Sir Walter Bullivant up. In the first chapter of the novel, the reader also learns of Bullivant's son Harry Bullivant, who lost his life while spying in the Middle East in the guise of a muleteer. Sir Walter Bullivant Sir Walter Bullivant is a fictional character created by the Scottish thriller writer John Buchan for his series of novels featuring the spy Richard Hannay. He plays small but significant roles in both "The Thirty-Nine Steps" and "Greenmantle". Sir Walter is a senior mandarin at the Foreign Office in the years leading up to World War I. He is the archetypal spymaster — gruff,
Richard Hannay this theatrical adaptation, the character's full name is given as Richard Charles Arbuthnot Hannay. As revealed through the various novels, Richard Hannay was born in Scotland about 1877; his father was Scottish and had German business partners. He was brought up to speak German pretty fluently. At the age of six he joins his father in South Africa. He becomes a mining engineer, spending three years prospecting for copper in German Damaraland and makes a small fortune in Bulawayo. He takes part in the Matabele Wars, serves two years with the Imperial Light Horse and serves as an intelligence officer