David Ashton

David Ashton is a Scottish actor, writer, and dramatist best known as the creator of Inspector McLevy, the beloved BBC Radio 4 detective series starring Brian Cox. Born in Greenock in 1941, he trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama and had a long career as an actor before turning to writing. The McLevy radio series, based on the real-life memoirs of a nineteenth-century Edinburgh detective, has run for over twelve series on BBC Radio 4. Ashton also wrote four McLevy novels. The Belly of the Beast continues his exploration of Victorian Edinburgh's criminal underworld. His writing combines historical atmosphere with dark wit and compelling mystery. His audiobooks and books offer listeners and readers Victorian detective fiction rooted in real Edinburgh history — mysteries brought to life through brilliant radio drama and vivid prose.