Dannie Abse, CBE (born Daniel Abse on 22 September 1923 in Cardiff, Wales; died on 28 September 2014[1] in Golders Green, London) was a British author and poet.
Dannie Abse grew up in his Jewish family with his brothers Leo Abse (1917–2008; lawyer, politician, author) and Wilfried Abse (1915–2005; psychoanalyst), who were about ten years older than him.[2] After successfully completing school in his hometown, he studied medicine at the University of Wales College of Medicine, the Westminster Hospital Medical School and at King’s College London. He received his doctorate in 1950. From 1954 to 1989 he worked in the breast clinic of the Central Medical Establishment in London. In 1989 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Wales.
In 1954, his autobiography, Ash on a Young Man’s Sleeve, was published, in which he recounted his childhood experiences. He received the Welsh Arts Council Award and the Cholmondeley Award in 1985. Abse was a member of the British Poetry Society and had been a member of the Royal Society of Literature since 1983. Abse wrote several volumes of poetry—his first, After Every Green Thing, in 1949—as well as novels, plays, and essays. He was awarded the Commander’s Cross of the Order of the British Empire in the 2012 New Year Honours List.
Abse was married to art historian Joan Abse, née Mercer (1923–2005), with whom he had three children. She died in a car accident in which Dannie Abse broke a rib.
Dannie Abse was a lifelong fan of Cardiff City Football Club. He saw the first match in 1934; he references football in many of his works.