The 50 greatest storytellers of all time revealed – do you agree?

The 50 greatest storytellers of all time have been revealed, with Ed Sheeran, Banksy and Eminem outranking Jack Kerouac and John Lennon.

Despite been a pioneer of the Beat Generation and renowned for his method of spontaneous prose Kerouac still couldn’t out-place Castle on the Hill author Sheeran, who ranked in 29th spot.

Imagine and Jealous Guy song-writer John Lennon scraped into the top 50 in 49th place, one spot ahead of Kevin Spacey.

Roald Dahl was named the greatest storyteller of all time, topping the poll of the greatest authors, songwriters, artists and photographers. Visual storytellers including graffiti artist Banksy, Jurassic Park director Steven Spielberg and legendary cartoonist Walt Disney also featured in the top 50.

Canon UK commissioned the research to mark the launch of its 365 Days of Summer competition to find a storyteller to spend a year identifying and living 365 new stories across the globe.

Matthew Searle, Country Director, Canon UK and Ireland said: “You can’t beat a good story, whether it’s words in a book, photographs or film or simply through conversation.

“Storytellers come in many different forms whether it’s through music, writing or photos, and those in this top 50 are responsible for some of the greatest tales of all time.

“Roald Dahl in particular may be well known for his words, but the images which accompanied many of his children’s books have helped to paint the picture for children for generations.

“As technology evolves, stories are now so much more than just the written word and people today have a variety of ways to tell their own story and make sure it lives on.”

TOP 50 GREATEST STORYTELLERS OF ALL TIME                           

1. Roald Dahl
2. Charles Dickens
3. William Shakespeare
4. JK Rowling
5. Steven Spielberg
6. Hans Christian Andersen
7. Lewis Carroll
8. Walt Disney
9. Enid Blyton
10. J.R.R Tolkien
11. David Attenborough
12. Beatrix Potter
13. Stephen King
14. Brothers Grimm
15. HG Wells
16. AA Milne
17. George Orwell
18. CS Lewis
19. Ernest Hemingway
20. Ridley Scott
21. T. S. Eliot
22. James Cameron
23. Quentin Tarantino
24. Morgan Freeman
25. George Lucas
26. Alan Bennett
27. Andrew Lloyd Webber
28. Jacqueline Wilson
29. Ed Sheeran
30. Banksy
31. Eminem
32. Virginia Woolf
33. The Coen Brothers
34. Martin Scorsese
35. Philip K. Dick
36. David Walliams
37. Tom Hanks
38. JD Salinger
39. Louis Theroux
40. Adele
41. Iain M. Banks
42. Samuel Jackson
43. Tom Hardy
44. Stephenie Meyer
45. H. P. Lovecraft
46. E L James
47. Jack Kerouac
48. Prince
49. John Lennon
50. Kevin Spacey