Olivia FitzRoy

Who was Olivia FitzRoy?

Olivia FitzRoy, born Olivia Gwyneth Zoe FitzRoy, was a British author of children's books. She was the granddaughter of the first Viscountess Daventry, raised to the peerage as widow of the Speaker of the House of Commons from 1928 until his death in 1943; her mother was a member of the famous Guinness family. Olivia FitzRoy was one of five sisters.

The family spent their summers in Scotland, the setting of her books. They were there in 1939 when her father, a naval officer, decided that they should remain in Inverewe for the duration of World War II. The area was remote; FitzRoy wrote her first book, Orders to Poach to entertain her two younger sisters, Barbara and the late Amelia. It was published by Collins, as Billy Collins was a friend of the family. The second, Steer by the Stars and the third The House in the Hills, were based in the same location.

FitzRoy carried on writing when she began service in the Women's Royal Naval Service, though she was stationed as far away as Ceylon. After the war, she travelled with the 'Chipperfield Circus', which was the inspiration behind Wagons and Horses; she then went back to live in Scotland.