Dornford Yates
Dornford Yates, the pen name of British author Cecil William Mercer, was born in 1885 in Kent, England. He gained fame primarily through his novels and short stories, which he began publishing after working as a solicitor in London. His literary career took off with the release of his first book, "The Brother of Daphne," in 1914, and he became particularly well-known for two main series featuring the characters Bertram Berry Pleydell and Richard Chandos. The Berry series combines elements of romance and adventure, showcasing the lives of a magistrate and his family, while the Chandos series presents thrilling mysteries and action-packed plots.
Yates's writing was characterized by a witty portrayal of society and a flair for engaging storytelling, making his work popular during his time. After serving in both World Wars, he settled in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), where he continued to write, producing several more works until his death. His legacy includes a diverse body of work that spans nearly fifty years, blending humor, adventure, and intrigue, with recurring characters that enrich his narratives.
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Dornford Yates
Writer
- Born: August 7, 1885
- Birthplace: Upper Walmer, Kent, England
- Died: March 5, 1960
- Place of death: Umtali, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe)
Biography
Dornford Yates, the pseudonym of British novelist Cecil William Mercer, was born in Upper Walmer, Kent, England, in 1885. He is best known under his pseudonym, which he used for all his books and also often used in his private life. His father, a solicitor, moved to London in 1889 for his son to attend Harrow School. In 1904, Yates entered University College, Oxford, where he was active in the Oxford University Dramatic Society. In 1908, he became an assistant to a prominent solicitor who dealt particularly with the criminal underworld of London. In 1909, Yates became solicitor, continuing to work with his mentor and in his spare time writing short stories that were published in Windsor magazine, starting with “Temporary Insanity” in 1910. His first book, The Brother of Daphne (1914), is a collection of these stories.
In 1914, Yates joined the army, serving during World War I. In 1919, he was released from the army, and he married an American woman, Bettine (Amelia) Stokes Edwards. They had one son, Richard. Yates decided not to return to his former work but instead to concentrate on his writing. A collection of his short stories was published in 1920. The family moved to Pau, France, a resort town in the Pyrenees. He and Bettine were divorced in 1933, and in 1934 Yates married Doreen Bowie. They moved to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), in 1941. Yates was recommissioned in the army and served in World War II, attaining the rank of major. After the war, he settled in Umtali, spending the rest of his life in Rhodesia.
Although his most prolific writing had been in the years between the wars, he continued to publish eight more books after 1945. The numerous novels and short stories appeared in a time span of nearly half a century and were consistently popular when they were published. Especially popular were two series, one featuring Bertram Berry Pleydell and the Pleydell family, and the other a mystery/thriller series featuring Richard Chandos.
The Berry books are a combination of sentimental romance and adventure, and light-hearted, witty portrayals of society. Berry is a local magistrate and his brother-in-law, “Boy,” the narrator, is a barrister. The Pleydells live in Hampshire, England, and take various trips to continental Europe, often with their friend Jonathan Mansel and his sister Jill, and always with their faithful servants.
One of the most interesting aspects of Yates’s work is that characters from the Berry series often appear singly or with others in non-series novels or in the mystery adventure/thriller Chandos series. In Blind Corner (1927), the first in the latter series, the narrator, twenty- two-year-old Richard William Chandos, witnesses a murder and is caught up in a search for treasure at a castle in Austria. The eight novels in the adventure series were praised for their plotting and action. Yates also wrote two books of fictionalized memoirs, again incorporating his character Berry: As Berry and I Were Saying (1952) and B-Berry and I Look Back (1958).