Roald Dahl RAF pilots blamed the gremlins for all the problems with the aircraft. While at the British Embassy in Washington, Dahl sent a copy to the First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt who read it to her grandchildren, and the book was commissioned by Walt Disney for a film that was never made. Dahl went on to create some of the best-loved children's stories of the 20th century, such as "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", "Matilda", "James and the Giant Peach", "The Witches", "Fantastic Mr Fox", "The BFG", "The Twits" and "George's Marvellous Medicine". Dahl also had a successful parallel career as the
Roald Dahl the British made plans to round up the hundreds of Germans living in Dar-es-Salaam. Dahl was commissioned as a lieutenant into the King's African Rifles, commanding a platoon of Askari men, indigenous troops who were serving in the colonial army. In November 1939, Dahl joined the Royal Air Force as an aircraftman with service number 774022. After a car journey from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi, he was accepted for flight training with sixteen other men; only three others of these survived the war. With seven hours and 40 minutes experience in a De Havilland Tiger Moth, he flew solo;