Frederick Harvie Linklater, the son of a London solicitor, was educated at Eton and Cambridge. After working in India and engaging in various adventures that included fighting in the Sioux War in the United Staes of America, Linklater entered Lincoln's Inn (London) and was called to the Bar in 1873. He was appointed dramatic and operatic critic to the Pall Mall Gazette and contributed to other periodicals.
After his arrival in Sydney, he joined the Bar and was government reporter in the Supreme Court. He also wrote for colonial newspapers as dramatic critic and contributor of travel stories. He went to South Australia in 1880, where he continued his legal profession while contributing to dramatic literature in Adelaide. His pantomimes and plays were performed at the Academy and the Royal theatres.
George Loyau, tracing Linklater's life in Notable South Australians (1885), described it as 'active, diversified and romantic'.
