Robert Sheckley (1928-2005) was an American science-fiction writer whose utterly original work is noted for its merging of quick wit, philosophical musing and dark satire. His many story collections and novels include Untouched By Human Hands (1954) and Dimension of Miracles (1968). In 2001, he was made Author Emeritus by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

Arthur C. Clarke was born in Minehead in 1917. During the Second World War he served as an RAF radar instructor, rising to the rank of Flight-Lieutenant.

After the war he won a BSc in physics and mathematics with first class honours from King's College, London. One of the most respected of all science-fiction writers, he also won the Kalinga Prize, the Aviation Space-Writers Prize,and the Westinghouse Science Writing Prize.

He also shared an OSCAR nomination with Stanley Kubrick for the screenplay of 2001: A Space Odyssey, which was based on his story, 'The Sentinel'. He lived in Sri Lanka from 1956 until his death in 2008.