Richard Willian Osborne Spender, also known as Dicky Spender, ^[1] was a British poet and solider in the British Army during The Second World War. He was killed in action at the Battle of Sedjenane whilst leading a charge against a German machine gun position. He was recognised as a poet during his life and has been celebrated posthumously. ^[2]

Spencer was born in Hereford, the youngest of four children, and son of Frank Osborne Spender and Elizabeth Ann Spender, of Letchworth. His family briefly lived in London before moving to Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire where Spencer attended King Edward VI School from 1930 to 1940, where he was Captain of School. ^[3] He was accepted to read Modern History at St Catherine's College, Oxford, but instead decided to enlist in the British Army. ^[4]

By the time of his death at age 21, Spender was already a well regarded and published poet, his poems appearing in publications including The Times Literary Supplement, The Observer, Punch, Country Life, and John O' London's Weekly.

He was described once by the Daily Telegraph as the Rupert Brooke of the Second World War, and three collections of his poetry were published as books by Sidgwick and Jackson. ^[5]

Because of his connection to King Edward VI School in Stratford, when the house system at the school was reformed into four houses in 2000, it was decided that one should be named after Spender, with the colour purple.

Opened in 2017, a £2.2 million building housing the new school library as well as English and Computer science departments was named in his honour. ^[6]