James Bond author Gardner dead at 80

LONDON, Aug. 20 (UPI) -- John Gardner, the British author who wrote more novels about James Bond than Ian Fleming did, has died at the age of 80.

The man who penned 14 Bond novels in the 1980s and 1990s collapsed near his home in Basingstoke, England, and died of heart failure, said his daughter Alexis Walmsley.

Among Gardner's 007 titles are "License Renewed," "Win, Lose or Die," "Brokenclaw" and "Cold Fall."

Tthe Cambridge University graduate also was employed as an Anglican priest, Marine commando, drama critic for the Stratford-Upon-Avon Herald and semi-professional magician, The New York Times reported Monday.

He published his first book, “Spin the Bottle,” a memoir of his battle with alcoholism, in 1963 and his first novel, “The Liquidator,” the following year.

Despite the success of his books, Gardner went bankrupt in the 1990s when he underwent extensive treatment for esophageal cancer while living in Charlottesville, Va.

He then started publishing books such as "Bottled Spider," the first in a popular series starring policewoman Suzie Mountford.

Gardner's wife Margaret, whom he married in 1952, died in 1997.

Besides Walmsley, he leaves a son, Simon; another daughter, Miranda; four grandchildren; and fiancee Patricia Mountford.