Peter Janson-Smith dies

Former literary agent Peter Janson-Smith, who represented author Ian Fleming, has died at the age of 93.

Janson-Smith worked for agent A D Peters from 1946-9 and then joined Curtis Brown as manager of its foreign language department, before setting up his own agency PJS Ltd in 1956.

As well as Fleming, his authors included Ring of Bright Water writer Gavin Maxwell, Eric Ambler, biographer Richard Holmes and C Northcote Parkinson. After Fleming's death, Janson-Smith became chairman of Glidrose Publications, now Ian Fleming Publications. The agent also represented Anthony Burgess until the author's move to Deborah Rogers Ltd, selling Burgess's seminal novel A Clockwork Orange in the early 1960s.

Janson-Smith was also for over 30 years executive trustee of the Pooh Properties Trust (licensing Winnie the Pooh), as well as senior treasurer, and for two years president, of the Royal Literary Fund.

He was the father of four, including former Blue Door m.d. and publisher Patrick Janson-Smith.

A full obituary will follow in The Bookseller at a later date.