View source for Len Deighton

{{short description|British author (born 1929)|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox writer
| image            = 
| image_upright    = 
| alt              = 
| caption          = 
| birth_name       = Leonard Cyril Deighton
| birth_date       = {{Birth date and age|1929|2|18|df=yes}}
| birth_place      = [[Marylebone]], London, England
| death_date       = 
| death_place      = 
| occupation       = {{hlist|Writer|illustrator}}
| alma_mater       = [[Royal College of Art]]
| spouse           = {{marriage|Ysabele de Ranitz|February 1980}}
| children         = Two
}}

'''Leonard Cyril Deighton''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|eɪ|t|ən}} {{respell|DAY|tən}}; born 18 February 1929) is a British author. His publications have included cookery books and works on history, but he is best known for his [[spy novel]]s.

After completing his [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|national service]] in the [[Royal Air Force]], Deighton attended the [[Saint Martin's School of Art]] and the [[Royal College of Art]] in London; he graduated from the latter in 1955. He had several jobs before becoming a book and magazine illustrator and designed the cover for the first UK edition of [[Jack Kerouac]]'s 1957 work ''[[On the Road]]''. He also worked for a period in an advertising agency. During an extended holiday in France he wrote his first novel, ''[[The IPCRESS File]]'', which was published in 1962 and was a critical and commercial success. He wrote several spy novels featuring the same central character, an unnamed [[working-class]] intelligence officer, cynical and tough. Between 1962 and 1966 Deighton was the food correspondent for ''[[The Observer]]'' and drew [[cookstrip]]s—black-and-white graphic recipes with a limited number of words. A selection of these was collected and published in 1965 as ''[[Len Deighton's Action Cook Book]]'', the first of five cookery books he wrote. Other topics of non-fiction include military history.

Many of Deighton's books have been best-sellers and he has been favourably compared both to his contemporary [[John le Carré]] and his literary antecedents [[W. Somerset Maugham]], [[Eric Ambler]], [[Ian Fleming]] and [[Graham Greene]]. Deighton's fictional work is marked by a complex narrative structure, extensive research and an air of [[Verisimilitude (fiction)|verisimilitude]].

Several of Deighton's works have been adapted for film and radio. Films include ''[[The Ipcress File (film)|The Ipcress File]]'' (1965), ''[[Funeral in Berlin (film)|Funeral in Berlin]]'' (1966), ''[[Billion Dollar Brain]]'' (1967) and ''[[Spy Story (film)|Spy Story]]'' (1976). In 1988 [[Granada Television]] produced the miniseries ''[[Game, Set and Match]]'' based on his trilogy of the same name, and in 1995 [[BBC Radio 4]] broadcast a [[Real time (media)|real-time]] dramatisation of his 1970 novel ''[[Bomber (novel)|Bomber]]''.
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==Biography==
===Early life and early career: 1929–1961===
Leonard Cyril Deighton was born in [[Marylebone]], London, on 18 February 1929.{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}}{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006b}} His birth was in the infirmary of a [[workhouse]] as the local hospital was full.{{sfn|Masters|1985|p=21}} His father was the chauffeur and mechanic for [[Campbell Dodgson]], the [[List of keepers of the British Museum#Keepers of Prints and Drawings|Keeper of Prints and Drawings]] at the [[British Museum]]; Deighton's mother was a part-time cook. At the time the family lived in [[Gloucester Place Mews]] near [[Baker Street]].{{sfn|"The Deighton File". 26 May 2009|loc=Event occurs at 4:20–4:50}}{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006a|p=43}} In 1940, during the [[Second World War]], the eleven-year-old Deighton witnessed the arrest of [[Anna Wolkoff]], a British subject of Russian descent for whom his mother cooked; Wolkoff was detained as a [[Nazi Germany|Nazi]] spy and charged with stealing correspondence between [[Winston Churchill]] and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]].{{sfn|Masters|1987|p=257}}{{efn|In November 1940 Wolkoff was found guilty of breaching the [[Official Secrets Act 1911]] and sentenced to ten years in prison.{{sfn|"Secrets Case Ended". ''The Times''}}}} Deighton said that observing her arrest was "a major factor in my decision to write a spy story at my first attempt at fiction".{{sfn|Campbell|1992|p=101}}

Deighton was educated at [[St Marylebone Grammar School|St Marylebone Grammar]] and [[William Ellis School|William Ellis]] schools, but was moved to an emergency school for part of the Second World War.{{sfn|Buckton|2012|p=55}}{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''The Guardian''}}{{efn|Emergency schools were those set up during the Second World War to cope with the influx of [[Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II|children evacuated out of cities]], and the conscription of teachers into the armed forces.{{sfn|Gosden|2013|pp=17–18, 36}}}} After leaving school Deighton worked as a railway clerk{{sfn|Masters|1987|p=258}} before being [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|conscripted]] for [[national service]] at the age of 17, which he completed with the [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF). While in the RAF he was trained as a photographer, often recording crime scenes with the [[Special Investigation Branch]] (SIB) of the military police as part of his duties.{{sfn|Buckton|2012|p=55}}{{sfn|Masters|1987|p=258}} During his work with the SIB he learned to fly and became an experienced [[scuba diver]].{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=35}}

After two-and-a-half years with the RAF, Deighton received a [[Demobilisation of the British Armed Forces after the Second World War|demobilisation grant]], enabling him to study at [[Saint Martin's School of Art]] where he won a scholarship to the [[Royal College of Art]]; he graduated from the college in 1955.{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006b}}{{sfn|Milward-Oliver|1987|p=11}} While studying he held a temporary job in 1951 as a [[pastry chef]] at the [[Royal Festival Hall]].{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=35}} He worked as a [[flight attendant]] for [[British Overseas Airways Corporation]] (BOAC) between 1956 and 1957 before becoming a professional illustrator. Much of his work as an illustrator was in advertising—he worked for agencies in New York and London—but he also illustrated magazines and over 200 book covers, including for the first UK edition of [[Jack Kerouac]]'s 1957 work ''[[On the Road]]''.{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006a|p=43}}{{sfn|Buckton|2012|p=55}}{{sfn|Brown|1987|p=12}}

===Writing career: 1961–===
[[File:Boeuf Bourguignon Cookstrip.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|alt=Five-step drawing of the process for cooking beef bourguignon|[[Cookstrip]] for [[boeuf bourguignon]]]]
While he was working at the Royal Festival Hall, Deighton would make sketches to remember some of the steps he took preparing dishes. He developed the idea into the concept of the "[[cookstrip]]", a full recipe within a cartoon-style illustration.{{sfn|Walsh|2009}}{{efn|Several of the strips are pinned up in the background of the film set of Harry Palmer's kitchen in ''[[The Ipcress File (film)|The Ipcress File]]''.{{sfn|Stummer|2014}}}} Following the publication of one of Deighton's cookstrips in the ''[[Daily Express]]'' in 1961, ''[[The Observer]]'' commissioned him to provide a weekly series for its own magazine, which he did between March 1962 and August 1966.{{sfn|Milward-Oliver|1987|p=98}} He later explained:

<blockquote>I was buying expensive cookbooks. I'm very messy, and didn't want to take them into the kitchen. So I wrote out the recipes on paper, and it was easier for me to draw three eggs than write 'three eggs'. So I drew three eggs, then put in an arrow. For me it was a natural way to work.{{sfn|Stummer|2014}}</blockquote>

In 1962 Deighton's first novel, ''[[The IPCRESS File]]'', was published; it had been written in 1960 while he was staying in the [[Dordogne]], south west France.{{sfn|Masters|1987|p=258}} The book was soon a commercial success and was a best-seller in the UK, France and the US, selling more than 2.5&nbsp;million copies in three years.{{sfn|Kerridge|2017|p=55}}{{sfn|Krueger|2014|p=102}}{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=40}} The story—written as a [[first-person narrative]]—introduced a [[working-class]] protagonist, cynical and tough.{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}} Deighton did not want to invent a name for the character and later explained "Some people felt that a contrivance, but I kept putting off inventing a name for him until I got to the end of the book and realised I could finish the book without giving him a name".{{sfn|''Desert Island Discs'', 19 June 1976|loc=Event occurs at 12:00–12:30}}{{efn|The character appears in several of Deighton's works:
* ''[[The IPCRESS File]]'' (1962)
* ''[[Horse Under Water]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Funeral in Berlin]]'' (1964)
* ''[[Billion-Dollar Brain]]'' (1966)
* ''[[An Expensive Place to Die]]'' (1967)
* ''[[Spy Story (novel)|Spy Story]]'' (1972)
* ''[[Yesterday's Spy]]'' (1975)
* ''[[Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Spy]]'' (1976){{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}} }}

In 2017 Deighton described how he did not consider the character an [[anti-hero]], but "a romantic, incorruptible figure in the mould of [[Philip Marlowe]]".{{sfn|Kerridge|2017|p=55}} Deighton described the inspiration of using a working-class spy among the [[Oxbridge]]-educated members of [[the Establishment]] as coming from his time at the advertising agency, when he was the only member of the company's board not to have been educated at [[Eton College|Eton]]. He said "''The IPCRESS File'' is about spies on the surface, but it's also really about a [[grammar school]] boy among [[Public school (United Kingdom)|public school]] boys and the difficulties he faces."{{sfn|Kerridge|2019|p=44}}{{efn|The British [[grammar school]] is a state-funded institution which can select its own pupils based on academic ability. There are no fees for attending. A [[Public school (United Kingdom)|public school]] is a fee-paying institution, associated with the [[ruling class]] and upper echelons of banking, business and industry.{{sfn|Sampson|1982|p=124}}{{sfn|"Types of school". UK Government}}}}

Deighton published two further novels with his unnamed protagonist—''[[Horse Under Water]]'' (1963) and ''[[Funeral in Berlin]]'' (1964). ''[[Funeral in Berlin]]'' stayed on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' best-seller list]] for twenty weeks and sold over forty thousand copies in hardback in 1965.{{sfn|Brown|1987|p=12}}{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=41}} He published two cookbooks in 1965, ''[[Len Deighton's Action Cook Book]]'' (a collection of his cookstrips from ''The Observer'') and {{lang|fr|Où est le garlic}} (Where is the garlic), a collection of [[French cuisine|French recipes]].{{sfn|Brown|1987|p=12}}{{sfn|Jackson|Gwilliam|1999|pp=16–17}}{{efn|Deighton has written five cookery books:{{sfn|Milward-Oliver|1987|p=98}}
* ''Len Deighton's Action Cook Book'' (1965) {{oclc|30271545}}
* {{lang|fr|Où est le garlic}} (Where is the garlic; 1965) {{oclc|1112522953}}
* ''Basic French Cooking'' (1979) {{oclc|473056466}}
* ''ABC of French Food'' (1989) {{oclc|1145799233}}
* ''Basic French Cookery Course'' (1990) {{oclc|803775071}}
In January 2015 Deighton created twelve new cookstrips which were printed monthly in the ''Observer Food Magazine''.{{sfn|Stummer|2014}}}} They also sold well, making Deighton a best-selling author in two genres.{{sfn|Stummer|2014}} Two further novels in the spy series followed—''[[Billion-Dollar Brain]]'' (1966) and ''[[An Expensive Place to Die]]'' (1967)—after which he published his first historical non-fiction work, ''The Assassination of President Kennedy'' (1967), co-written with Michael Rand and [[Howard Loxton]].{{sfn|Jackson|Gwilliam|1999|pp=16–17}} During 1967 he also edited and contributed to ''[[Len Deighton's London Dossier]]'', a work that described itself as "a real London guidebook".{{sfn|"Libel Damages For 'Doss-House'". ''The Times''}} The book suggested the [[Rowton Houses]] owned by Rowton Hotels Ltd were [[doss-house]]s for the homeless.{{efn|A "doss-house" ("flophouse" in American English) is a cheap lodging hostel where the homeless or those on very low incomes can stay overnight.{{sfn|"In England Now". ''The Lancet''|p=1352}}{{sfn|Rose|1988|p=59}}}} He and the publishers [[Jonathan Cape]] were sued for [[libel]]; they apologised, withdrew the suggestions made in the book by amending the claim in unsold editions and paid substantial [[damages]].{{sfn|"Libel Damages For 'Doss-House'". ''The Times''}}

In September 1967 he wrote an article in ''[[The Sunday Times Magazine]]'' about [[Operation Snowdrop]], an [[Special Air Service|SAS]] attack on [[Benghazi]] during the [[Second World War]]. Deighton wrote that the raid "suffered a lack of security" because [[David Stirling]], the leader of the raid, "had insisted upon talking about the raid during two social gatherings at the British Embassy in Cairo although warned not to do so". Stirling sued Deighton and Times Newspapers for libel the following year as the implication was that his indiscretion had endangered the lives of his men. Stirling explained in court that one of the social gatherings was a dinner with [[Winston Churchill]], Field Marshal [[Jan Smuts]], General Sir [[Alan Brooke]], General Sir [[Claude Auchinleck]] and General [[Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis|Harold Alexander]]; the second occasion was a private conversation with Churchill. Deighton and Times Newspapers apologised, published a correction and paid damages.{{sfn|"Libel Damages For 'Operation Snowdrop' Leader". ''The Times''}}

During the mid-1960s Deighton wrote for ''[[Playboy]]'' as a travel correspondent, and he provided a piece on the boom in [[spy fiction]]; ''An Expensive Place to Die'' was serialised in the magazine in 1967.{{sfn|Deighton|1966|p=103}}{{sfn|Hines|2018|pp=160–161}} In 1968 Deighton was the [[Film producer|producer]] of the film ''[[Only When I Larf (film)|Only When I Larf]]'', which was based on his [[Only When I Larf|novel of the same name]].{{sfn|"Only When I Larf (1968)". British Film Institute}} He was the writer and co-producer of ''[[Oh! What a Lovely War]]'' in 1969, but did not enjoy the process of making films, and had his name removed from the [[Motion picture credits|film's credits]].{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006a|p=43}}{{sfn|Kerridge|2009|p=10}} In 1970 Deighton wrote ''[[Bomber (novel)|Bomber]]'', a fictional account of an [[RAF Bomber Command]] raid that goes wrong.{{sfn|Brown|1987|p=12}} To produce the novel he used an [[IBM MT/ST]], and it is possible that this was the first novel to be written using a [[word processor]].{{sfn|''The Daily News of Los Angeles''. 17 January 2020}}{{sfn|Kirschenbaum|2013|p=1}} Deighton was interviewed on ''[[Desert Island Discs]]'' in June 1976 by [[Roy Plomley]].{{sfn|"BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Len Deighton". BBC}}{{efn|Deighton's choices on ''Desert Island Discs'' were [[Ludwig van Beethoven]], "[[Für Elise]]"; [[Louis Armstrong]] & His All-Stars, "[[Stars Fell on Alabama]]"; [[Johnny Cash]], "There Ain't No Easy Run"; [[Gwendoline Brogden]], "[[I'll Make a Man of You]]"; [[Maurice Ravel]], ''[[La valse]]''; [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]], "[[Piano Concerto No. 11 (Mozart)|Piano Concerto No. 11]]"; and [[Neil Diamond]], "[[Cracklin' Rosie]]". His book choice was ''The Art of Modern French Cooking''; his luxury choice was a [[darkroom]].{{sfn|"BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Len Deighton". BBC}}}}

Deighton wrote ''[[Fighter: The True Story of the Battle of Britain]]'', published in 1977, after being advised to do so by the historian [[A.&nbsp;J.&nbsp;P. Taylor]].{{sfn|Kerridge|2017|p=55}}{{sfn|Buckton|2012|p=67}} The book was well received by readers and reviewers, although the inclusion of interviews with German participants led to criticism from some.{{sfn|Kerridge|2017|p=55}} Taylor wrote the introduction for the book, describing it as a "brilliant analysis";{{sfn|Taylor|1994|p=xxvi}} [[Albert Speer]], once the [[Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production|Minister of Armaments]] for [[Adolf Hitler]], thought it "an excellent, most thorough examination".{{sfn|"Books". ''The Bookseller''}}

''Fighter'' was followed in 1978 by another novel, ''[[SS-GB]]'', the idea for which came from [[Ray Hawkey]], Deighton's friend from art school and the designer of the covers of several of his books. While the two were discussing what would have happened if the Germans had won the Second World War, Hawkey asked Deighton if he thought there could be an [[alternative history]] novel.{{sfn|Milward-Oliver|1987|p=98}}{{sfn|Deighton|2017}} ''[[Blitzkrieg: From the Rise of Hitler to the Fall of Dunkirk|Blitzkrieg]]'', Deighton's 1979 history of the rise of the Nazis and the [[fall of France]], has a foreword written by General [[Walther Nehring]], Chief of Staff to General [[Heinz Guderian]].{{sfn|Deighton|1982|loc=Title page}} As at 2023 his last history book is ''[[Blood, Tears and Folly: An Objective Look at World War II]]'' (1993), which examined the events of the war up until 1942.{{sfn|Jackson|Gwilliam|1999|p=15}} Reviewing for ''[[The Times]]'', Henry Stanhope considers the work "extremely readable", although he questions the structure of the book which focuses on different theatres of war, rather than using a purely chronological history. This approach, Stanhope considers, "presents a less complete picture to the reader".{{sfn|Stanhope|1993|p=39}} The historian [[Allan R. Millett]] considers that the book would have been improved by wider research into the Russian, Japanese and American aspects of the war.{{sfn|Millett|1995|p=1807}}

Beginning in 1983 Deighton wrote three connected trilogies: ''[[Berlin Game]]'' (1983), ''[[Mexico Set]]'' (1984) and ''[[London Match]]'' (1985); ''[[Spy Hook]]'' (1988), ''[[Spy Line]]'' (1989) and ''[[Spy Sinker]]'' (1990); and ''[[Faith (novel)|Faith]]'' (1994), ''[[Hope (Deighton novel)|Hope]]'' (1995) and ''[[Charity (novel)|Charity]]'' (1996). ''[[Winter (Deighton novel)|Winter]]'', a companion novel dealing with the lives of a German family from 1899 to 1945, which also provides an historical background to several of the characters from the trilogies, was published in 1987. The trilogies are centred on [[Bernard Samson]], a tough, cynical and disrespectful [[MI6]] intelligence officer.{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}}{{sfn|Woods|2008|p=118}}

===Personal life===
Deighton married the illustrator Shirley Thompson in 1960;{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}} the couple were divorced in 1976, having not lived together for over five years.{{sfn|Bird|1976|p=39}} He left Britain in 1969, and has lived abroad since, including in Ireland, Austria, France, the US and Portugal.{{sfn|Dawson Scott|2006b}}{{sfn|Bateman|1997}} He lived for a while in [[Blackrock, County Louth]],{{sfn|Egan|2018}} where he married Ysabele {{nee|de Ranitz}} in February 1980, the daughter of a Dutch diplomat.{{sfn|Bateman|1997}}{{sfn|"Len Deighton". Adrian Flowers}} The couple have two sons.{{sfn|Stummer|2014}}

Deighton does not like giving interviews, and these have been rare throughout his life; he also avoids appearing at [[literary festival]]s.{{sfn|Didcock|2009|p=17}}{{sfn|"The Deighton File". 26 May 2009|loc=Event occurs at 1:15–2:05}} He says that he does not enjoy being a writer and that "The best thing about writing books is being at a party and telling some pretty girl you write books, the worst thing is sitting at a typewriter and actually writing the book."{{sfn|Kerridge|2019|p=44}} After completing ''Faith'', ''Hope'' and ''Charity'' in 1996, he decided to take a year off writing; at the end of the period, he decided that writing was "a [[wikt:mug's game|mug's game]]" that he did not miss and did not have to do.{{sfn|"The Deighton File". 26 May 2009|loc=Event occurs at 3:45–4:05}} By 2016 Deighton had retired from writing.{{sfn|Kerridge|2016|p=29}}{{sfn|Landin|2022}}

==Works==
{{main|Len Deighton bibliography}}
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According to the [[Gale (publisher)|Gale]] ''Contemporary Novelists'' [[monograph]]s, Deighton and fellow author [[John le Carré]] follow in the same literary tradition of British espionage writers as [[W. Somerset Maugham]], [[Eric Ambler]] and [[Graham Greene]]. Deighton provides an "energetic style" and his fictional work is marked by a complex narrative structure, according to Gale.{{sfn|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Novelists''}} Deighton extensively researched the background and technical aspects of his storylines, and enjoyed this side of producing work; in 1976 he said "I like the research better than I like writing books".{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=37}}{{sfn|''Desert Island Discs'', 19 June 1976|loc=Event occurs at 11:40–11:45}} The literary analyst Gina Macdonald observes that the technical aspect of Deighton's work can overshadow the plots and characterisation in the novel when Deighton provides too much detail in a short passage, leading to what she calls "banal conversations, stilted and unconvincing".{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=37}} Deighton was elected to the [[Detection Club]] in 1969 and their work ''Howdunit'', published in 2020, was dedicated to him.{{sfn|Edwards|2020|p=viii}}

===Novels===
According to the film and media historian Alan Burton, ''The IPCRESS File''—along with le Carré's 1963 novel ''[[The Spy Who Came in from the Cold]]''—"changed the nature of British spy fiction" as it brought in "a more insolent, disillusioned and cynical style to the espionage story".{{sfn|Burton|2016|p=119}} The novel used appendices and footnotes which, according to Burton, gave verisimilitude to the work.{{sfn|Burton|2013|p=37}}{{efn|The appendices for ''The IPCRESS File'' include the costs of Indian marijuana in 1962, the use of [[HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs]] as the headquarters of British Intelligence during the Second World War and cocktail recipes of drinks in the book. Some references include details of how the characters were involved in activities associated with the topics described.{{sfn|Deighton|1964|pp=214–223}}}} The academic George Grella considers Deighton's novels to be "stylish, witty [and] well-crafted",{{sfn|Grella|1988|p=449}} and that they provide "a convincingly detailed picture of the world of espionage while carefully examining the ethics and morality of that world".{{sfn|Grella|1988|p=450}} Deighton has expressed his admiration for the [[police procedural]], which he considers has an authentic feel, and approaches his fiction writing as a "spy procedural".{{sfn|Burton|2016|p=219}} Burton considers ''The IPCRESS File'' to be "a marker of a new trend in mature, realistic espionage fiction".{{sfn|Burton|2013|p=37}}

''The IPCRESS File'' appeared in bookshops at the same time as the [[James Bond]] film ''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]''. Deighton acknowledged that his career had benefited from the enormous popularity of Bond, although he denied any similarity between his and [[Ian Fleming]]'s books except being about spies.{{sfn|Deighton|1966|p=182}} The academic Clive Bloom considers that after ''Funeral in Berlin'' was published in 1964, Deighton "established a place for himself&nbsp;... in the front rank of the spy genre, along with Graham Greene, Ian Fleming and John le Carré".{{sfn|Bloom|1995|p=46}} Deighton's later works were less oblique than the earlier ones, and had, according to Bloom, "more subtlety and deeper characterization".{{sfn|Bloom|1995|p=46}} Oliver Buckton, the professor of literature, also considers Deighton to be in the forefront of post-war spy writers.{{sfn|Buckton|2012|p=57}} The crime writer and poet [[Julian Symons]] writes that "[t]he constant crackle of his dialogue makes Deighton a kind of poet of the spy story".{{sfn|Symons|1985|p=229}}

Grella considers Deighton to be "the [[Angry young men|angry young man]] of the espionage novel",{{sfn|Grella|1988|p=450}} with the central characters of his main novels—the unnamed protagonist from the ''IPCRESS'' series and Bernard Samson from the nine novels in which he appears—both working-class, cynical and streetwise, in contrast to the upper-class and ineffective senior members of the intelligence service in their respective novels.{{sfn|Burton|2016|p=119}} His working-class heroes also stand in contrast to Fleming's [[Eton College|Eton]]- and [[Fettes College|Fettes]]-educated smooth, upper-class character James Bond.{{sfn|Macdonald|1992|p=38}}

===Adaptations===
Several of Deighton's novels have been adapted as films, which include ''[[The Ipcress File (film)|The Ipcress File]]'' (1965), ''[[Funeral in Berlin (film)|Funeral in Berlin]]'' (1966), ''[[Billion Dollar Brain]]'' (1967) and ''[[Spy Story (film)|Spy Story]]'' (1976). All feature the books' unnamed character, but they were given the full name "[[Harry Palmer]]" for the films; either the actor [[Michael Caine]]—who played Palmer in the films—or the producer for two of the three films, [[Harry Saltzman]], came up with the name.{{sfn|Burton|2018|p=99}}{{sfn|Caine|2012|pp=205–206}} Two television films also featured Palmer: ''[[Bullet to Beijing]]'' (1995) and ''[[Midnight in Saint Petersburg]]'' (1996); they were not based on Deighton's stories. All the films except ''Spy Story'' feature Caine as Palmer.{{sfn|Barrett|Herrera|Baumann|2011|p=27}} Deighton's hands were used in ''The Ipcress File'' in place of Caine's for a scene in which Palmer breaks eggs into a bowl and whisks them.{{sfn|Baker|2012|p=41}} In March 2022 ''[[The Ipcress File (TV series)|The Ipcress File]]'', a television adaptation of Deighton's novel, was broadcast on UK television. [[Joe Cole (actor)|Joe Cole]] was Palmer; [[Lucy Boynton]] and [[Tom Hollander]] also appeared in major roles.{{sfn|Hilton|2022|p=38}}{{sfn|Twigg|2022|p=24}}

''[[Berlin Game]]'', ''[[Mexico Set]]'' and ''[[London Match]]'', the first trilogy of his [[Bernard Samson]] novel series, were made into ''[[Game, Set and Match]]'', a thirteen-part television series by [[Granada Television]] in 1988.{{sfn|Woods|2008|p=118}}{{sfn|"Game, Set and Match (1988)". British Film Institute}} Although [[Quentin Tarantino]] expressed interest in adapting the trilogy,{{sfn|Child|2009}} the project did not materialise.{{sfn|Sharf|2019}} The nine Samson novels were in [[pre-production]] with [[Clerkenwell Films]] in 2013, with a script by [[Simon Beaufoy]].{{sfn|Kemp|2013}}

In 2017 the BBC adapted Deighton's novel ''SS-GB'' for [[SS-GB (TV series)|a five-part miniseries]], broadcast in one-hour episodes; [[Sam Riley]] played the lead role of Detective Superintendent Douglas Archer.{{sfn|Whitworth|2017}} In 1995 [[BBC Radio 4]] broadcast a [[Real time (media)|real-time]] dramatisation of ''Bomber''. The drama was in four broadcasts, each of two hours, from 2:30&nbsp;pm to midnight, threaded through the station's schedule of news and current affairs.{{sfn|"BBC Radio 4, 18 February 1995". ''Radio Times''}}{{sfn|Barnard|1995|p=24}}

===Legacy and influence===
Deighton's work has been acknowledged by the thriller writer [[Jeremy Duns]] as being an influence on his own work.{{sfn|Duns|2009}} In ''[[Letters from Burma]]'', the politician [[Aung San Suu Kyi]] mentions reading Deighton's books, while under [[Aung San Suu Kyi#House arrest|house arrest]]. Suu Kyi wrote that she was passionate about [[Arthur Conan Doyle]]'s tales of [[Sherlock Holmes]] and the spy novels of le Carré and Deighton.{{sfn|"Back to prayer for Suu Kyi". ''Capital News''}} When asked by [[Christie's]] about his love for [[Indian art]] and how he started his collection, the writer [[V. S. Naipaul]] credited Deighton. "I met Len Deighton, the thriller writer, at dinner many years ago. He demonstrated to me that Indian art could really be approachable. I bought from&nbsp;... [[Maggs Bros Ltd|Maggs]] because of Len Deighton pushing me onto [them] as being a very fair dealer, saying that they do not charge you much more than they should. That's a marvellous thing to be told".{{sfn|"Collectors & their collections: V.S. Naipaul". ''Christie's''}}

Deighton's 1970 novel ''Bomber'' was listed in [[Anthony Burgess]]'s 1984 work ''[[Ninety-Nine Novels]]'' as one of the 99 best novels in English since 1939.{{sfn|Burgess|1984|p=1}} ''[[Bomber (album)|Bomber]]'', the third album of the rock group [[Motörhead]], was named after the novel, as the band's singer, [[Lemmy]], was reading it at the time they were recording the album.{{sfn|Grow|2015}}

==Notes and references==

===Notes===
{{notelist}}

===References===
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
====Books====
* {{cite book|last1=Barrett|first1=Oliver Boyd|last2=Herrera|first2=David|last3=Baumann|first3=James A.|title=Hollywood and the CIA: Cinema, Defense and Subversion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xCIff4aRn50C&pg=PP1|year=2011|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-1-136-80676-6}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=Bloom|editor-first=Clive|title=Modern Crime and Suspense Writers|date=1995|publisher=Chelsea House|location=New York|isbn=978-0-5852-2979-9|url=https://archive.org/details/moderncrimesuspe0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last=Buckton|first=Oliver|editor1-last=Parini|editor1-first=Jay|editor-link=Jay Parini|title=British Writers. Supplement XVIII|publisher=Gale|location=Detroit, MI|isbn=978-1-4144-8026-8|pages=55–72|year=2012|url=https://archive.org/details/britishwriterssu0000unse_s2x6/mode/2up|chapter=Len Deighton}}
* {{cite book|last=Burton|first=Alan|title=Historical Dictionary of British Spy Fiction|year=2016|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|location=London|isbn=978-1-4422-5587-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Burton|first=Alan|title=Looking-Glass Wars: Spies on British Screens since 1960|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=24mEDwAAQBAJ&pg=PR8|year=2018|publisher=Vernon Press|location=Wilmington, DE|isbn=978-1-62273-290-6}}
* {{cite book|last=Caine|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Caine|title=What's It All About?|date=2012|publisher=Random House|location=London|isbn=978-1-4481-3648-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H8VbQbS7n78C}}
* {{cite book|last=Deighton|first=Len|title=The IPCRESS File|date=1964|orig-year=1962|publisher=Panther|location=London|oclc=154157529|url=https://archive.org/details/ipcressfile0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last=Deighton|first=Len|title=Blitzkrieg: From the Rise of Hitler to the Fall of Dunkirk|date=1982|publisher=Ballantine Books|location=New York|isbn=978-0-7126-7428-7|url=https://archive.org/details/blitzkriegfromri00deig/page/n3}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Edwards|editor1-first=Martin|editor-link=Martin Edwards (author)|title=Howdunit! A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club|date=2020|publisher=Collins Crime Club|location=London|isbn=978-0-0083-8013-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Gosden|first=Peter H. J. H.|title=Education in the Second World War: A Study in Policy and Administration|date=2013|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-0-4154-3220-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Grella|first=George|chapter=Len Deighton|editor-last=Reilly|editor-first=John M.|title=Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers|year=1988|publisher=Macmillan|location=London|isbn=978-1-349-81366-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Hines|first=Claire|title=The Playboy and James Bond: 007, Ian Fleming and Playboy magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YnG5DwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1|year=2018|publisher=Manchester University Press|location=Manchester|isbn=978-1-5261-1616-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Krueger|first=Christine L.|title=Encyclopedia of British Writers: 19th and 20th Centuries|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dnqi3gRxgvQC&pg=PP1|year=2014|publisher=Infobase Publishing|location=New York|isbn=978-1-4381-0870-4}}
* {{cite book|last=Macdonald|first=Gina|title=Concise Dictionary of British Literary Biography|date=1992|publisher=Gale Research|location=Detroit, MI|isbn=978-0-8103-7988-6|pages=35–55|chapter=Len Deighton}}
* {{cite book|last=Masters|first=Anthony|title=Literary Agents: The Novelist as Spy|date=1987|publisher=Basil Blackwell|location=London|isbn=978-0-6311-4979-8|url=https://archive.org/details/literaryagentsno00mast/page/n5/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book|last=Milward-Oliver|first=Edward|author-link=Edward Milward-Oliver|title=The Len Deighton Companion|year=1987|publisher=Grafton|location=London|isbn=978-0-586-07000-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Rose|first=Lionel|title=Rogues and Vagabonds: Vagrant Underworld in Britain, 1815-1985|date=1988|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=978-0-4150-0275-2|url=https://archive.org/details/roguesvagabondsv0000rose}}
* {{cite book|last=Sampson|first=Anthony|author-link=Anthony Sampson|title=The Changing Anatomy of Britain|date=1982|publisher=Random House|location=New York|isbn=978-0-3945-3143-4|url=https://archive.org/details/changinganatomyo00samp}}
* {{cite book|last=Symons|first=Julian|author-link=Julian Symons|title=Bloody Murder: From the Detective Story to the Crime Novel|date=1985|publisher=Viking|location=New York|isbn=978-0-6708-0096-4|url=https://archive.org/details/bloodymurderfrom00symo/page/n7/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book|contributor-last=Taylor|contributor-first=A. J. P.|contributor-link=A. J. P. Taylor|last=Deighton|first=Len|contribution=Introduction|title=Fighter: The True Story of the Battle of Britain|date=1994|publisher=Harper Paperbacks|location=New York|isbn=978-0-0610-0802-3|url=https://archive.org/details/fighter00lend/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book|last=Woods|first=Brett F.|title=Neutral Ground: A Political History of Espionage Fiction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x6EYtYMgF4UC&pg=PP1|year=2008|publisher=Algora Publishing|location=New York|isbn=978-0-87586-533-1}}

====Broadcast media====
* {{cite AV media|last=Deighton|first=Len|date=19 June 1976|title=Desert Island Discs|medium=Radio programme|publisher=BBC|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009n0py|ref={{sfnRef|''Desert Island Discs'', 19 June 1976}}}}
* {{cite episode|title=The Deighton File|date=26 May 2009|series=The Author Archive Collection|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00kjh8g|ref={{sfnRef|"The Deighton File". 26 May 2009}}}}

====Journals and magazines====
* {{cite journal|last=Baker|first=Brian|title='You're Quite a Gourmet, Aren't You, Palmer?' Masculinity and Food in the Spy Fiction of Len Deighton|journal=The Yearbook of English Studies|date=2012|volume=42|pages=30–48|doi=10.5699/yearenglstud.42.2012.0030|jstor=10.5699/yearenglstud.42.2012.0030 |s2cid=190558061 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5699/yearenglstud.42.2012.0030|issn=0306-2473}}
* {{cite magazine|title=BBC Radio 4, 18 February 1995|magazine=Radio Times|date=18 February 1995|issue=3709|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/schedules/service_bbc_radio_fourfm/1995-02-18|ref={{sfnRef|"BBC Radio 4, 18 February 1995". ''Radio Times''}}}}
* {{cite journal|title=Books|journal=The Bookseller|date=1979|issue=3838|page=80|issn=0006-7539|ref={{sfnRef|"Books". ''The Bookseller''}}}}
* {{cite journal|last=Brown|first=Geoffrey|title=The Thrillers and Spy Novels of Len Deighton|journal=The Book and Magazine Collector|publisher=Diamond Publishing Group|date=February 1987|issue=35|issn=0952-8601}}
* {{cite journal|last=Burton|first=Alan|title=Mind Bending, Mental Seduction and Menticide: Brainwashing in British Spy Dramas of the 1960s|journal=Journal of British Cinema and Television|date=January 2013|volume=10|issue=1|pages=27–48|doi=10.3366/jbctv.2013.0120}}
* {{Cite magazine|last=Deighton|first=Len|date=May 1966|title=Why Does My Art Go Boom?|url=https://archive.org/details/playboy-magazines-1953-2013/PlayBoy/Playboy%201966/5%20-%20May%201966/page/102/mode/2up|magazine=Playboy|pages=103, 182–184}}
* {{cite journal|title=In England Now|journal=The Lancet|date=29 June 1957|volume=272|issue=6983|pages=1351–1352|issn=0140-6736 |ref={{sfnRef|"In England Now". ''The Lancet''}}}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Jackson|first1=Crispin|last2=Gwilliam|first2=Graham|title=Len Deighton: The Master Thriller Writer Turns Seventy|journal=The Book and Magazine Collector|publisher=Diamond Publishing Group|date=March 1999|issue=180}}
* {{cite journal|last=Millett|first=Allan R.|author-link=Allan R. Millett|title=Blood, Tears and Folly: An Objective Look at World War II|journal=The Journal of American History|date=March 1995|volume=81|issue=4|pages=1807–1808|doi=10.2307/2081821|jstor=2081821 }}

====News media====
* {{cite news|title=Back to prayer for Suu Kyi|url=https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/2009/08/back-to-prayer-for-suu-kyi/|work=Capital News|date=12 August 2009|ref={{sfnRef|"Back to prayer for Suu Kyi". ''Capital News''}}}}
* {{cite news|last=Barnard|first=Peter|title=Flying back in real time|work=The Times|date=18 February 1995|page=24 (section 2)}}
* {{cite news|last=Bateman|first=Michael|title=A kitchen thriller|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/a-kitchen-thriller-1265655.html|work=The Independent|date=6 April 1997}}
* {{cite news|last=Bird|first=David|title=Notes on people|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/11/26/archives/notes-on-people.html|work=The New York Times|date=26 November 1976|page=39}}
* {{cite news|last=Burgess|first=Anthony|title=Modern novels; The 99 best|work=The New York Times|date=5 February 1984|at=Section 7; Page 1}}
* {{cite news|last=Campbell|first=Christy|work=The Sunday Telegraph|title=Spies With class|date=21 June 1992|page=101}}
* {{cite news|last=Child|first=Ben|title=Tarantino mulls Deighton spy film to rival Bond|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/aug/14/tarantino-deighton-trilogy|work=The Guardian|date=14 August 2009}}
* {{Cite news|last=Dawson Scott|first=Robert|title=Len Deighton: The spy and I|work=The Independent|page=43|date=4 January 2006a|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/len-deighton-the-spy-and-i-521520.html}}
* {{cite news|last=Dawson Scott|first=Robert|title=A class act, not a class warrior|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/a-class-act-not-a-class-warrior-s3f0fg7khcp|work=The Times|date=7 January 2006b}} {{subscription required}}
* {{cite news|last=Didcock|first=Barry|title=Tributes to the lives and times of two great talents|work=Sunday Herald|date=31 May 2009|page=17}}
* {{cite news|last=Duns|first=Jeremy|author-link1=Jeremy Duns|title=Jeremy Duns pays tribute to novelist Len Deighton|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2009/feb/19/len-deighton-revival|work=The Guardian|date=19 February 2009}}
* {{cite news|last=Egan|first=Barry|title=Declan Lynch on his childhood and why 'alcoholic' is more of a stigma than words like 'depression'|url=https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/books/book-news/declan-lynch-on-his-childhood-and-why-alcoholic-is-more-of-a-stigma-than-words-like-depression-37317769.html|work=Irish Independent|date=17 September 2018}}
* {{cite magazine|last=Grow|first=Kory|title=Motorhead's Lemmy: My life in 15 snarls|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/motorheads-lemmy-my-life-in-15-snarls-64130/bomber-159345/|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=28 August 2015}}
* {{cite news|last=Hilton|first=Nick|title=The Perfect Spy; Joe Cole steps into Michael Caine's shoes in a vibrant and deliciously retro Sixties 'The Ipcress File', says Nick Hilton|work=The Independent|date=7 March 2022|page=38}}
* {{cite news|last=Kemp|first=Stuart|title=Simon Beaufoy to adapt Len Deighton's spy novels for TV|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/simon-beaufoy-adapt-len-deightons-437736|date=4 November 2013|work=The Hollywood Reporter|access-date=29 March 2020}}
* {{cite news|last=Kerridge|first=Jake|title=In a hurry to use his organ donor card|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=20 February 2016|page=29}}
* {{cite news|last=Kerridge|first=Jake|title=The Deighton file: a life of reluctance and intrigue|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=14 February 2009|page=10}}
* {{cite news|last=Kerridge|first=Jake|title=Len Deighton interview: 'Nobody could have had a happier life than I've had'|work=The Sunday Telegraph|date=19 February 2017|page=55}}
* {{cite news|last=Kerridge|first=Jake|title=From Ian Fleming to Ann Cleeves: Desert Island Discs' best crime writer castaways|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=18 February 2019|page=44}}
* {{cite news|last=Kirschenbaum|first=Matthew|title=The book-writing machine: what was the first novel ever written on a word processor?|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2013/03/len_deighton_s_bomber_the_first_book_ever_written_on_a_word_processor.single.html|work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|date=1 March 2013}}
* {{cite news|last=Landin|first=Conrad|title=Time to reopen the Deighton file|url=https://www.camdennewjournal.co.uk/article/time-to-reopen-the-deighton-file|work=Camden New Journal|date=24 February 2022}}
* {{cite news|title=Len Deighton|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jun/11/lendeighton|access-date=30 October 2023|work=The Guardian|date=22 July 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810051625/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jun/11/lendeighton|archive-date=10 August 2022|ref={{sfnRef|"Len Deighton". ''The Guardian''}}}}
* {{cite news|title=Libel damages For 'doss-house'|work=The Times|date=13 July 1967|page=15|ref={{sfnRef|"Libel Damages For 'Doss-House'". ''The Times''}}}}
* {{cite news|title=Libel damages For 'Operation Snowdrop' Leader|work=The Times|date=24 May 1968|page=15|ref={{sfnRef|"Libel Damages For 'Operation Snowdrop' Leader". ''The Times''}}}}
* {{cite news|last=Masters|first=A|title=Deighton still the master of the spy thriller|work=The Courier-Mail|date=26 October 1985|page=21}}
* {{cite news|title=Secrets case ended|work=The Times|date=8 November 1940|page=2|ref={{sfnRef|"Secrets Case Ended". ''The Times''}}}}
* {{cite news|last=Stanhope|first=Henry|title=Panzers and warhorses|work=The Times|date=18 November 1993|page=39}}
* {{cite news|last=Stummer|first=Robin|title=Len Deighton's Observer cookstrips, Michael Caine and the 1960s|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/14/len-deighton-observer-cookstrips-michael-caine-1960s|work=The Observer|date=14 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614145136/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/14/len-deighton-observer-cookstrips-michael-caine-1960s|url-status=live|archive-date=14 June 2016}}
* {{cite news|title=Through the lens of half a century, we look back on the moments that shaped entertainment and pop culture|work=The Daily News of Los Angeles|date=17 January 2020|page=1|ref={{sfnRef|''The Daily News of Los Angeles''. 17 January 2020}}}}
* {{cite news|last=Twigg|first=Melissa|title=The Ipcress File costumes bringing the 1960s drama to life; How class, history and the 1965 film inspired costume designs for the new series, writes Melissa Twigg|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=9 March 2022|page=24}}
* {{cite news|last=Walsh|first=John|title=A taste of the action: Len Deighton's cult Sixties' cookbook is back|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/a-taste-of-the-action-len-deightons-cult-sixties-cookbook-is-back-1707751.html|work=The Independent|date=17 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305012259/http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/a-taste-of-the-action-len-deightons-cult-sixties-cookbook-is-back-1707751.html|url-status=live|archive-date=5 March 2016}}
* {{cite news|last=Whitworth|first=Damian|title=There's a Nazi in No 10 and the SS in Scotland Yard|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/theres-a-nazi-in-no-10-and-the-ss-in-scotland-yard-n925cjfms|work=The Times|date=11 February 2017}}

====Websites====
* {{cite web|title=BBC Radio 4 – Desert Island Discs, Len Deighton|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009n0py|website=BBC|access-date=27 October 2023|ref={{sfnRef|"BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Len Deighton". BBC}}}}
* {{Cite web|url=http://www.christies.com/features/Collector_Naipaul_V2-5324-1.aspx|title=Collectors & their collections: V.S. Naipaul|date=1 June 2015|website=Christie's|access-date=31 March 2020|ref={{sfnRef|"Collectors & their collections: V.S. Naipaul". ''Christie's''}}}}
* {{cite web|last=Deighton|first=Len|title=Len Deighton reveals how he wrote SS-GB, the bestseller that imagines Hitler had won the war|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2017-06-09/len-deighton-reveals-how-he-wrote-ss-gb-the-bestseller-that-imagines-hitler-had-won-the-war/|website=Radio Times|access-date=26 March 2020|date=9 July 2017}}
* {{cite web|title=Game, Set and Match (1988)|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b795cfc03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427162751/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b795cfc03|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 April 2016|publisher=British Film Institute|access-date=30 March 2020|ref={{sfnRef|"Game, Set and Match (1988)". British Film Institute}}}}
* {{cite web|title=Len Deighton|url=https://adrianflowersarchive.com/len-deighton-cooking/|publisher=Adrian Flowers|access-date=31 October 2023|ref={{sfnRef|"Len Deighton". Adrian Flowers}}}}
* {{cite web|title=Len Deighton|url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CH1000024326&v=2.1&u=wes_ttda&it=r&p=CA&sw=w&asid=c198ef6646d916e0f788f6acf88e377c|work=Contemporary Authors|publisher=Gale|access-date=25 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415112654/http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CH1000024326&v=2.1&u=wes_ttda&it=r&p=CA&sw=w&asid=c198ef6646d916e0f788f6acf88e377c|archive-date=15 April 2016|url-status=dead|ref={{sfnRef|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Authors''}}}} {{subscription required}}
* {{cite web|title=Len Deighton|url=https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1659000147/BIC?u=wikipedia&sid=bookmark-BIC&xid=38f7b357|website=Contemporary Novelists|publisher=Gale|access-date=30 October 2023|date=2001|ref={{sfnRef|"Len Deighton". ''Contemporary Novelists''}}}} {{subscription required}}
* {{cite web|title=Only When I Larf (1968)|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6b2308ea|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310133047/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b6b2308ea|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 March 2016|publisher=British Film Institute|access-date=28 March 2020|ref={{sfnRef|"Only When I Larf (1968)". British Film Institute}}}}
* {{cite web|last=Sharf|first=Zack|title=Quentin Tarantino's last movie: 17 unmade projects that could be his final film|url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/quentin-tarantino-movies-never-made/killer-crow/|website=IndieWire|access-date=29 March 2020|date=3 October 2019}}
* {{cite web|title=Types of school|url=https://www.gov.uk/types-of-school|publisher=UK Government|access-date=30 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002134141/https://www.gov.uk/types-of-school|archive-date=2 October 2023|ref={{sfnRef|"Types of school". UK Government}}}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb name|215050}}
* {{Isfdb Name|2335}}
* {{discogs artist|Len Deighton}}

{{Len Deighton}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deighton, Len}}
[[Category:Len Deighton]]
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century British novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century Royal Air Force personnel]]
[[Category:Alumni of Saint Martin's School of Art]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal College of Art]]
[[Category:British alternative history writers]]
[[Category:British food writers]]
[[Category:British historical novelists]]
[[Category:British illustrators]]
[[Category:British male novelists]]
[[Category:British male screenwriters]]
[[Category:British military historians]]
[[Category:British military writers]]
[[Category:British spy fiction writers]]
[[Category:Flight attendants]]
[[Category:British historians of World War II]]
[[Category:Members of the Detection Club]]
[[Category:People of the British Overseas Airways Corporation]]
[[Category:People educated at St Marylebone Grammar School]]
[[Category:People educated at William Ellis School]]
[[Category:People from Marylebone]]
[[Category:Writers from the City of Westminster]]
[[Category:Writers who illustrated their own writing]]