Philip Kenneth Callow, 1924-2007, was born in Stechford, England, on 26 October 1924. He was educated at Coventry Technical College (1937-1939), and following his degree he worked as an electrician as well as a clerk for the Minister of War (1948-1951). He received his Teacher's Certificate in 1970 from St. Luke's College, Exeter, Devon. Callow published his first novel, The Hosanna Man (Cape), in 1956 and went on to publish dozens of novels, biographies, poetry collections, and other works. He recieved several writing awards, including the Arts Council Bursary (1966, 1970, 1973, 1979), Society of Authors Traveling Scholarship (1973), C. Day Lewis Fellowship (1973), and Southern Arts Association Fellowship (1974). From 1980-1986, Callow was the Arts Council Writer-in-Residence at Sheffield Polytechnic. He died in Coventry, England, on 22 September 2007.

Graham Ackroyd was born in England in 1920. He joined the Royal Air Force in 1939 and served in the Middle East until 1945. After his service, he moved to Paris, where he befriended painters Jean Dubuffet, Asger Jorn, Jean Fautrier, and Joan Miró and was inspired to become a painter himself. In addition to painting, Ackroyd published several collections of poetry, including A Trembling Light (1993), Love Feast (1993), Everything Passes (1996), and A Time for Loving (1997). Ackroyd also taught literature and edited the literary magazine Nineties Poetry.