Please could you provide a brief summary about yourself, and your background.

I was born and raised in East London, living in Stepney and then in Poplar. When I moved to Poplar, I lived close to the Fire Station which was very busy back then, I’d watch them going off to fires all the time. I always remember wanting to be a Firefighter and used to spend time at Poplar Fire Station as a teenager. In 1986, as soon as I turned 18, I applied to join London Fire Brigade, I was accepted and started my career in 1987. I was initially posted to Bethnal Green another nearby Station and couldn’t believe I was lucky enough to have got through the difficult selection process. I stayed with LFB for 31 years, rising through the ranks until I retired when I was 50. I was serving as Borough Commander for the area where I grew up and served most of my time. I live in Hornchurch on the edge of East London with my wife and youngest Daughter, I have two older daughters who have now moved out. I now have my own business; I am a Fire & resilience consultant and occasional contributor for the media on fire service related issues.

For reader’s that aren’t familiar with your book, please give us a brief outline of London Firefighter.

London Firefighter is a memoire of my time with London Fire Brigade, there have been quite a few fire service memoires over the years, and a few modern-day books by serving Firefighters. However, there hasn’t been one covering a whole generation from the 1980’s until the late 2010’s which is where London Firefighter is unique. It documents my early years chasing the firefighters from my local station on my bike and spending time with them. Then the book follows my applications and eventual acceptance into the LFB and my training school days. From there it covers the amazingly busy period of Firefighting in East London during the late 80’s and early 90’s. As tome moves on, the book follows my gradual promotion through the ranks and the incidents I attended. Right up until I am in a senior role in LFB and attending major incidents such as the 2011 London Riots, the Terror attacks in 2017 and the tragic Grenfell Tower fire. From there, I wind down in my last years as I approach retirement.

What inspired you to put your story into a book and share it with the world? Did the book start out as a book and did you always know you would want to publish it, or did you initially have other ideas for your work?

When I was young, I read a couple of London Fire Brigade memoires, Going to Blazes by Arthur Nicholls, Fireman by Neil Wallington, and Gordon Honeycombe’s book Red Watch, about a fire in Maida Vale in 1974 where a young Firefighter was killed, known as ‘the book that launched a thousand fire service careers. I also read Report from Engine Company 82, a memoire of Dennis Smith’s time as a Fireman in The Bronx in New York City in the early 70’s. The book is the most famous Firefighting book known reprinted across the World and enabled Dennis to found Firehouse Magazine.

I was absolutely inspired by reading those four books and that led me to decide that I’d like to do the same one day. Little did I know that I would have such a unique career, where fate decreed I’d be present at so many incidents that have been a part of London’s history over recent decades. I started putting a few memories together around 2002, but by the time I retired, I knew it was a book that had to be written so London Firefighter was born.

Is there anything in particular you want readers to take away from reading it? Does the book have a message you want to convey?

To be fair it’s a memoir, although the end of the book is quite recent, a lot of it is historical now, so I can’t really say there is anything I want people to take from it in relation to today. However, I hope London Firefighter conveys the varied, heart-breaking and sometimes dangerous job that Firefighters do.

What was the best piece of advice (if any) you received when writing London Firefighter and how did it help you in your writing journey?

I think discipline. London Firefighter is 386 pages, and I can’t believe I got there in the end. It was so easy to get distracted. I had just retired, was enjoying my new life, setting up a business as well as dealing with the ins and outs of life, I was told by a friend who is a journalist that I must be disciplined and set aside time to add to the manuscript. Evidently, I did.

Is there any advice you would give a first time author, looking to write about their life?

If you believe in your story, then tell it well. Don’t rush it, get into the detail without skipping over it, but don’t go down rabbit holes. Make it interesting but keep the pace going. I’m no expert, but apparently it worked for me.

Have you received any feedback you’re particularly proud of?

Yes, so far people have been very kind. I sent out lots of copies to people I respected in the fire service at home and abroad, including another one of AM’s Authors Dave Pike. The feedback is that the book is exciting, tells their story (that of being a Firefighter) well and that they can hear my voice.

Reviews

Abigail
An interesting read and great insight into the career of the author.

Amazon Customer
Excellent book spanning career in London fire brigade best read in a long time

Kevin Wright
A couple of weeks ago I managed to get hold of a copy of London Firefighter, by Steve Dudeney. Well! I've just finished it and it's bloody brilliant. It starts literally at the beginning of his career, in fact in Steve’s case earlier, as his interest started as a lad, visiting his local fire station.

Continues on the road of promotion to Senior Officer rank, but it's never boring, is informative and never leaves you in any doubt, that the man never forgot his roots, was always a Fireman first, no matter the rank. I'm not an avid reader, but found this book one of those difficult to put down.

So! If you want a good read I highly recommend it, and hope you find it as interesting and enjoyable as I did!

Jules Boyce
A fantastic book from start to finish, documenting Steve’s career from the early days right up to his retirement in 2018. Having known Steve for many years it’s been great to read all about the trials and tribulations of being a London Fire Brigade officer.

David Corfield
Added to my collection of firefighter books from over the years. A firefighter who rose through the ranks to the old Divisional Officer rank as it was years ago. Well worth the purchase I got it on Kindle as it's easier for me to read as I get older. On par with the older books about the London Fire Brigade if not better.

Stephen Dudeney’s London Firefighter

is available in Paperback and eBook.

Find out more about London Firefighter here.
 

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