Michael Tappenden
Michael Tappenden was born in the middle of an air raid over Kent England in 1942. Surviving that, he attended the local grammar school where he developed a love for rugby but also experienced the academic narrowness of the time.and intended for university entrance, he joined the Parachute Regiment instead where he serv.... more
Michael Tappenden was born in the middle of an air raid over Kent England in 1942. Surviving that, he attended the local grammar school where he developed a love for rugby but also experienced the academic narrowness of the time.and intended for university entrance, he joined the Parachute Regiment instead where he served in the magical deserts of the Middle East and later as part of the UN Peacekeeping Force in a very unpleasant civil war in Cyprus (for which he was given a couple of medals - but then so was everybody else). Finally returning to academic life, he achieved a first class honours degree and post-graduate qualification (much to the relief of his mother) became a Member of the Chartered Society of Designers after a career as a graphic designer and finally, Principal Lecturer and Course Leader at the University for the Creative Arts, Kent. Somewhere in between he also worked as a grave digger, gardener and labourer and taught himself the alto sax which is played with both gusto and significant lack of technical ability. In 2010, he sat down and began to write.