Hanagan was educated at the Inverness Royal Academy, where she regularly appeared in the top five places for her grade, although childhood asthma kept her away from school for extended periods.
[1] At age 19, Hanagan ended her education and became involved with the Common Wealth Party, serving as the Highlands branch secretary.
She worked in the legal division on the de-nazification of Austrian law and the prosecution of war crimes.
Auberon Waugh described her as the "Jane Austen of the 20th century,"[3] though, according to Susan Chitty, writing in The Guardian, her work was "comedy of a darker hue".
In addition she was a member of the society of Sussex authors and published texts for the Writers Bureau (1988).