Kenneth Royce

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For the American author Kenneth W. Royce (aka Boston T. Party), see Kenneth W. Royce

Kenneth Royce Gandley (b. 1920- d. 1997)

English thriller writer who also wrote under name Ken Royce, and the pseudonym Oliver Jacks.

He wrote 36 thriller novels between 1959 and 1997 under his own name (including The Third Arm, The Stalin Account, Fall-Out, 10,000 Days and Channel Assault), and three as Jacks. His best known works were his novels featuring semi-reformed cat burglar William 'Spider' Scott, an XYY Man, whose extra 'Y' chromosome (in the erroneous-but-conventional wisdom of the time) gave him a pre-disposition towards criminality. After attempting to 'go straight', he finds his talents are in demand not only from the criminal underworld, but also the secret service, and he is co-opted into dangerous undercover work (usually through blackmail, the temptations of money, or through his interest being piqued).

Royce wrote seven XYY Man books:

• The XYY Man (1970)
• Concrete Boot (1971)
• The Miniatures Frame (1972)
• Spider Underground (The Masterpiece Affair) (1973)
• Trap Spider (1974)
• The Crypto Man (1984)
• The Mosley Receipt (1985).

A television series of The XYY Man in 1976-7 (adapting the early books) created a popular appetite for the character, and also that of his nemesis, Detective Sergeant George Bulman, a relatively minor character in the original books, but brought to life on the screen by the memorable performance of Don Henderson. After the run of Spider Scott programmes ended, Bulman had many television adventures not based on Royce's work (the series Strangers, 1978-82, and Bulman, 1985-7), though Royce wrote several more Bulman novels towards the end of his life, No Way Back (Hashimi's Revenge) (1986), The Judas Trail (1996) and Shadows (1996).