Alexander McCall Smith, was born August 24, 1948. He is a Zimbabwean-born British writer and Emeritus Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. In the late 20th century McCall Smith became a respected expert on medical law and bioethics and served on British and international committees concerned with these issues. He has since become internationally known as a writer of fiction, most widely known as the creator of the The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series.