I am particularly grateful to my agent, Antony Topping, and to my friends James Smythe and Sam Byers. Adam Roberts, Lee Rourke and Nikesh Shukla all contributed their wisdom and moral support. Anna Minton and Douglas Spencer provided much invaluable reading and discussion. Many ideas were shaped in conversation with Fatima Fernandes. My parents and my wife, Hazel, have been extraordinarily supportive, both now, and then. Philip Crowther gave vital details on the procedures of the emergency services.
At 4th Estate, my thanks go to Nicholas Pearson for his guidance and patience, and to Katy Archer, Michelle Kane, Matt Clacher, Jordan Mulligan and Morag Lyall.
This book could not have been completed without a generous and timely grant from the Authors’ Foundation, administered by the Society of Authors.
The essay mentioned in Chapter 7 is ‘Mugging as a Way of Life’, by David Freeman, and it appeared in the 23 February 1970 edition of New York Magazine.
I hope that Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park can forgive my fictional portrayal of it, and I urge the reader to discover the reality of this unique and beautiful place for themselves. Learn more at www.fothcp.org