Ken Follett was born on 5 June 1949 in Cardiff, Wales, the son of a tax inspector. He was educated at state schools and graduated from University College, London, with an Honours degree in philosophy. He was made a Fellow of the college in 1995. He became a reporter, first with his home-town newspaper the South Wales Echo and later with the London Evening News. While working on the Evening News he wrote his first novel, which was published but did not become a bestseller. He then went to work for a small London publishing house, Everest Books, eventually becoming Deputy Managing Director. He continued to write novels in his spare time.
Follett burst into the book world in 1978 with Eye of the Needle, a taut and original thriller with a memorable woman character in the central role. The book won the Edgar award and became an outstanding film starring Kate Nelligan and Donald Sutherland. He went on to write four more bestselling thrillers: Triple; The Key to Rebecca; The Man from St. Petersburg; and Lie Down with Lions. For a while he abandoned the straightforward spy genre, but his stories still had powerful narrative drive, strong women characters, and elements of suspense and intrigue. You can find a collection of Ken Follet signed books below this author biography.
Follett is married to Barbara Follett, a political activist who was the Member of Parliament for Stevenage in Hertfordshire for thirteen years and Minister for Culture in the government of Gordon Brown. They divide their time between Stevenage, London, and Antigua. Ken Follett is a lover of Shakespeare, and is often to be seen at London productions of the Bard's plays. An enthusiastic amateur musician, he plays bass guitar in a band called Damn Right I Got the Blues, and appears occasionally with the folk group Clog Iron playing a bass balalaika.
The Heist of the Century - 1978 (with René Louis Maurice, others) (a.k.a. The Gentleman of 16 July (U.S.)
Ken Follett Awards
Edgar Award, Mystery Writers of America, 1979 (Eye of the Needle, Best Novel)
Corine Award (Germany) 2003 (Jackdaws, Readers’ Prize)
Olaguibel Prize, awarded by the Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos Vasco-Navarro for contributing to the promotion and awareness of architecture (January 2008)
Ken Follett was born on 5 June 1949 in Cardiff, Wales, the son of a tax inspector. He was educated at state schools and graduated from University College, London, with an Honours degree in philosophy. He was made a Fellow of the college in 1995. He became a reporter, first with his home-town newspaper the South Wales Echo and later with the London Evening News. While working on the Evening News he wrote his first novel, which was published but did not become a bestseller. He then went to work for a small London publishing house, Everest Books, eventually becoming Deputy Managing Director. He continued to write novels in his spare time. 
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