Dennis Yates Wheatley (8 January 1897 – 10 November 1977) was an English writer whose prolific output of

thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

s and

occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...

novels made him one of the world's best-selling authors from the 1930s through to the 1960s.

Early life

Wheatley was born at 10, Raleigh Gardens,

Brixton Hill Brixton Hill is the name given to a section of road between Brixton and Streatham Hill in south London, England. Brixton Hill and Streatham Hill form part of the traditional main A23 road, London to Brighton road (A23). The road follows the li ...

, London, the eldest of three children--and only son--of Albert David Wheatley (died 1927) and Florence Elizabeth Harriet (1874-1955), daughter of

ironmaster An ironmaster is the manager, and usually owner, of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain. The ironmaster was usually a larg ...

William Yates Baker, of Aspen House, 219, Brixton Hill. Wheatley's father owned Wheatley & Son, a wine business in

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

, London. Dennis admitted to having little aptitude for schooling and was later expelled after a few "unhappy years" studying at

Dulwich College Dulwich College is a 2-18 private, day and boarding school for boys in Dulwich, London, England. As a public school, it began as the College of God's Gift, founded in 1619 by Elizabethan actor Edward Alleyn, with the original purpose of ...

for allegedly forming a "secret society", as he mentions in his introduction to ''

The Devil Rides Out ''The Devil Rides Out'' is a 1934 horror novel by Dennis Wheatley, telling a disturbing story of black magic and the occult. The four main characters, the Duke de Richleau, Rex van Ryn, Simon Aron and Richard Eaton, appear in a series of nov ...

''. Soon after his expulsion, Wheatley became a

British Merchant Navy The British Merchant Navy is the collective name given to British civilian ships and their associated crews, including officers and ratings. In the UK, it is simply referred to as the Merchant Navy or MN. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensi ...

officer cadet on the training ship HMS ''Worcester''.

Military service

Wheatley was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...

during the First World War, receiving his basic training at Biscot Camp in

Luton Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census. Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...

. He was assigned to the

City of London Brigade A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

and the

36th (Ulster) Division The 36th (Ulster) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, part of Lord Kitchener's New Army, formed in September 1914. Originally called the ''Ulster Division'', it was made up of mainly members of the Ulster Volunteers, who f ...

. Dennis was gassed in a

chlorine Chlorine is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Cl and atomic number 17. The second-lightest of the halogens, it appears between fluorine and bromine in the periodic table and its properties are mostly intermediate between ...

attack during Passchendaele and was invalided out, having served in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

, on the

Ypres Salient The Ypres Salient, around Ypres, in Belgium, was the scene of several battles and a major part of the Western Front during World War I. Location Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee. The city is overlooked b ...

, and in France at

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...

and

Saint-Quentin Saint-Quentin may refer to: Places Canada *Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick * Saint-Quentin Parish, New Brunswick * Saint-Quentin Island, in Trois-Rivières, in Québec France * Saint-Quentin, Aisne, in the Aisne department * Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines ...

. In 1919 he took over management of the family's wine business. In 1931, however, after his father's death, and with business having declined because of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, he sold the firm and began writing. In 1930, his widowed mother married Sir Louis Newton, 1st Baronet,

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

1923–24. During the Second World War Wheatley was a member of the

London Controlling Section The London Controlling Section (LCS) was a British secret department established in September 1941, under Oliver Stanley, with a mandate to coordinate Allied strategic military deception during World War II. The LCS was formed within the Joint ...

, which secretly coordinated strategic military deception and cover plans. His literary talents led to his working with planning staffs for the War Office. He wrote numerous papers for them, including suggestions for dealing with a possible Nazi invasion of Britain (recounted in his works ''Stranger than Fiction'' and ''The Deception Planners''). The most famous of his submissions to the Joint Planning Staff of the war cabinet was on "Total War". He received a direct commission in the JP Service as a

Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr or W/C) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Wing commander is immediately se ...

RAFVR The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF) in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force ( ...

, and took part in the plans for the

Normandy invasion Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 ( D-Day) with the ...

s. After the war Wheatley was awarded the U.S.

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for his role in the Second World War.

Writing career

Wheatley's first book, ''Three Inquisitive People'', was not published when completed, but came out later, in 1940. However, his next novel made quite a splash. Called '' The Forbidden Territory'', it was an immediate success when issued by Hutchinson in 1933, being reprinted seven times in seven weeks. After finishing ''The Fabulous Valley'', Wheatley decided to use the theme of black magic for his next book. He wrote: "The fact that I had read extensively about ancient religions gave me some useful background, but I required up-to-date information about occult circles in this country. My friend,

Tom Driberg Thomas Edward Neil Driberg, Baron Bradwell (22 May 1905 – 12 August 1976) was a British journalist, politician, High Anglican churchman and possible Soviet spy, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1942 to 1955, and again from 1 ...

, who then lived in a mews flat just behind us in Queen's Gate, proved most helpful. He introduced me to

Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley ( ; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pr ...

, the Reverend

Montague Summers Augustus Montague Summers (10 April 1880 – 10 August 1948) was an English author, clergyman, and teacher. As an independent scholar, he published many works on the English drama of the Stuart Restoration (1660–1688) and helped to organise ...

and Rollo Ahmed." The release the next year of his occult story, ''

''—hailed by James Hilton as "the best thing of its kind since ''

Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...

''"—cemented his reputation as "The Prince of Thriller Writers." Wheatley mainly wrote adventure novels, with many books in a series of linked works. Background themes included the French Revolution (the '' Roger Brook'' series),

Satanism Satanism refers to a group of religious, ideological, or philosophical beliefs based on Satan—particularly his worship or veneration. Because of the ties to the historical Abrahamic religious figure, Satanism—as well as other religious ...

(the ''

Duke de Richleau The Duke de Richleau is a fictional character created by Dennis Wheatley who appeared in 11 novels published between 1933 and 1970. Dennis Wheatley originally created the character for a murder mystery ''Three Inquisitive People'', written and ...

'' series),

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(the ''Gregory Sallust'' series) and espionage (the ''Julian Day'' novels). Over time, each of his major series would include at least one book pitting the hero against some manifestation of the supernatural—making them into

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

and specifically

contemporary fantasy Contemporary fantasy is a genre, subgenre of fantasy set in the present day. It is perhaps most popular for its subgenres, occult detective fiction, urban fantasy, low fantasy, supernatural fiction and paranormal fiction. Several authors note that ...

. He came to be considered an authority on

, the practice of

exorcism Exorcism () is the religious or spiritual practice of evicting demons, jinns, or other malevolent spiritual entities from a person, or an area, that is believed to be possessed. Depending on the spiritual beliefs of the exorcist, this may be do ...

, and

black magic Black magic (Middle English: ''nigromancy''), sometimes dark magic, traditionally refers to the use of Magic (paranormal), magic or supernatural powers for evil and selfish purposes. The links and interaction between black magic and religi ...

, toward all of which he expressed hostility. During his study of the

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

, though, he joined

the Ghost Club The Ghost Club is a paranormal investigation and research organization, founded in London in 1862. It is believed to be the oldest such organisation in the world, though its history has not been continuous. The club still investigates mainly gh ...

. In many of his works, Wheatley wove in interactions between his characters and actual historical events and individuals. For example, in the ''Roger Brook'' series the main character involves himself with

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

and

Joséphine Josephine may refer to: People *Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) *Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer Places *Josephine, Texas, United States *Josephine County, Oregon, a county located in the U. ...

whilst

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

ing for Prime Minister

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt (28 May 1759 – 23 January 1806) was a British statesman who served as the last prime minister of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1783 until the Acts of Union 1800, and then first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, p ...

. Similarly, in the ''Gregory Sallust'' series, Sallust shares an evening meal with

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...

. In ''They Used Dark Forces'', the last book of the Sallust war-time sequence, Göring gets a surprisingly positive depiction as an honourable man who disliked the systematic killing of the Jews (though not actually doing anything to stop it) and who wanted to end the war when realizing that Germany was doomed to lose it; Göring is contrasted with

Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda ...

, who according to Wheatley "was on the extreme left" and "took seriously the Socialist part of National Socialism". During the 1930s, Wheatley conceived a series of mysteries, presented as case files, including testimonies, letters, and pieces of evidence such as hairs or pills. The reader had to inspect this evidence to solve the mystery before unsealing the last pages of the file, which gave the answer. Four of these 'Crime Dossiers' were published: ''Murder Off Miami'', ''Who Killed Robert Prentice?'', ''The Malinsay Massacre'', and ''Herewith The Clues!''. Wheatley also devised a number of board games including ''Invasion'' (1938), ''Blockade'' (1939), and ''Alibi'' (April 1953). In the 1960s, Hutchinson was selling a million copies of his books per year, and most of his titles were kept available in hardcover. A few of his books were made into films by

Hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nail (fastener), nails into wood, to sh ...

, of which the best known is ''

'' (book 1934,

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

1968). Wheatley also wrote non-fiction works, including an account of the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

, a life of

King Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and King of Ireland, Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest su ...

, and several autobiographical volumes. Dennis Wheatley Grave Brookwood

He edited several collections of short stories, and from 1974 to 1977 he supervised a series of 45 paperback reprints for the British publisher Sphere with the heading "The Dennis Wheatley Library of the Occult", selecting the titles and writing short introductions for each book. These included both occult-themed novels by the likes of

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912), better known by his pen name Bram Stoker, was an Irish novelist who wrote the 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. The book is widely considered a milestone in Vampire fiction, and one of t ...

and

(with whom he once shared a lunch) and non-fiction works on

magic Magic or magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces ** ''Magick'' (with ''-ck'') can specifically refer to ceremonial magic * Magic (illusion), also known as sta ...

occultism The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mystic ...

, and

divination Divination () is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice. Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a should proceed by reading signs, ...

by authors such as the

Theosophist Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neo ...

H. P. Blavatsky, the historian Maurice Magre, the magician

Isaac Bonewits Phillip Emmons Isaac Bonewits (October 1, 1949 – August 12, 2010) was an American Neo-Druid who wrote a number of books on the subject of Neopaganism and magic. Bonewits was a public speaker, liturgist, singer and songwriter, and founder ...

, and the palm-reader Cheiro. Two weeks before his death in November 1977, Wheatley received conditional

absolution Absolution is a theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Priest#Christianity, Christian priests and experienced by Penance#Christianity, Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, alth ...

from his old friend Cyril 'Bobby' Eastaugh, the

Bishop of Peterborough The Bishop of Peterborough is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Peterborough in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of Northamptonshire (including the Soke of Peterborough) and Rutland. The see is in ...

. He was cremated at

Tooting Tooting is a district in South London, forming part of the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is located south south-west of Charing Cross. History Tooting has been settled since pre-Anglo-Saxons, Saxon times. The name is of Anglo-Saxon ori ...

and his ashes interred at the South Cemetery section of

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regist ...

, under a tall tree near the entrance. He is also commemorated on the Baker/Yates family monument at

West Norwood Cemetery West Norwood Cemetery is a rural cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery. One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the " Magnificent Seven" cemeteries of ...

. His estate library was sold in a catalogue sale by

Basil Blackwell Sir Basil Henry Blackwell (29 May 18899 April 1984) was an English bookseller. Biography Blackwell was born in Oxford, England. He was the son of Benjamin Henry Blackwell (18491924), founder of Blackwell's bookshop in Oxford, which went on to beco ...

's in 1979. It suggested a well-read individual with wide-ranging interests, particularly with respect to historical fiction and Europe. His grandson Dominic Wheatley became one of the co-founders of the software house

Domark Eidos Interactive Limited (formerly Domark Limited) was a British video game publisher based in Wimbledon, London. Among its franchises were '' Championship Manager'', ''Deus Ex'', ''Hitman'', ''Thief'' and ''Tomb Raider''. Domark was founded b ...

, which published a number of titles in the 1980s and 1990s.

Politics

Wheatley's work reflects his conservative worldview. His protagonists are generally supporters of the monarchy, the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

and the

class system A social class or social stratum is a grouping of people into a set of Dominance hierarchy, hierarchical social categories, the most common being the working class and the Bourgeoisie, capitalist class. Membership of a social class can for exam ...

, and many of his villains are villainous because they attack these ideas. Wheatley was an opponent of

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

and

Communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

, believing them to be controlled by Satanic power.

''Letter to Posterity''

During the winter of 1947, Wheatley penned 'A Letter to Posterity' and buried it in an urn at his country home. The letter was intended to be discovered some time in the future (it was found in 1969, when the house was demolished for redevelopment of the property). He predicted in it that the socialist reforms, which were introduced by the post-war government, would result inevitably in the abolition of the monarchy, the "pampering" of a "lazy" working class and a national bankruptcy. He advised both passive and active resistance to the resulting "tyranny", including "ambushing and killing of unjust tyrannous officials".

Employers are now no longer allowed to run their businesses as they think best but have become the bond slaves of socialist state planning. The school leaving age has been put up to 16, and a 5 day working week has been instituted in the mines, the railways and many other industries. The doctrine of ensuring every child a good start in life and equal opportunities is fair and right, but the intelligent and the hardworking will always rise above the rest, and it is not a practical proposition that the few should be expected to devote their lives exclusively to making things easy for the majority. In time, such a system is bound to undermine the vigour of the race.

Posthumous publication

From 1972 to 1977 (the year of his death), 52 of Wheatley's novels were offered in a uniform hardcover set by Heron Books UK. (This was in addition to Hutchinson's own "Lymington" library edition, published from 1961 to 1979.) Having brought each of his major fictional series to a close with the final Roger Brook novel, Wheatley then turned to his memoirs. These were announced as five volumes, but were eventually only published as three books, the (fourth) volume concerning the Second World War issued as a separate title. His availability and influence declined following his death, partly owing to difficulties of reprinting his works because of copyright problems. In 1998

Justerini & Brooks Justerini & Brooks Ltd. (J&B) is a fine wine and spirits merchant founded in St. James's in 1749, originally to provide wine and spirits to the aristocratic households of London. Is mostly known for their J&B Rare Scotch whisky. The firm has ...

celebrated their upcoming 250th anniversary by revising his last work about their house, ''The Eight Ages of Justerini's'' (1965) and re-issuing it as ''The Nine Ages of Justerini's''. The revision by Susan Keevil brought the history up to date. Wheatley's literary estate was acquired by media company Chorion in April 2008, and several titles were reissued in Wordsworth paperback editions. A new hardcover omnibus of Black Magic novels was released by Prion in 2011. When Chorion encountered financial problems in 2012, the Rights House and PFD acquired four crime estates from them, including the Wheatley titles. PFD hoped to broker new series for TV and radio, and a move to digital publishing. In October 2013, Bloomsbury Reader began republishing 56 of his titles; many of these will be edited and abridged. However, many of them will also have new introductions evaluating Wheatley's work, including some written by his grandson, Dominic Wheatley. These are to be available in both printed format and as ebooks.

In fiction

In Stephen Volk's novella ''Netherwood'', part of Volk's 2018 book ''The Dark Masters Trilogy'', set in 1947, a fictional version of Wheatley is involved in black magic by Aleister Crowley.

Works

All titles in this list (up to the end of the 'Short Story Collection' section) were made available in the 1970s Heron hardback edition, except for the titles marked with an 'X'.

Duke de Richleau The Duke de Richleau is a fictional character created by Dennis Wheatley who appeared in 11 novels published between 1933 and 1970. Dennis Wheatley originally created the character for a murder mystery ''Three Inquisitive People'', written and ...
series

* '' The Forbidden Territory'' (Adventure, January 1933) – filmed in 1934 * ''

'' (Occult/Romance, December 1934) – filmed in 1968 * ''The Golden Spaniard'' (Adventure, August 1938) * ''Three Inquisitive People'' (Crime, February 1940) * ''Strange Conflict'' (Occult, April 1941) * ''Codeword – Golden Fleece'' (Espionage, May 1946) * ''The Second Seal'' (Historical/Espionage, November 1950) * ''The Prisoner in the Mask'' (Historical/Espionage, September 1957) * ''Vendetta in Spain'' (Historical/Espionage, August 1961) * ''Dangerous Inheritance'' (Crime, August 1965) * ''Gateway to Hell'' (Occult, August 1970)

Gregory Sallust series

* '' Black August'' (Science Fiction/Adventure, January 1934) * ''Contraband'' (Espionage, October 1936) * ''The Scarlet Impostor'' (Espionage, January 1940) * ''Faked Passports'' (Espionage, June 1940) * ''The Black Baroness'' (Espionage/Crime, October 1940) * ''V for Vengeance'' (Espionage, March 1942) * ''Come into My Parlour'' (Espionage, November 1946) * ''The Island Where Time Stands Still'' (Espionage, September 1954) * ''Traitors' Gate'' (Espionage, September 1958) * ''

They Used Dark Forces ''They Used Dark Forces'' is the final part of Gregory Sallust's wartime experiences. In this novel Sallust is sent to investigate rumours of a German superweapon being built in Peenemünde. He is wounded following an air raid and encounters Ibra ...

'' (Espionage/Occult, October 1964) * ''The White Witch of the South Seas'' (Crime/Occult, August 1968)

Julian Day series

* ''The Quest of Julian Day'' (Adventure/Romance, January 1939) * ''The Sword of Fate'' (Adventure/Romance, September 1941) * ''Bill for the Use of a Body'' (Crime, April 1964)

Roger Brook series

* ''The Launching of Roger Brook'' (Historical/Espionage, July 1947) * ''The Shadow of Tyburn Tree'' (Historical/Espionage, May 1948) * ''The Rising Storm'' (Historical/Espionage, October 1949) * ''The Man Who Killed the King'' (Historical/Espionage, November 1951) * ''The Dark Secret of Josephine'' (Historical/Espionage, March 1955) * ''The Rape of Venice'' (Historical/Espionage, October 1959) * ''The Sultan's Daughter'' (Historical/Espionage, August 1963) * ''The Wanton Princess'' (Historical/Espionage, August 1966) * ''Evil in a Mask'' (Historical/Espionage, August 1969) * ''The Ravishing of Lady Mary Ware'' (Historical/Espionage, August 1971) * ''The Irish Witch'' (Historical/Espionage/Occult, August 1973) * ''Desperate Measures'' (Historical/Espionage, September 1974)

Molly Fountain and Colonel Verney novels

* ''To the Devil – a Daughter'' (Occult, January 1953) (filmed in 1976) * '' The Satanist'' (Occult, August 1960)

Stand-alone occult novels

* ''

The Haunting of Toby Jugg ''The Haunting of Toby Jugg'' is a 1948 psychological thriller novel on an occult theme by English writer Dennis Wheatley, incorporating his usual themes of satanic possession and madness, in what was at that time a fresh situation: a disabled Br ...

'' oby Jugg(Occult, December 1948) (filmed in 2006 as ''

The Haunted Airman ''The Haunted Airman'' is a psychological thriller film first aired on BBC Four on 31 October 2006. Adapted from Dennis Wheatley's 1948 novel '' The Haunting of Toby Jugg'', it was directed by Chris Durlacher and starred Robert Pattinson in the ...

'') * ''The Ka of Gifford Hillary'' ifford Hillary(Occult/Science Fiction, July 1956) * ''Unholy Crusade'' Lucky' Adam Gordon(Historical Adventure/Occult, August 1967)

Science fiction novels

* ''They Found Atlantis'' amilla and others(

Lost World The lost world is a subgenre of the fantasy or science fiction genres that involves the discovery of an unknown Earth civilization. It began as a subgenre of the late- Victorian adventure romance and remains popular into the 21st century. The ...

, January 1936) * ''Uncharted Seas'' [(

] (January 1938) (The Lost Continent (1968 film), filmed in 1968) * ''Sixty Days to Live'' (X). [Lavina Leigh and others] (End of the world, August 1939) * ''The Man Who Missed the War'' (X). [Philip Vaudell] (

, (November 1945) * ''Star of Ill-Omen'' (X). em Lincoln(Aliens, May 1952)

Adventure/espionage novels

* ''Such Power is Dangerous''

vril Bamborough ''Vril: The Power of the Coming Race'', originally published as ''The Coming Race'', is a novel by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, published anonymously in 1871. Some readers have believed the account of a superior subterranean master race and the ene ...

(Adventure,

June 1933) * ''The Fabulous Valley'' he Heirs of John Thomas Long(Adventure, August 1934) * '' The Eunuch of Stamboul'' within Destime(Espionage, July 1935) – filmed in 1936 as '' Secret of Stamboul'' * ''The Secret War'' ir Anthony Lovelace, Christopher Pen, Valerie Lorne(Espionage, January 1937) * '' Curtain of Fear'' icholas Novák(Espionage, October 1953) * ''Mayhem in Greece'' obbie Grenn(Espionage, August 1962) * ''The Strange Story of Linda Lee'' inda Lee(Crime/Adventure, August 1972)

Short story collections

* ''Mediterranean Nights'' There are three versions of this collection. The original version was issued in 1943, and was reprinted several times. It had 21 stories. Version two, an Arrow paperback edition, contained an introduction and six new stories: "The Worm That Turned", "The Last Card", "A Bowler Hat for Michael", "The Suspect", "Murder in the Pentagon" and "The Pick-up". The story in version one called 'The Terrorist' is omitted, making 26 stories in all. Version three appeared in the Lymington Edition of Wheatley's works in 1965. It has an abridged version of the introduction to version two. It includes all the stories in version two, and restores "The Terrorist" from version one, for a total of 27 stories. * ''Gunmen, Gallants and Ghosts'' (X). There are also three versions of this collection. The original version was issued in 1943, and was reprinted several times. It had 17 stories. Version two came out in the Arrow paperback edition, 1963 and later. It omits the "Bombing of London" written for

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

, and adds one story "In the Fog", and two items which are collections of articles, "Voodoo" and "Black Magic", for a total of 19 stories/items. It has a new introduction, identical to the one in version two of ''Mediterranean Nights''. Version three appeared in the Lymington Edition of Wheatley's works in 1965. It has a brief new introduction, made up mostly of material removed from the intro to version two of ''MN'' to make the intro to version three of ''MN''. It includes all items from version two, and restores the "Bombing of London", for a total of 20 items.

Non-fiction

* ''Old Rowley: A Private Life of Charles II'' (September 1933) * ''Red Eagle: The Story of the Russian Revolution and of Klementy Efremovitch Voroshilov, Marshal and Commissar for Defence of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics'' (October 1937) * ''The Devil and all his Works'' (September 1971)

'War papers and autobiography

* ''Total War'' (December 1941) * ''Stranger than Fiction'' (February 1959) * ''Saturdays with Bricks: And Other Days Under Shell-Fire'' (March 1961) * ''The Time Has Come ... : The Memoirs of Dennis Wheatley: The Young Man Said 1897–1914'' (1977) * ''The Time Has Come ... : The Memoirs of Dennis Wheatley: Officer and Temporary Gentleman 1914–1919'' (1978) * ''The Time Has Come ... : The Memoirs of Dennis Wheatley: Drink and Ink 1919–1977'' (1979) * ''The Deception Planners: My Secret War'' (August 1980)

Privately printed

* ''The Seven Ages of Justerini's (1749–1949)'' (1949) * ''Of Vice and Virtue'' (1950) * ''The Eight Ages of Justerini's (1749–1965)'' (1965) * ''The Nine Ages of Justerini's: A Celebration of 250 Years'' (1998, revised and updated by Susan Keevil) * ''Julie's Lovers'' (2022) * ''Dennis Wheatley: An Unpublished Miscellany'' (2023)

Crime dossiers (with J. G. Links)

* ''Murder off Miami'' (July 1936) * ''Who Killed Robert Prentice?'' (June 1937) * ''The Malinsay Massacre'' (April 1938) * ''Herewith the Clues!'' (July 1939)

Edited by

* ''A Century of Horror Stories'' (October 1935) * ''A Century of Spy Stories'' (June 1938)

Board games

* ''Invasion'' (1938) * ''Blockade'' (1939) * ''Alibi'' (1953)

Influence

Wheatley's Gregory Sallust series has been cited as an inspiration for

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer, best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his ...

's ''

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

'' stories.

Film adaptations

* ''

Forbidden Territory ''Forbidden Territory'' is a 1934 British thriller film directed by Phil Rosen and starring Gregory Ratoff, Ronald Squire and Binnie Barnes. It was based on the 1933 novel '' The Forbidden Territory'' by Dennis Wheatley. The film, about an Engl ...

'' (November 1934) * '' Secret of Stamboul''; US title ''The Spy in White'' (adaptation of '' The Eunuch of Stamboul''; October 1936) * ''

''; US title ''The Devil's Bride'' (July 1968) * '' The Lost Continent'' (adaptation of ''Uncharted Seas''; July 1968) * '' To the Devil...a Daughter'' (March 1976) * ''

'' (adaptation of ''The Haunting of Toby Jugg''; October 2006)

Biography

* Baker, Phil, ''The Devil is a Gentleman: the Life and Times of Dennis Wheatley'', Sawtry, UK: Dedalus. 2009. * Cabell, Craig, ''Dennis Wheatley: Churchill's Storyteller'', Staplehurst, UK: Spellmount. 2005.

References

External links

DennisWheatley.info

Wheatley's 1939 game 'Blockade'
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheatley, Dennis 1897 births 1977 deaths 20th-century British male writers 20th-century British novelists 20th-century English male writers 20th-century English novelists Booker authors' division British Army personnel of World War I British anti-communists British anti-fascists British historical novelists British horror writers British male novelists British Merchant Navy officers British science fiction writers British thriller writers Burials at Brookwood Cemetery English anti-communists English anti-fascists English horror writers English male novelists English science fiction writers English thriller writers People educated at Dulwich College Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Royal Air Force wing commanders Royal Field Artillery officers Writers of historical fiction set in the early modern period Writers of historical fiction set in the modern age

Early life

Military service

Writing career

Politics

''Letter to Posterity''

Posthumous publication

In fiction

Works

Duke de Richleau The Duke de Richleau is a fictional character created by Dennis Wheatley who appeared in 11 novels published between 1933 and 1970. Dennis Wheatley originally created the character for a murder mystery ''Three Inquisitive People'', written and ... series

Gregory Sallust series

Julian Day series

Roger Brook series

Molly Fountain and Colonel Verney novels

Stand-alone occult novels

Science fiction novels

Adventure/espionage novels

Short story collections

Non-fiction

'War papers and autobiography

Privately printed

Crime dossiers (with J. G. Links)

Edited by

Board games

Influence

Film adaptations

Biography

References

Further reading

External links

Duke de Richleau The Duke de Richleau is a fictional character created by Dennis Wheatley who appeared in 11 novels published between 1933 and 1970. Dennis Wheatley originally created the character for a murder mystery ''Three Inquisitive People'', written and ...
series