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Norman Colin Dexter was an English writer, best known for the Inspector Morse series of novels. His parents were Alfred and Dorothy Dexter, his father run a small taxi company. He had a brother, John, and a sister, Avril. He attended St. John's Infants School, Bluecoat Junior School, and then - gaining a scholarship - Stamford School.
After graduation, Dexter served in the Royal Corps of Signals as his national service. He then studied Classics at Christ's College, Cambridge, which he graduated in 1953, followed by receiving a master's degree in 1958. He worked a teacher in various schools from 1954 to 1966, when an onset of deafness forced him to change jobs. He then worked as a senior assistant secretary at the University of Oxford Delegacy of Local Examinations until his retirement in 1988. In 1972 Dexter published his first mystery fiction book, entitled Last Bus to Woodstock. The book introduced the character of inspector Morse, who appeared in further 12 novels written by Dexter. In 1987 the first episode of a screen adaptation of the novels, Inspector Morse (1987), was aired. The show run for seven seasons followed by five special episodes, the last one of which aired in 2000. It was followed by a spin-off entitled Inspector Lewis (2006) and a prequel entitled Endeavour (2012). Dexter was involved in the making of all these shows and had small cameos in most episodes.
His writings received a number of awards from the Crime Writers' Association and in 2000 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to literature. He was married to Dorothy Cooper from 1956 until his death; they had daughter, Sally, and a son, Jeremy. Dexter died on 21 March 2017 in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK.
