H. C. McNeile

Sapper was born Herman McNeile in 1888 in Bodmin, Cornwall. He fought with the Royal Engineers in the First World War and was awarded the Military Cross for bravery. His war stories were published in the Daily Mail and were immensely popular - a collection of them selling 200,000 copies in a year. The first Bulldog Drummond adventure was published in 1920 and was an instant hit. He went on to write 9 more in the series, which spawned 24 films, in addition to radio adaptations, and inspired more. He died in 1937.