R. Austin Freeman

R. Austin Freeman was born in Soho, London on 11 April 1862. He was originally named Richard and later added the Austin to his name. Freeman is the doyen of the scientific division of detective writing and is best known for his character Dr John Thorndyke. A close and careful investigator and the outstanding medical authority in the field of detective fiction, Freeman not only tested the wits of the reader but also inspired many modern detective forensic methods. Much of his long life was spent as a physician and surgeon at the Middlesex Hospital, London. He also held posts in West Africa and later was a medical officer at Holloway Prison. The most famous of the Edwardian detective writers, he rescued the detective story from "thrillerdom" and made it acceptable to a more demanding reader.