Frederick Forsyth was an English novelist and journalist known for thrillers such as The Day of the Jackal (1971), The Odessa File (1972) and The Fourth Protocol (1984). He won the Edgar Allan Poe Award in 1972 and received the Crime Writers’ Association Cartier Diamond Dagger in 2012. His books sold millions of copies, and many were adapted for film.
Frederick Forsyth was born in Ashford, Kent, on 25 August 1938. He grew up as an only child and read adventure stories to ease long periods of loneliness. He attended Tonbridge School, where he excelled in foreign languages.
At seventeen, he went to Spain after reading Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon. He later spent five months at the University of Granada. He returned to Britain to complete National Service with the Royal Air Force. He lied about his age to fly de Havilland Vampire jets and became a pilot officer in 1956. After service, he moved to the Eastern Daily Press in 1958 and then to Reuters in 1961.
Posted to Paris, he covered stories linked to the Organisation de l’Armée Secrète and attempts to kill President de Gaulle. He joined the BBC in 1965 as an assistant diplomatic correspondent. In 1967, he was sent to Nigeria to report on the Biafran War. When the BBC refused to extend his stay, he said, “I smelt news management. I don’t like news management.” He resigned and returned as a freelance reporter for two years. He wrote The Biafra Story (1969) and later said he also informed MI6, unpaid, during this period.
His first major novel, The Day of the Jackal (1971), was written “skint, stony broke” and in only 35 days. It became an international bestseller and was adapted into a film. He followed it with The Odessa File (1972) and The Dogs of War (1974), both later adapted for cinema. The Shepherd (1975) and The Devil’s Alternative (1979) expanded his range.
In 1982, he published No Comebacks, followed by The Fourth Protocol (1984), adapted in 1987 with Michael Caine and Pierce Brosnan.
His later works included The Negotiator (1989), The Deceiver (1991), The Fist of God (1994), Icon (1996) and The Phantom of Manhattan (1999). He returned to thrillers with The Veteran (2001), Avenger (2003), The Afghan (2006), The Cobra (2010) and The Kill List (2013). His eighteenth novel, The Fox (2018), was a spy story about a gifted hacker.
Frederick Forsyth was appointed CBE in 1997. He continued to write commentary for newspapers and broadcast programmes.
He died in 2025 at the age of 86.
Frederick Forsyth was born in Ashford, Kent, on 25 August 1938. He grew up as an only child and read adventure stories to ease long periods of loneliness. He attended Tonbridge School, where he excelled in foreign languages.
At seventeen, he went to Spain after reading Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon. He later spent five months at the University of Granada. He returned to Britain to complete National Service with the Royal Air Force. He lied about his age to fly de Havilland Vampire jets and became a pilot officer in 1956. After service, he moved to the Eastern Daily Press in 1958 and then to Reuters in 1961.
Posted to Paris, he covered stories linked to the Organisation de l’Armée Secrète and attempts to kill President de Gaulle. He joined the BBC in 1965 as an assistant diplomatic correspondent. In 1967, he was sent to Nigeria to report on the Biafran War. When the BBC refused to extend his stay, he said, “I smelt news management. I don’t like news management.” He resigned and returned as a freelance reporter for two years. He wrote The Biafra Story (1969) and later said he also informed MI6, unpaid, during this period.
His first major novel, The Day of the Jackal (1971), was written “skint, stony broke” and in only 35 days. It became an international bestseller and was adapted into a film. He followed it with The Odessa File (1972) and The Dogs of War (1974), both later adapted for cinema. The Shepherd (1975) and The Devil’s Alternative (1979) expanded his range.
In 1982, he published No Comebacks, followed by The Fourth Protocol (1984), adapted in 1987 with Michael Caine and Pierce Brosnan.
His later works included The Negotiator (1989), The Deceiver (1991), The Fist of God (1994), Icon (1996) and The Phantom of Manhattan (1999). He returned to thrillers with The Veteran (2001), Avenger (2003), The Afghan (2006), The Cobra (2010) and The Kill List (2013). His eighteenth novel, The Fox (2018), was a spy story about a gifted hacker.
Frederick Forsyth was appointed CBE in 1997. He continued to write commentary for newspapers and broadcast programmes.
He died in 2025 at the age of 86.
years of life: 25 August 1938 – 9 June 2025
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