Alan Hoe enlisted into the Royal Corps of Signals at the age of fifteen years. At the age of eighteen he joined 22 SAS Regiment. He remained with the SAS for over twenty years achieving the rank of major and taking part in five active service campaigns. After his retirement he spent many years in South America in risky security work. During his army service and after he knew John Woodhouse, as a military subordinate and latterly as a friend.
Hoe’s published works include Terrorism: Threat & Response (with Eric Morris, 1987), The Negotiator (written as James March, 1988); David Stirling: The Authorised Biography of the Creator of the SAS (1992); Re-enter with SAS (with Eric Morris, 1994), The Quiet Professional (2011), voted military Book of the Year by the Association of the US Army, and Enyway…A Jump is a Jump (2008).