Dorothy Cheston bore his out-of-wedlock child. (1926)
He went to London originally to be a solicitor's clerk. After winning a literary competition, he became a full-time writer. He wrote short stories, novels, hit plays, and screenplays.
During his lifetime, his books sold in huge numbers, and he was a figure of great influence in politics and culture. He declined a knighthood for his service running the French propaganda department for the British government during WWI.
The Savoy Hotel in London still serves an omelet named after him; it features smoked haddock and Parmesan cheese.