Jeffrey Archer, British novelist and politician, dies at 86

LONDON - Jeffrey Archer, the bestselling British novelist and former politician who was jailed for lying in a high-profile libel case, has died aged 86, his publisher HarperCollins said on Monday.

Archer sold over 300 million copies worldwide and was known for pacy thrillers like his 1976 debut "Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less" and 1979's "Kane & Abel". His final novel, "Adam and Eve", is due to be published on Tuesday.

Kate Elton, HarperCollins' UK CEO and Archer's editor, said in a statement: "We're all devastated to have lost a writer who has brought joy to generations of readers — and a true friend."

Archer was also a prominent Conservative politician, who briefly served as a lawmaker before becoming a senior party official under then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the mid-1980s.

But he was as well-known for his very public downfall.

In 1987, Archer sued the Daily Star tabloid for saying he had paid a woman for sex, winning a then-record £500,000 ($660,450) in damages. The case returned to the public eye when he was selected as the Conservative candidate to become London's first elected mayor in 1999. A former friend accused him of lying and Archer was eventually charged with perjury and perverting the course of justice, convicted and sentenced to four years' imprisonment. He served two years, during which time he wrote "A Prison Diary".

ARCHER TRIAL NOTORIOUS FOR JUDGE'S SUMMING UP

The trial of Archer's libel case, which was heard in front of a jury, became notorious for the judge's summing up of evidence given by Archer's wife Mary.

"Remember Mary Archer in the witness box," the judge, Bernard Caulfield, told the jury. "Your vision of her will probably never disappear. Has she elegance? Has she fragrance? Would she have, without the strain of this trial, radiance?"

And, of Archer, he added: "Is he in need of cold, unloving, rubber-insulated sex in a seedy hotel?"

Archer's reputation as one of the most colourful figures in British public life did no harm to his literary career. His books were sold in 119 countries, HarperCollins said. He spent a total of five-and-a-half years on the New York Times bestseller lists.

He was due to speak about his final novel this weekend at the Cheltenham Literature Festival and had recently appeared on radio shows to promote the book.

HarperCollins said he had died suddenly and peacefully, "between writing sessions".

($1 = 0.7571 pounds)

- Sam Tobin; Editing by Kate Holton and Rosalba O'Brien)