Roger May

The Toff and the Terrified Taxman Roger May

It is well known that Richard Rollison, alias The Toff, has a dislike of both form filling and paying taxes. However, a query about an assessment on this one occasion leads to much more than he was expecting. It all starts when a young lady is knocked down by a car outside the accountant's office. It ends with murder, people smuggling and a great deal more...

Born in Surrey, England in 1908 into a poor family in which there were nine children, John Creasey grew up to be a true master story teller and international sensation. His more than 600 crime, mystery and thriller titles have now sold 80 million copies in 25 languages. These include many popular series such as Gideon of Scotland Yard, The Toff, Dr Palfrey and The Baron. Creasey had a strong social conscience, and stood for Parliament several times, along with founding the One Party Alliance which promoted the idea of government by a coalition of the best minds from across the political spectrum. He was also involved with the National Savings movement; United Europe; various road safety campaigns, and famine relief. He founded the British Crime Writers' Association, which to this day celebrates outstanding crime writing. The Mystery Writers of America bestowed upon him the Edgar Award for best novel and then in 1969 the ultimate Grand Master Award. John Creasey's stories are as compelling today as ever, with one of the major factors in his success being the ability to portray characters as living - his undoubted talent being to understand and observe accurately human behaviour.