Allan MacKenzie Nicol was born in Buckie, but grew up in Drumchapel and Scotstoun in Glasgow. After qualifying as a Solicitor, he joined Crown Office and became a Procurator Fiscal Depute for 12 years. He qualified as an Advocate in 1993 and then defended clients charged with more serious offences until 2011, when he re-joined Crown Office and became an Advocate Depute, prosecuting in High Courts throughout Scotland.
His book Manuel: Scotland’s First Serial Killer is seen as the definitive account of Scotland’s most notorious serial killer, and was published by Black & White Publishing in 2008. Its second edition, published in 2016, coincided with the television series In Plain Sight, for which he was script adviser. His second book, The Monster Butler: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer, was similarly published by Black & White in 2011.
Allan’s novel Liberation, the first to be published by Ringwood, came out in 2021 and is based on a real Glasgow case of a murder of a woman by a serving police officer. You can buy a copy of Liberation here.
Sheila Garvie: Mastermind or Victim is a novel based on a real case that took place in Kincardineshire in 1968 and which shook the whole of Scotland. The narrative seeks to uncover, as far as it can, the truth regarding Sheila’s involvement in her husband’s death. You can buy a copy here.
Other Projects
Allan currently co-hosts Murder Scotland, a podcast that investigates Scottish murders, with his niece, Julie Lamont. You can find more information and links to the latest episodes on the Murder Scotland website, here.
Media
Interview with author Simon McClean
Articles about Sheila Garvie: Mastermind or Victim
The Press and Journal, June 2022
Glasgow Evening Times, July 2022
Scottish Daily Express, August 2022