T. W. (Thomas Wilkinson) Speight

Born in Liverpool on April 3, 1830, Thomas Wilkinson Speight wrote under the name T. W. Speight and became a well-known British novelist of mystery and sensation fiction. Reference sources identify him as having been educated at a foundation school in the north of England, and for many years he also worked for a railway company.

Speight published fiction across a remarkably long span, from the 1860s into the early 20th century. Bibliographic and literary reference sources credit him with dozens of novels and shorter works, including Under Lock and Key, The Mysteries of Heron Dyke, A Secret of the Sea, The Grey Monk, and The Strange Experiences of Mr. Verschoyle. He also contributed shorter pieces to Victorian periodicals.

He died on January 1, 1915. Though he is less famous today than some of his contemporaries, his reputation has lasted among readers of Victorian suspense, detective fiction, and eerie tales, and many of his works remain available in public-domain editions.