Philip MacDonald 1899-1981   Philip MacDonald was the son of Ronald MacDonald, novelist and playwright, and the grandson of George MacDonald, Scottish poet and novelist. His mother was a Shakespearean actress. After school, he joined the cavalry and served in Mesopotamia towards the end of the First World War. Together with his father, he wrote two books under the pseudonym 'Oliver Fleming'. Between 1930 and 1933, he wrote an average of five crime novels a year. Twelve of his novels feature 'Colonel Anthony Ruthven Gethryn'. He also wrote scripts for one of Hollywood's largest studios. Three crime novels were written under the pseudonym 'Martin Porlock'. In the US, these books were published under his own name.

Titles and year of publication:
 

1) The Rasp	1924
2) The White Crow	1928
3) The Noose	1930
4) The Link	1930
5) Rynox (US Title: The Rynox Murder Mystery)	1930
6) Murder Gone Mad	1931
7) The Choice (US Title: The Polferry Riddle)	1931
8) The Wraith	1931
9) The Crime Conductor	1931
10) Harbour	1931
11) The Maze (US Title: Persons Unknown)	1932
12) Rope to Spare	1932
13) Death on My Left	1933
14) R.I.P. (US Title: Menace)	1933
15) The Nursemaid Who Disappeared (US Title: Warrant for X)	1938
16) The Dark Wheel	1948
17) Fingers of Fear (short stories) (US Title: Something to Hide) (Edgar Award)	1952
18) Guest in the House	1956
19) The Man out of the Rain (short stories)	1957
20) The List of Adrian Messenger	1960
21) Death and Chicanery (short stories)	1963
As 'Martin Porlock'
1) Mystery at Friar's Pardon	1931
2) Mystery in Kensington Gore (US Title: Escape)	1932
3) X v. Rex (US Title: The Dead Police)	1933