Having graduated in 1954, Knight became a pre-registration house officer. He undertook one six-month job in medicine and one in surgery. He was then a Senior House Officer specialising in pathology from 1955 to 1956.[4] He served in the British Army as a medical officer specialising in pathology from 1956 to 1959.[1]
Upon returning to the United Kingdom and leaving the army, he began lecturing. From 1959 to 1962, he was a lecturer in forensic medicine at the University of London.[1] He was a senior lecturer at the University of Newcastle from 1965 to 1968.[1] He then returned to his alma mater, the University of Wales, as a senior lecturer. He was promoted to reader in 1976 and to Professor of Forensic Pathology in 1980. He retired in 1996 becoming Emeritus Professor of the university.[1]
He has been writing since before 1963, when his first crime novel was published. Since then, he has written about thirty books, including contemporary crime fiction, historical novels about Wales, biography, non-fiction popular works on forensic medicine, twelve medico-legal textbooks and the Crowner John Mysteries series of 12th-century historical mysteries featuring one of the earliest (fictional) coroners in England.
In addition, he has written scripts for radio and television dramas and documentaries, including the forensic series The Expert starring Marius Goring, in the 1970s. He has contributed to many other textbooks and has edited several medical journals - he was Managing Editor of Elsevier's Forensic Science International, the leading international publication in the field.
The emphasis of the book is on the practical application of knowledge/research findings. The book includes the European Autopsy Protocol, updated findings in relation to sudden death and histopathology throughout.
"This remains one of the most important books in this field of pathology. It is comprehensive and well written and this edition has been significantly changed and updated. The images and drawings are carefully chosen and nicely depict common and uncommon problems encountered in forensic pathology. All the black-and-white drawings have been redrawn in full color. This book is highly recommended for everyone who performs medicolegal autopsies and should be in all pathology and general hospital libraries." - Anamarija M. Perry, MD (University of Manitoba College of Medicine), Doody Enterprises
Author of three-episode documentary on forensic and archaeological study of human bones produced by BBC, 1972. Contributor of articles on legal medicine, criminology, Welsh politics, and allied topics to scientific journals, popular periodicals, and newspapers; has also reviewed books in categories within his fields.
Writer Bernard Knight is a forensic pathologist specializing in legal medicine, an attorney, and a prolific author of fiction and nonfiction. He is the author of numerous books on forensic pathology and forensic medicine, as well as texts on procedures for conducting autopsies. This background in forensics serves him well as the author of the Crowner John novels, a series of mystery novels featuring Sir John de Wolfe, the first crowner, or coroner, appointed by King Richard the Lion-Hearted in twelfth-century England.
The forensic investigation of death is a multi-disciplinary activity, involving the collaboration between pathologists, crime scene investigators (CSIs), forensic scientists, and other specialists, such as anthropologists, entomologists, odontologists (dentists) and many other experts.
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