He was born at Larkfield Hospital, Greenock, Inverclyde, on 3 May 1943, the son of Lieut. Commander Cecil and … See more

Graduating in 1965, he worked as an advertising copywriter before joining London Weekend Television and then the BBC where he was employed in documentary production. In collaboration with Terry Hughes he … See more

In 1972 he embarked on a career as a full-time freelance writer. Five years later he moved to live in America, initially basing himself in New York and subsequently relocating to Miami. In 1981 his account of the … See more

His opinion that World War II brought about a major change in British social and sexual attitudes, largely as a result of women’s participation in the war effort, found expression in his 1985 bestseller Love, Sex and War: C… See more

Costello next persuaded Crown Publishing Group to pay a considerable sum to the SVR to allow a team of American historians to work alongside KGB officers in examining Soviet intelligence records. This exercise led to the p… See more

Costello’s unexpected death at the age of 52, in somewhat unusual circumstances, attracted initial speculation that it had been contrived by Russian or British interests. There were certainly many, at government or agency l… See more