The author, Philip Jones, lives in Shrewsbury, where he sets his debut play, The Lion Hotel. After working in insurance, accountancy, and hospital administration until middle-age, he took the decision to return to full-time education in order to pursue his creative passions, gaining a first-class honours degree in English at University Centre Shrewsbury. An interest in local history was rekindled when he spent his work-based learning placement at Shropshire Archives, discovering the Victorian entertainments bill that forms part of the play’s dialogue. He has since gone on to study for an MRes in Storytelling at the University of Chester.