It was a sweeping family epic about the parallel rises to power of two men born on the same day, one the son of a wealthy banking family, the other a poor immigrant.

It was a classic case of 'write what you know,' as Archer told a tale of four men teaming up for revenge on the financier who had swindled them in a shady stock deal.Īrcher's 1979 novel Kane and Abel ( e-book | e-audio | print | audio) was the biggest success he'd yet had. Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less ( e-book | e-audio) was published in 1976. Needing more time to focus on repairing his personal finances, he resigned from Parliament and began writing his first novel. Archer brought defamation charges against Berkeley, and the story was mostly kept out of the press.Īrcher faced a financial crisis in 1974 when he was among the victims of a fraudulent investment scheme. He claimed that Archer had been guilty of financial malfeasance while at UNA.

When the Conservative Party was considering Archer as a candidate, they were strongly discouraged by Humphrey Berkeley, who had been the chair of the UNA during Archer's time there. He was elected to Parliament two years later. During his years at Oxford, he began working as a fundraiser for various charities, and he continued that work after leaving Oxford, including working for the United Nations Association (UNA).Īrcher began his political career in 1967 when he was elected to the London City Council.

Archer is a British novelist and former politician whose own life has been colorful and eventful enough to be the stuff of fiction.Īrcher entered Oxford in 1963 and studied for three years. Jeffrey Archer was born on April 15, 1940.

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