David Le Courageux is the pen name for the writing team of Dominic Smith and Stephen Bentley. The only real name out of those three is Stephen Bentley. Just like Mr and Mrs Smith, he too is a former undercover police officer. Mr and Mrs Smith were the stars of CrimeCon 2021 held in London where they made a personal appearance on a blacked-out stage to preserve their anonymity. CrimeCon is billed as the world’s largest true crime event and is now held annually in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Dominic and Samantha were billed as the Real Mr and Mrs Smith – Undercover Legends. Following that event, the media showed a lot of interest in the Mr and Mrs Smith stories. The inquiries came from print and online publications and the film and TV industry. Talks are ongoing about the Mr and Mrs Smith franchise. Stephen Bentley was also a barrister in London practising criminal law for fourteen years. Since retirement, he has written fifteen books including his best-selling Operation Julie memoir, originally independently published but the UK & Commonwealth rights have now been acquired by Penguin Random House UK. An 8-part TV series based on that book is in development. Stephen also co-wrote Operation George: A Gripping True Crime Story of an Audacious Undercover Sting with Mark Dickens, a pseudonym and another former undercover police officer. His crime fiction includes the Steve Regan Undercover Cop Thrillers and the Detective Matt Deal Thrillers. He is a member of the Crime Writers’ Association, the Society of Authors, and the Alliance of Independent Authors.
