Trevor was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and began his career as a teacher and sculptor. He taught both history and art at various schools in Northern Ireland and England, and then in 1960 he moved to London and worked as an advertising copywriter. It was at this time (1960–65) that Trevor began to publish his novels and short stories. Eventually he decided to move to Devon, England, and write full time. His novels include The Old Boys (1964), The Boarding-House (1965), Mrs. Eckdorf in O'Neill's Hotel (1969), Elizabeth Alone (1973), The Children of Dynmouth (1976), Other People's Worlds (1980), Fools of Fortune (1983), The Silence in the Garden (1988), Death in Summer (1998), and The Story of Lucy Gault (2002). He also wrote a number of highly acclaimed collections of short stories, including Angels at the Ritz and Other Stories (1975) and The Hill Bachelors (2000). These are typically bleak tales featuring moments of reckoning in which characters can no longer seek refuge in the fantasies and illusions that had previously made their lives bearable. His story "The Ballroom of Romance" (1972) became a modern classic and was made into an award-winning television play in 1982. Other works by Trevor have been adapted for the screen, most notably the novel Felicia's Journey (1994), the film version of which was directed by Atom Egoyan and released in 1999. Influenced by the writings of James Joyce and Charles Dickens, Trevor possessed a keen skill for characterization and irony. His works for the most part focus on the psychology of eccentrics and outcasts.