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Photo: SWNS
A statement on the website of his agents A P Watt said he had been in poor health for several years and died in his sleep. He was awarded an OBE a year ago for services to children's literature.
Dick King-Smith grew up in Gloucestershire and worked for 20 years as a farmer before being forced to quit.
With a wife and three children to support, he tried several jobs - including a short spell as a travelling salesman and a longer one in a shoe factory - before retraining as a primary school teacher.
That job allowed him time to write, and realising how much his young pupils enjoyed animal stories he found himself drawing on his experiences for inspiration.
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