Background

Martin Fido was born on October 18, 1939 in Penzance, Cornwall, United Kingdom, in the family of Austin Harry and Enid Mary (Hobrough) Fido.

Education

Martin Fido studied at Lincoln College in Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, where he received Bachelor of Arts in 1961, and then earned Bachelor of Letters in 1966.

Career

After leaving Balliol College in Oxford in 1966, where he had been a junior research fellow in English, he went to the University of Leeds where he lectured in English until 1973. In 1971 he went to Michigan State University in the USA where he was a visiting associate professor for a year, and in 1973 he became a reader in English Literature and head of the English department at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados. In the West Indies he was active in theatre and educational broadcasting.

In 1983 Martin returned to England and became a freelance writer and broadcaster, specialising in true crime. He broadcast a weekly radio programme called "Murder After Midnight" on London's LBC Radio from 1987 to 2001, some of which were produced and released commercially on cassette and CD. Aside from his many true crime books he has also written illustrated biographies of Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare, Rudyard Kipling and Oscar Wilde, and books on Agatha Christie, and Sherlock Holmes.

Martin was also a contributor of reviews to periodicals, including the Times Educational Supplement, Times Literary Supplement, Oxford Review, and Oxford Magazine.

Achievements

• Martin is famous for his many books, including "The Crimes", "Detection and Death of Jack the Ripper", "The Official Encyclopedia of Scotland Yard", "Serial Killers", and "The Murder Guide to London." He is also one of the authors of "The complete Jack the Ripper A to Z."

Works

More photos

• book

  • Crimes, Detection and Death of Jack the Ripper 1994
  • The World of Sherlock Holmes: The Facts and Fiction Behind the World's Greatest Detective 2018
  • The Complete Jack the Ripper A to Z 2010
  • The Chronicle of Crime: The Most Infamous Crimes of Modern History 2003
  • The World of Charles Dickens: The Life, Times and Works of the Great Victorian Novelist 2012
  • Jack the Ripper A to Z 1994
  • The World of Agatha Christie: The Facts and Fiction of the World's Greatest Crime Writer 2012
  • Sherlock: The facts & fiction behind the world's most famous detective 2015
  • True Crime: The Infamous Villains of Modern History and Their Hideous Crimes 2013
  • World Of Sherlock Holmes 1998
  • True Crime: The Infamous Villains of Modern History and Their Hideous Crimes 2010

Religion

Martoin is a Quaker.

Politics

Martin describes his political views as “unattached Left.”

Interests

• walking tours, religion, theology

• Music & Bands

  chamber music

Connections

On June 21, 1961, Martin married Judith Mary Spicer, with whom he divorced in 1972. Then he married Norma Elaine Wilson on December 16, 1972, but they also broke up in 1984. Finally, he married a retired executive chef Karen Lynn Sandel on December 17, 1994. He is the father of three children, Rebecca Mary, Abigail Joanna, and Austin Charles.

Father:

Austin Harry Fido

Mother:

Enid Mary (Hobrough) Fido

spouse 1st:

Judith Mary Spicer

spouse 2nd:

Norma Elaine Wilson

spouse 3rd:

Karen Lynn Sandel

Daughter:

Rebecca Mary

Daughter:

Abigail Joanna

Son:

Austin Charles

Friend:

Paul Savory