Famous Scots
- Alistair Maclean (1922-1987)
Born in Glasgow, Alistair Maclean was brought up in Inverness where his Gaelic-speaking father was a minister. He served in the navy during WW2 and became a school teacher on his return to "civvy street".
He took up writing to supplement his income and in 1954 he won a short story competition in the Glasgow Herald newspaper. This resulted in a commission from Collins the publisher and the resulting "HMS Ulysses" in 1955 was an instant success. But it was only after his second novel, "The Guns of Navaronne" reached the best seller list too that he gave up teaching.
He later moved to Switzerland where he continued to write successful action-packed stories such as "Ice Station Zebra" and "Fear is the Key". He also produced biographies of Captain Cook and T E Lawrence. Over 200 million copies of his books have been sold and many of his stories have been made into successful films.
Return to the Index of Famous Scots
Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
