Kris Henley

Kris Henley was born in Jersey, the Channel Islands, although frankly it could have been anywhere, as he remembers little of his childhood and nothing of his big brother Ian. When he was sixteen his father, an amateur writer himself, promised Kris the princely sum of a fiver if he wrote a daily diary for three months. Despite difficulties in English class at school, and an extreme aversion to work or discipline of any kind, he really, really needed money, so after ninety days of tortured scribbling, he astonished his Dad and collected the cash.

Kris, as perhaps his father intended, acquired the writing habit, so when he took off to travel the world, his hair-raising and comedic adventures were meticulously recorded, which was lucky, as he certainly wouldn’t have remembered them otherwise. He even tried his hand at writing film and TV screenplays and a novel or two, but never saw another penny, never mind a fiver, for all his efforts.

Meanwhile, as told in Starting From The Back Of The Grid, Kris miraculously inveigled his way into a career in TV production working for Star TV, the Golf Channel, BSkyB, Disney ESPN and Fox Sports covering Formula One, Formula E, boxing, American football and golf.

Then at a rare family reunion Christmas in 2021, the conversation turned to Kris's extraordinary life story, the glamorous world of Formula One, its intriguing people, scandals and rivalries, and the many hilarious situations Kris had found himself in. For once, his brother’s interest was piqued.

‘I’m writing a book about it,’ said Kris.

‘Oh really?’ said Ian dubiously, familiar with his brother’s writing skills. ‘Perhaps I can help’.

And somehow, together, they did.