Dougal Haston was born in Currie, near Edinburgh, in 1940. He was one of Britain's leading mountaineers and a compelling figure in climbing history. After landmark winter ascents in Scotland, he made attempts on the original 1938 route on the North Face of the Eiger in 1960 and 1962, finally succeeding with Rusty Baillie in 1963, so making the second British ascent. He first climbed with John Harlin in 1964. Following the Eiger Direct in 1966, Haston achieved international fame through ascents of Annapurna in 1970 and Everest in 1975, when he and Doug Scott became the first two British climbers to reach the summit. Away from climbing, he was a controversial figure known for his rock-and-roll lifestyle. He was director of the International School of Mountaineering in Leysin, Switzerland from 1967 until his death in 1977 in an avalanche while skiing. The day before his death he had finished writing a novel, Calculated Risk, which now appears like a death foretold. It was published in 1979.