Born in London to Highland Scottish parents, Angus McBride was orphaned as a child, his mother dying when he was five years old, and his father in World War Two when he was 12.
[citation needed] Due to Britain's poor economic state immediately following World War II, McBride found it necessary to leave for South Africa.
As England's economy again suffered in the 1970s, McBride moved with his family back to Cape Town, and continued to work with British and American publishers.
[2] [3] In fantasy circles, McBride was well known for his illustrations for Iron Crown Enterprises' game Middle-earth Role Playing (MERP) based on J. R. R. Tolkien's writings.
He died from a heart attack on 15 May 2007[4] In 2014, Scott Taylor of Black Gate, named Angus McBride as 9B in a list of The Top 10 RPG Artists of the Past 40 Years, saying "He is a master of his craft, and because of him an entire fanbase has a hugely detailed collection of windows in the Tolkien's world that otherwise might never have been available.