Charlie in 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' was supposed to be black, Roald Dahl's widow says

Felicity Dahl, the widow of English children's book author Roald Dahl, said in a recent BBC Radiointerview that the protagonist of her late husband's 1964 book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was originally supposed to be black."His first Charlie that he wrote about was a little black boy," Felicity Dahl said.Roald Dahl's biographer,Donald Sturrock, also spoke in the interview. He said Dahl was dissuaded from the idea by his agent at the time."It was his agent who thought it was a bad idea, when the book was first published, to have a black hero,"Sturrock said. "She said, 'People would ask why.'"Felicity Dahl added that it was a "great pity" her husband madeCharlie Bucket a white child, which is how the character wouldgo on to appear in the book's two screen adaptations, "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" (1971) and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (2005).She suggested that a new adaptation featuring a black protagonist, as her husband intended it, would be "wonderful."Watch a segment of theinterview below:Roald Dahl originally wanted Charlie from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to be black #r4today pic.twitter.com/h2P4NkI78f' BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) September 13, 2017SEE ALSO:The 24 best movies of summer 2017, according to criticsJoin the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Less than a quarter of people upgraded their smartphones last year 'which could mean huge sales this year
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