Michael Gilbert began to study law at London University but was unable to finish due to financial concerns.
15 Facts About Michael Gilbert
1.
2.
Michael Gilbert escaped after the Italian surrender later that year, their escape involving a 500-mile journey south to reach the Allied lines.
3.
Michael Gilbert's writing career spanned the years 1947 to 1999, with his final work being Over and Out.
4.
Unlike many other fiction writers of the mystery and crime genre, Michael Gilbert did not make use of a single recurring character.
5.
Michael Gilbert's works did include characters that would appear irregularly: Inspector Hazlerigg; Inspector Petrella; Chief Superintendent Morrissey; Detective Chief Inspector Mercer, Mr Calder and Mr Behrens.
6.
Michael Gilbert was known for writing only during his five-times-a-week commute by train between his home in Kent and Lincoln's Inn.
7.
Michael Gilbert said that doing so allowed him to "carry out a full and normal day's work as a solicitor, and to devote the evenings and weekends to my family".
8.
Michael Gilbert wrote 500 words a day during the 50-minute morning train trip, preferring "a bit of hustle and bustle" to silence while writing.
9.
Some of Michael Gilbert's novels were set in a boys' boarding school.
10.
Michael Gilbert apparently had an abiding interest in, and deep knowledge of, music.
11.
Michael Gilbert occasionally uses musical references to indicate a sudden change of direction in his present story.
12.
Michael Gilbert wrote about a sordid world from the perspective of a gentleman.
13.
Michael Gilbert married Roberta Mary Marsden in 1947; together the couple had two sons and five daughters.
14.
Michael Gilbert died at the age of 93 on 8 February 2006 at his home in Luddesdown, Gravesend, Kent.
15.
Michael Gilbert was survived by Roberta, his wife of nearly sixty years, and all of their children.