Born on Christmas Eve, right in the heart of the Lancashire coalfields, Edmund (Eddy) Birchall left school at 15 and, like many other young lads in the 1950s,  went straight down the mines. In doing so he kept up the family tradition, having traced his family tree back to 1786 to discover that he is a seventh generation miner. After serving the whole of the First World War, Edmund's grandfather was killed down a coal mine within days of returning home and is buried in a military grave in a Lancashire Cemetery.

Edmund studied mining for a number of years, gaining the City and Guilds Silver Medal for Mining for 1967. He went on to become a Ventilation Officer at a number of collieries, before moving to the National Coal Board’s Method Study Department. On leaving mining he worked in local government for the next 30 years, becoming the Head of the Chief Executive’s Health and Safety Unit in a large local authority.

Edmund now lives in retirement on the beautiful island of Anglesey, with his wife Margaret.

This semi-autobiographical novel is based upon Edmund’s experiences working in mines in the Lancashire coal area in the 1950s. Edmund was one of the first students to gain a Bachelor of Arts with the Open University on its formation in the early 1970s.

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