservationist. As a conservationist, he co-founded the Inland Waterways Association, a group which has preserved from destruction and restored England’s inland canal system.

Is it true that Robert Aickman wrote some of the strangest stories?

It’s true that Robert Aickman wrote several volumes’ worth of “strange stories,” many of them very good. It’s also true that “Ringing the Changes,” from 1964’s Dark Entries: Curious and Macabre Ghost Stories, is probably the best known, or the “most anthologized,” or however people like to subtly dismiss anything with a certain profile.

Why did Aickman and Rolt disagree on policy?

Aickman began to have policy disagreements with Rolt. Aickman wanted to campaign to keep all of the waterways open, whereas Rolt had sympathies with the traditional canal workers and believed it necessary to prioritise which canals could be kept open.

What did John Aickman think of children?

Of Aickman’s character, Elizabeth Jane Howard said in a 2011 interview at the Tartarus Press blog, that he “hated children” and of his childhood that “He told me about his childhood but I think he exaggerated that.