Simon Brett was born in Worcester Park, Surrey on October 28, 1945. He attended Dulwich College and then Wadham College, Oxford, where he studied English. Between 1967 and 1977, he was a producer with BBC Radio. He also spent a couple of years working for Thames Television. In 1975, he published his first 'Charles Paris' novel. By 1979, Brett had become a full-time writer. He has written and edited children's books, humorous novels and several anthologies. In 1986, he introduced another sleuth: Mrs Pargeter. As well as the Charles Paris and Mrs. Pargeter detective series, he is also the author of the radio and television series After Henry, the radio series No Commitments and the… best-selling How to be a Little Sod . His novel A Shock to the System was filmed starring Michael Caine.