- He was one of Britain's "Angry Young Men", a post-WWII generation of writers whose works of social realism and rebellion were also referred to as "kitchen-sink drama".
- As a guest on BBC's "Desert Island Discs", he said he would choose to take along an Edith Piaf record, a copy of the RAF navigation manual, and a communications receiver (for receiving only).
- He left school at age 14 to work in a bicycle factory. Four years later, he joined the RAF, and became a wireless operator in Malaya. He contracted TB and spent many months in hospital, where he began writing.
- His father was an illiterate tannery worker.
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