- Craig was originally going to be called Karl, but I couldn’t get Karl Pilkington (An Idiot Abroad) out of my head when I started writing. While Craig might be slightly hapless, I didn’t want him to be a complete idiot.
- The original title was ‘Juveniled’, and was only changed to ‘The ’86 Fix’ a month before release.
- The school Craig, Dave, Marcus, and Tessa all attended, Heathland Secondary School, was named after my own secondary school – Heath End, in Farnham, Surrey.
- The name ‘Lance Gilgrip’, the professor created by Craig for his Afterpath project, is an anagram of ‘Craig Pelling’.
- The most commonly asked question readers ask is about the first time Craig loses his virginity with Tessa, and if it was based on real events. Thankfully, it wasn’t.
- For the record, my own ‘old man’ isn’t quite the cantankerous old bastard Craig had to live with. He does like gardening though (and like Craig, I am inept).
- RolpheTech was drawn from my own experience of working Saturdays in a branch of Dixons after leaving school.
- The ending of the first instalment, as controversial as it apparently is, was not the original ending I had in mind. Right up until the last six chapters, I had intended Craig to return to the future, and find himself married to Marcus (yes, really). If you look closely, you might spot a few clues that weren’t edited out.
- My own mother suffered from type-2 diabetes, and when Craig tried, somewhat bluntly, to warn her about her diet, there was quite a lot of soul-searching involved on my part.
- Video City was a real video shop I used to visit as a teenager. It closed down in 2002.
- When I initially visualised Craig, I based his appearance on that of the actor, Simon Pegg. A reviewer later mentioned he’d be perfect as the lead in a TV adaptation of The ’86 Fix. So, Mr Pegg, if you’re reading this…
- My oldest, and longest-suffering mate, is also called Dave (I think everyone has a mate called Dave, don’t they?) Sadly for him, the physical characteristics of Dave in The ’86 Fix are pure fiction.
- It took five months and nineteen days to write the first draft. It then took another five weeks of editing before The ’86 Fix was released.
- Brenda, who worked in the charity shop in Beyond Broadhall, was loosely based upon my wife’s grandfather, Bill. He was from Devon, and I used to love the way he’d say “bugger” (a lot).
- At the time of writing, I have seen The Pet Shop Boys live on four occasions. Hearing West End Girls for the first time was also a seminal moment for me, as much as it was for Craig.
- Unlike Craig, I happen to love Alive & Kicking by Simple Minds. It’s the tune the players come out to at my local football club, Aldershot Town.
- In July 2017, I turned down a deal from a major UK publisher to re-publish both books. Unfortunately, they wanted to combine both books into one volume, and reduce the size by a third – something I felt would undermine Craig’s story.
- I never owned a Raleigh Burner, but I did own a Falcon BMX from Woolworths – briefly.
- Many people comment on the ending of the first book and opinions are split. Some people love the ending, and some people hate it. The reason I went the way I did was to make it memorable. I wanted readers to have an opinion (good or bad) rather than feeling underwhelmed.
- Both The ’86 Fix and Beyond Broadhall will be released as audio books in November/December 2016.
- I deliberately left a few questions unanswered just in case I ever want to write a third instalment of Craig’s story. Nothing planned in the short term, but one day.
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