James Bond's creator, Ian Lancaster Fleming, was born in 1908. His father died a hero in the First World War when Ian was almost nine. Ian's mother, Evelyn, inherited his father's large estates but under a trust which cut her out should she ever re-marry.

Ian attended Eton but left before graduating as a result of an incident involving a girl. He then attended Sandhurst military academy but again left before graduating, this time as a result of being caught out after curfew.

After failing to pass the exams to enter the foreign service, Ian began a career as a journalist with Reuters. In 1933, he left Reuters to join a bank. In 1939, he undertook an assignment for the Times to report on a trade mission to the Soviet Union. It would seem that he was actually acting as a spy for the Foreign Office.

In May 1939, Fleming joined Naval Intelligence, where he eventually became a Commander and assistant to Britain's top spy master, Admiral John Godfrey. During the War, Fleming was in charge of a commando unit which he sent on intelligence missions behind German lines (while he stayed in London).

After the War, Fleming joined Kemsley newspapers and built a home in Jamaica where he spent most of the English winter.

In 1952, Fleming (now 44) became engaged to Lady Anne Rothermore. While waiting in Jamaica for her divorce to become final, he wrote his first novel, Casino Royale. During the next twelve years, he wrote 14 James Bond novels as well as other books and a regular Sunday Times column.

From the late 1950s, Fleming's health declined. He died in 1964 at the age of 56.