The Prime of Bertie Pollock

Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world's most prolific and popular authors. His career has been a varied one: for many years he was a professor of medical law and worked in universities in the United Kingdom and abroad. However since the publication of his hugely successful No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, which has sold more than 20 million copies, he has devoted his time to writing fiction. He has written more than 100 books to date which have been translated into more than 40 languages and become bestsellers through the world. McCall Smith was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 2007 and was made a Knight Bachelor in 2024. His multitude of other awards and honours include the 2004 Dagger in the Library Award, the 2004 British Book Award for Author of the Year and the 2022 Saltire Lifetime Achievement Award.

David attended Edinburgh University and then went to RADA on a scholarship. He has worked in most of Britain's major theatres, including the Royal Court, National Theatre, Shakespeare's Globe and Royal Shakespeare Company. On television he has played Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, "The Mad King" in Game of Thrones and the title character in ITV's Doctor Finlay. David's film work includes Unrelated, My Week With Marilyn, The Iron Lady and Roman Polanski's The Ghost. Most recently, he played Michael Adeane in the third season of Netflix’s The Crown. He has recorded over 300 audiobooks.