Roald Dahl Museum to display sign apologising for 'undeniable and indelible' racism of author

A sign acknowledging his antisemitic views is set be displayed at the entrance to the venue.

It comes after his legacy was scrutinised when it emerged in February that a publisher had edited parts of his work now deemed insensitive.

Hundreds of changes were made to Dahl’s books by Puffin UK to minimise offence including references to mental health, violence, gender and race.

Relatives of Dahl apologised in 2020 for his antagonism of Jewish people in a statement which apologised for the “lasting and understandable hurt” that his comments had caused.

They added: “Those prejudiced remarks are incomprehensible to us and stand in marked contrast to the man we knew and to the values at the heart of Roald Dahl’s stories, which have positively impacted young people for generations.

"We hope that, just as he did at his best, at his absolute worst Roald Dahl can help remind us of the lasting impact of words.”

His antisemitic comments included: “There is a trait in the Jewish character that does provoke animosity, maybe it’s a kind of lack of generosity towards non-Jews."

During an interview with the New Statesman in 1983 he added: "I mean, there’s always a reason why anti-anything crops up anywhere."

In an interview with The Independent in 1990, he said: “I’m certainly anti-Israeli, and I’ve become antisemitic in as much as that you get a Jewish person in another country like England strongly supporting Zionism."

He said "I think they should see both sides," before adding that all publishers were Jewish and that they “control the media”.

The Roald Dahl museum said it stood by the family’s apology and was committed to anti-racism.

Since 2021, it has been working with Jewish groups, including the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council.

The museum say Dahl’s statements will not be repeated publicly, but would keep a record of his words in the museum’s collection “so it is not forgotten”.

Jewish groups have called for Netflix, which acquired the rights to Dahl’s catalogue, to make a documentary focusing on his discrimination in a bid not to clear it from history.