Ewen Southby-Tailyour was commissioned into the Royal Marines in 1960. Awarded the Sultan of Oman's Bravery Medal during the Dhofar War he was then appointed an OBE for the Falklands campaign and, in 1982, was elected the British Yachtsman of the Year. Following retirement, in 1993 he was employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and MI6, for duties in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia. He resigned the next year as he refused to falsify his daily reports covering the alleged breaking of UN Arms Embargo 713 by, inter alia, Germany and the United States. This is his 16th book.