Dornford Yates

Dornford Yates was the pseudonym of the English novelist, Cecil William Mercer , whose novels and short stories, some humorous , some thrillers , were bestsellers in the 21year interwar period between the First and Second world wars. The pen name, Dornford Yates, first in print in 1910, resulted from combining the surnames of his grandmothers the paternal Eliza Mary Dornford, and the maternal Harriet Yates.

William Mercer was born in Walmer, Kent, the son of Cecil John Mercer and Helen Wall . His father was a solicitor whose sister, Mary Frances, married Charles Augustus Munro their son was Hector Hugh Munro Bill Mercer is said to have idolised his elder cousin.

Source: Wikipedia