Lucy Dahl Reflects on Her Father’s Early Versions of ‘The BFG’

Disney’s The BFG was adapted from a novel of the same name by author Roald Dahl and follows the story of a young girl who befriends a big, friendly giant. Roald had also penned other classic children’s stories, including James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Matilda, before his passing in 1990.

Ahead of the home video release of The BFG, BackstageOL’s Dave Morales spoke with Roald’s daughter, Lucy Dahl, to talk about her life growing up and hearing her father’s stories before they were published.

“[The BFG] was told to me and my sisters as a bedtime story so it was a little bit different, but the same,” Lucy said. “BFG lived under the apple tree of our orchard. He was our BFG. So when dad did put BFG into a book and he lived in Giant Land, I was a little offended. It felt like he’d lied,” she joked.

“When I went to the set of the film, it was honestly like walking into my imagination when I was a child,” she revealed. “Thank goodness I saw [the film] by myself and not with other people because I cried and I cried and I cried because I felt like I’d spent two hours with my dad.”

She added that her father had “the same sensibility, the same sense of humor” as the BFG.

Disney’s The BFG is currently available on home video.

Watch our interview with Lucy below: