The day after I was thrown out of one of Britain's most prestigious dramatic academies, I started my own multimedia performance company called 'Crystal Theatre of the Saint'. I figured it was the only way I would get to appear on a public stage, and I began writing so I'd have something to say when I got there. The company flourished for ten years and then some of us formed a punk band. I was the vocalist and lyricist. When a record label got interested we immediately disbanded. During this period I also worked as a cab driver, a DJ in a strip club, and a welder's mate. Then came comedy. I worked on many successful British radio and TV shows, and I wrote and performed in a radio sitcom with Jeremy Hardy. I wrote radio plays, starring actors like Bill Nighy, Alison Steadman and David Hemmings. I once worked with Spike Milligan, twice.I also worked in the corporate world. I wrote more than fifty short films, and directed some of them. Later I made short films of my own, and I also wrote the screenplay for the feature animation movie The Magic Roundabout. I've written a screenplay about underground comic book heroes The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers, working with their creator, Gilbert Shelton. The film has not been made (yet). I also wrote music videos for Ken Russell and Kate Bush.I wrote stories, and some were published. Eventually I began writing a novel. I'd been thinking about the story for years but I only began 'Utter Folly' when I was diagnosed with a chronic illness. The world I created in the book was a place where I could escape to, and I made it as entertaining and funny as possible. I've mostly recovered from the illness, not from writing.I wrote another novel, 'Dead Writers in Rehab'. A story of mine was one of 'Six Scary Stories selected and introduced by Stephen King'. My third novel, 'Please do not Ask for Marcy as a Refusal Often Offends' was published in May 2020. I've also published a collection: 'The Glade and Other Stories.' My latest novel is a dark thriller, 'Stone Heart Deep'.Read more about this authorRead less about this author