Henry Victor Dyson Dyson (1896–1975), generally known as Hugo Dyson and who signed his writings H. V. D. Dyson, was an English academic and a member of the Inklings literary group. He was a committed Christian, and together with J.R.R. Tolkien, he helped persuade C.S. Lewis to convert to Christianity.Dyson taught English at the University of Reading from 1924 until obtaining a fellowship with Merton College, Oxford in 1945. He retired in 1963 but returned as emeritus fellow in 1969, teaching the newly introduced "modern" literature paper. His tutorials were memorable because many of the writers discussed had been personal friends of his.Dyson was not a prolific writer, but the good quality and voluminous quantity of his lectures and general conversation had quite an effect on people. He much preferred talk at Inklings meetings to readings. He was also known to have a distaste for J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Dyson was not alone in his distaste for Tolkien's stories, and eventually Tolkien gave up reading from them to the group altogether. Actually, it seems from the letters of C.S. Lewis that Dyson was considered the most fun-loving of the Inklings, and Warren Lewis liked him best of all..Dyson, an expert on Shakespeare, was asked during the early 1960s to host some televised lectures and plays about the great writer. His easy, relaxed style won him several new friends. This would result in his having a small part in the 1965 film Darling wherein he played the role of Professor Walter Southgate, a major literary character of the age who would die in the film.Hugo Dyson lived at 32 Sandfield Road in the east Oxford suburb of Headington until his death. He is buried in Holywell Cemetery, Oxford.
Hugo Dyson was a fellow of Merton College, Oxford. He was also one of the Inklings, a group which included C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. If any of them were in the process of writing something, they would read what they had to the group for opinions and criticism. However, Dyson disliked Tolkien's stories and often loudly expressed his feelings when Tolkien read early versions. He is recorded at one Inkling gathering as saying "Oh, fuck, not another elf!".
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