Len Deighton was born in London in 1929 and is considered one of the most important British espionage writers. He has written more than thirty books that range from historical fiction, dystopian alternative fiction, and brilliant nonfiction on the Second World War. He served in the Royal Air Force, attached to the Special Investigation Branch. He then attended art school and later worked as an illustrator and photographer. In 1960 he went to France, where he wrote his first book, The Ipcress File, which became an immediate and spectacular success. Since then he has published numerous books of fiction and nonfiction, all garnering international acclaim. Several of his books have been adapted for film and radio, including The Ipcress File, Funeral in Berlin, and Spy Story. In 1988 Granada Television produced the miniseries Game, Set and Match based on his trilogy of the same name, and in 1995 BBC Radio 4 broadcast a real-time dramatization of his 1970 novel Bomber.
