Stephen Hawking’s father worried his son ‘does not study much’, diaries reveal

Exclusive: New biography uncovers Frank Hawking’s papers in which he lamented that his son had ‘little initiative’ In exploring the physics and geometry of the universe, Stephen Hawking became a world-renowned pioneer of black hole theory, writing the bestselling book A Brief History of Time, which has sold more than 13m copies, and inspiring people to “look up at the stars and not down at your feet”. But, during Hawking’s student years and as he approached adulthood, his father was deeply concerned about how his son would turn out. Frank Hawking lamented that “he hangs round the house with little initiative and does not study much”, according to previously unknown diaries that he had written partly in code. Those diaries are among family papers and photographs to which a Costa award-winning biographer and physicist has been given unprecedented access. In September, Graham Farmelo will publish the first definitive biography authorised by the Stephen Hawking estate, the publisher John Murray will announce this week. As part of his research, Farmelo has been shown previously unknown material ranging from the diaries of Hawking’s father to the letters and journals of