John Healy is an extraordinary, exceptionally gifted and truly inspirational human being and one of the most subversive, unique and compelling writers of the last twenty years. He was born into an impoverished, Irish immigrant family, in the slums of Kentish Town, North London. Despite the brutality of John's life (which is well documented in The Grass Arena) he overcame heroically all obstacles and achieved remarkable, indeed phenomenal expertise in both writing and Chess. John also displayed outstanding talent as a boxer during his youth. According to his trainer,The Late Great George Francis, 'Healy at 16 was an acclaimed stylist, possessing concussive power in both hands.' He was tipped for the top, winning many amateur titles but in the end it was the drink that carried the knock out blow.

His drinking rapidly increased so much so by his late teens he was totally dependent on alcohol, which culminated in him becoming a homeless, vagrant alcoholic. For the next 15 years of his life he resided in the harsh and uncompromising world of the Grass Arena. The twilight world of the vagrant alcoholic is a battleground, peopled by whores, beggars, psychopaths and thieves where the law was enforced with the boot and the broken bottle. This life is conditioned solely by alcohol; its obtainment and consumption. Drink is acquired at any cost: through deception, mugging, violence and even murder. The only respite from this never-ending cycle is imprisonment which, is part and parcel of this horrific way of life.

Healy was so embroiled in this sub-culture, that it appeared escape was an absolute impossibility. That he, like so many before him would die a premature and ignominious death. This was until, while serving one of his frequent prison sentences, a fellow inmate introduced him to chess. Healy immediately became besotted by the game. He made a decision not only to leave alcohol completely but also to make the almost impossible transition from the violent, chaotic world of the vagrant alcoholic into the sophisticated, strategic and esoteric world of Chess.

Healy is not only able to make this amazing transition, but more amazingly he also manages to master the intricacies and subtleties of this most complex game, said to be one of the most difficult cerebral processes in the world and yet Healy with barely any education and years of corrosive alcohol abuse, still manages to master Chess, becoming a top tournament chess champion, able to play four games blindfolded and simultaneously.

This achievement is extraordinary, it is totally unique because no person from Healy's background has ever risen so rapidly, or achieved the outstanding success that he has. The esteemed and international master and literary critic William Hartson concedes to Healy's unique and special ability: 'Healy's success was outstanding for someone who came to the game at the age of 30, quite apart from his earlier history' (From 'The Beggars Gambit' Book Review of the Grass Arena by William Hartson, former British Chess Champion)

Healy didn't stop here, he then switched his attention to writing, another alien and unknown practice. He begins to write with no prior literary experience or any type of writing tuition, The Grass Arena, a narrative which recounts vividly, graphically and compellingly his extraordinary life from childhood through to his success as a chess champion, 'which shows his clear genius for mastering anything that is put in his path...'

'The only book which even begins to evoke a real comparison in English is William Burroughs' Junkie ... Beside it, a book like Orwell's Down and Out in Paris and London seems like a rather inaccurate tourist guide' (Professor Colin McCabe)

'Time and again one is appalled by the pleasure The Grass Arena furnishes as literature, when it is so very clearly not fiction. And this sense of the reader's dilemma as a privileged observer in a world of casual savagery that is palpably real is a troubling and thoroughly enriching one.' (Literary Review)

Healy went on to win Britain's top literary award for autobiography, the JR Ackerley. The previous years winner Anthony Burgess commented at the time: ' The Grass Arena was Healy's first book and to win such a prestigious award at your first attempt reveals Healy's extraordinary talent and the true worth of the book. The book is a total 'one off', a truly exceptional piece of literature'.

The problem is, even though the book is exceptional, as the reviews and awards validate and corroborate, it is no longer in print and is almost impossible to obtain a copy. This is a travesty and a tragedy because the British public is being denied an astonishing piece of literature. The subsequent film of the book, also titled The Grass Arena went on to win a host of major national and international awards.

Britain: Best British Feature Film, Edinburgh Film Festival, 1991 Golden Globe Award for Best TV Film, 1992 - Two BAFTA Nominations, 1992

USA: Special Jury Prize, San Jose Festival, 1992 Special Jury Award, San Francisco International Festival, 1992

France: First Prize and Special Jury Award, Dinard International Festival

Germany: Special Jury Award, Wurzburg International Festival

Spain: First Prize, San Sebastian International Festival

Czech Republic: International Film Festival, Winner of the Prague D'or and Special Jury Award

His second book: Streets Above Us again was reviewed with enormous acclaim and outstanding reviews:

"He has drawn a version of London that knocks Colin Maclnnes one into the Mary Poppins league... A kind of latter day Bartholomew Fair."

"It has an undoubted immediacy, the literary equivalent of Cinema Write... novel of the week."

"He writes with telling style and has an expertly fulfilled grudge against Society. He is often witty, picturesque in his descriptions, and possesses a wicked accomplishment for portraying the obscenity of the seamier side of life."

"For those who'd would like to put their heads above the parapet, this is probably the most accurate and entertaining picture of the strata in society we'd most like to forget."

Books

"The writing has a quick witted resilient style, words lift off the page as easily as a flock of birds."

"The most outstanding parts of this book are undoubtedly the beautiful Bourghsian routines he builds up in and around his self portrait... He'll certainly become the truly great writer he deserves to be."

"Healy has an unusually cold but nevertheless incisive eye." Literary Review

A cast of down and outs show Healy's powers of observation and ear for dialogue."

"love it, it's extremely funny- right on the nail".

Harold Pinter

Streets Above Us is also out of print and again extremely difficult to obtain a copy.

As you can plainly see, there is a recurrent theme here. All of Healy's works are out of print. Why is this? Is it because he is a bad writer? The outstanding and critical acclaim would explicitly refute this. There appears to be something disturbing happening in regard to Mr Healy. Why are his books out of print when they are undoubtedly modern day classics? Why is it the British Public are totally unaware of a man who has over come every obstacle and achieved so much? Why are the British public ignorant to a man with such undoubted talent? Who completely self-educates himself to become a top class chess champion and prize winning author? Is it because of his background; his class? Or because he has lived a savage existence?

Although he still retains something of the warrior about him, Healy is not demonstrative. He has a sort of aura about him, an eerie composure. I don't think he is trying to be mysterious. He appears almost detached. But to Faber and Faber he was seen as threatening, a low-life, an ex-con, vagrant alcoholic with convictions for violence and mugging. Though initially incubated at Fabers, the poison soon spread through the publishing world as the press began to divest him of certain elements of humanity. So unfortunately Healy became emblematic of everything that was low life, which was very unfair because his talent became secondary to the hype. Though he was a chess champion many times over (ten major British chess tournaments), a poet, award winning author and playwright. It is ironic that when the evidence of his talent was all around them, Fabers resisted the logic of it preferring, at best, to portray him as some kind of idiot savant. Extraordinary! He is published by Gallimard, one of the most selective publishing houses in the world, whose lists include such names as Kafka, Camus, Sartre, etc. and yet he remains out of print in his own country. In fact only in a country with such a weird class system could such a thing happen or indeed be allowed.

'Something is terribly wrong here' (Ian Sinclair) 'There's something fishy about it'.(John Gellar - Senior Agent at Curtis Brown)

Whatever the reason, it is transparent the public are being denied an unrivaled (in his genre) and phenomenal talent.