FREDERICK Forsyth, the author of The Day of The Jackal, has died at the age of 86 after a brief illness, his literary agents Curtis Brown said.
The best-selling author was surrounded by his family as he died at home on Monday morning, the firm added.
Arthur Edwards / The SunFrederick Forsyth died at home after a brief illness[/caption]
GettyForsyth made his name with thrillers such as The Odessa File[/caption]
Arthur Edwards / The SunThe author wrote over 25 books[/caption]
Jonathan Lloyd, his agent, said: “We mourn the passing of one of the world’s greatest thriller writers.
“Only a few weeks ago I sat with him as we watched a new and moving documentary of his life – In My Own Words, to be released later this year on BBC1 – and was reminded of an extraordinary life, well lived.
“After serving as one of the youngest ever RAF pilots, he turned to journalism, using his gift for languages in German, French and Russian to become a foreign correspondent in Biafra.
“Appalled at what he saw and using his experience during a stint as a secret service agent, he wrote his first and perhaps most famous novel, The Day of the Jackal (1972), and instantly became a global bestselling author.
“He went on to write more than 25 books (many of which were made into films) that have sold over 75 million copies.
“He will be greatly missed by his family, his friends, all of us at Curtis Brown and of course his millions of fans around the world – though his books will of course live on forever.”
Tributes for the much-loved author have begun pouring in with his publisher, Bill Scott-Kerr calling his time spent with Frederick “one of the great pleasures of my professional life”.
Born in Ashford, Kent in 1938, Frederick flew fighter jets whilst completing his national service before turning to a career in journalism.
After just a short period working at the news agency Reuters, he got his lucky break and was sent to Paris.
It was during this time that he made his name getting the inside scoop following Charles de Gaulle’s assassination.
He then had a brief stint in Germany before moving to the BBC in 1967 where he was sent to Nigeria to cover the Biafran war.
His adventures as a journalist soon became the inspiration for his thriller novels, such as The Odessa File which tells the story of a young German reporter on the hung for a Nazi war criminal.
Here began a sprawling career in fiction writing, seeing Frederick amass numerous accolades and praise for his work along the way.
Over the course of his life, he wrote more than 25 books that have sold a staggering 75 million copies.
But despite his rolling literary success, the author admitted on several occasions he had lost interest in the work.
In 2018, following the launch of the novel The Fox, he told The Times: “The interest has gone”.
He added: “I’ve got three unused typewriters in a cupboard at home,” he said, “enough to see me out.”
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