Brian Moore was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He was an author, screenwriter, and journalist. In World War II, he served as a volunteer air raid warden in Belfast. In 1948, he emigrated to Canada and became a Canadian citizen. In 1959, he moved to the USA where he taught creative writing at the University of California in Los Angeles. He also wrote under the pseudonyms 'Michael Bryan' and 'Bernard Mara'.