Roald Dahl came up with words such as "snozzcumber" and "gobblefunk" after being inspired by his wife’s stroke, his doctor has revealed.

The author, who died in 1990, also drew on side effects of the condition for his character the BFG and made him get his words out “just like" a stroke patient, Professor Tom Solomon said.

Dahl’s wife, American actress Patricia Neal, suffered multiple strokes while bathing her eldest daughter in 1965. The author later became an active campaigner and played a part in creating The Stroke Association.