R. D. Wingfield - Inspector Frost

Inspector Frost

In 1972, Macmillan Publishers invited him to write a book, and he wrote Frost at Christmas. This was rejected and not published until the early 1980s in Canada. Wingfield had originally planned to kill Frost in the first book, but he was persuaded instead to leave it as an open ending. Following this, two more Frost books were written: A Touch of Frost and Night Frost. In 1977 Frost appeared in a radio play called Three Days of Frost, in which Frost was played by Leslie Sands, a friend of Wingfield's. The books were first published in the United Kingdom in early 1989, and in 1992 Frost first appeared on television in A Touch of Frost, played by David Jason. Wingfield was never enthusiastic about the TV adaptation of his detective, once saying he had nothing against David Jason but "he just isn't my Frost".

Hard Frost was published in 1995, followed by Winter Frost in 1999. Wingfield did not enjoy writing books, and much preferred writing radio scripts. In 20 years he wrote over 40 radio mystery plays, but stopped in 1988, with Hate Mail, due to the decline of radio and the success of his Frost books. As well as the many mystery plays, Wingfield also penned a comedy radio series, The Secret Life of Kenneth Williams, starring Kenneth Williams as a secret agent. Wingfield was a very private man, always avoiding book launches and publishing parties, and being rarely photographed.