Catalan author dies suddenly

Montalban was imprison by Franco for his political views

Manuel Vazquez Montalban, one of Spain's most celebrated writers, has died aged 64.

Mr Montalban died of a heart attack as he changed flights at Bangkok international airport on Friday, Spanish diplomats said.

He was returning to Madrid after giving lectures in Australia and New Zealand.

"He died suddenly, while transferring from one plane to another," a Spanish embassy official in Bangkok said.

The Catalan author and left-wing political commentator was famed for writing 50 books - translated into 24 languages - as well as creating the fictional detective character, Pepe Carvalho.

Irony and intelligence

His novel Galindez was adapted this year as a film starring Harvey Keitel.

The BBC's Danny Wood in Madrid said colleagues and friends described the literature of the Barcelonan as full of irony and intelligence.

Spain's Bangkok embassy - which could not confirm the cause of death - said the author's body would now undergo an autopsy before being repatriated to Spain.

The famed author and journalist - who wrote commentaries for the Spanish newspaper El Pais - was married and leaves one son.

His numerous literary prizes included Spain's Prix Planeta, which he was awarded in 1979 for "Southern Seas", a political detective novel.

Mr Montalban leaves fans a 1,000-page manuscript of Detective Carvalho's latest investigation, topically surrounding terrorism in Bali and international conflicts in Iraq and the Middle East.

Prison term

His detective's 20 previous adventures have amassed a small army of fans worldwide, with his character's taste for high-living based around the passions of the books' author.

The new novel "Milenio" was due out in January followed by a second volume in March, his publisher Carlos Reves had said.

Mr Montalban - who was sympathetic towards Catalan communism and was a committed anti-fascist - was sentenced to a three-year prison term in 1962 under Spanish military dictator General Francisco Franco.

He later briefly adopted Franco's persona to write an "autobiography" of the dictator.

He also penned the "Buenos Aires Quintet" on Argentina's "Dirty War" where thousands disappeared under military rule.

The author leaves fans a 1,000-page manuscript of Detective Carvalho's latest adventure, an investigation into terrorism in Bali and international conflicts in Iraq and the Middle East.