About Me

I may as well introduce myself!

Hello. I’m Craig. How do you do?

image courtesy of the author (and his bulldog Chewbarker)

I’m a 51-year-old man, living with his partner and her two children in Coalport, part of the World Heritage Site that is The Ironbridge Gorge. That’s the basics, here comes the rest.

Growing up

I was born in Wigan and grew up in Southport, Lancashire. Yeah, many of you will think Southport is in Merseyside but it wasn’t when I came screaming into this world. And I’m part of the rebellion that insists it will always be Lancashire.

I left school prematurely, which many of my ex-girlfriends will recognise as being a trait of mine. I managed to accrue two ‘O’ levels in Maths (note the ‘s’, ‘muricans) and English Language. I cocked up a YTS (Young Tory Slave) scheme. Ended up in catering college after working as a pot washer. After a completely unremarkable career in various hotel and restaurant kitchens, I joined the RAF in 1997 as an aircraft electrician.

Royal Air Force

I spent 9 years in blue. What a time! I spent most of my career in Northern Ireland as part of Operation Banner (known as The Troubles). This was a game-changer for me. I finally had the structure I needed and the discipline to see it through. Although not the model airman required by the commissioned fraternity, I was a competent…