Hilary Mary Thompson was born on 6 July 1952 in Glossop, Derbyshire, the eldest of three children, with two younger brothers, and raised as a Roman Catholic in the mill village of Hadfield, where she attended St Charles See more

Mantel's first novel, Every Day Is Mother's Day, was published in 1985, and its sequel, Vacant Possession, a year later. After returning to England, she became the film critic of See more

During her university years, Mantel identified as a socialist, and was a member of the Young Communist League.
Comments on royalty See more

Literary prizes
• 1987 The Spectator''s Shiva Naipaul Prize for travel writing for Last Morning in Al Hamra See more

Mantel married Gerald McEwen in 1973. They divorced in 1981 but remarried in 1982. McEwen gave up geology to manage his wife's business. They lived in Budleigh Salterton See more

Novels
• "Every Day Is Mother's Day" series:
• Eight Months on Ghazzah Street: Viking Press, 1988 (ISBN 0-8050-5203-8) See more

• Official website
• Hilary Mantel Papers — Huntington Library
• Hilary Mantel. Royal Bodies 2013 February 21 · See more