author
John Palmer
1885–1944
A sharp-eyed theatre critic and prolific English writer, he moved easily between literary biography, stage history, and popular fiction. He is also remembered for his collaborations with Hilary St. George Saunders under the bestselling pen name Francis Beeding.
2 Audiobooks
Peter Paragon: A Tale of Youth
by John Palmer
Rudyard Kipling
by John Palmer
About the author
Born in Paddington, London, on September 4, 1885, John Leslie Palmer built a varied writing career that ranged from criticism to biography to fiction. Under his own name, he wrote widely about the theatre, early English actors, and major literary figures, bringing a critic’s eye and a clear sense of literary history to his subjects.
Palmer also wrote fiction under several names, including Christopher Haddon and John Somers. With Hilary St. George Saunders, he produced numerous novels under shared pseudonyms such as Francis Beeding and David Pilgrim, a partnership especially associated with detective stories and thrillers.
He died in London on August 5, 1944. Today, he stands out as a versatile man of letters whose work linked the worlds of serious literary commentary and popular entertainment.