The Trotter family have been pillars of the Peckham community for decades, so when a bin man found this folder of documents at the bottom of the refuse chute in Nelson Mandela House and saw that it had official council and even police documents in it, he thought it might be worth something. He passed it to his gaffer, who passed it to his gaffer, and it was then decided that this valuable overview of the area's modern history seen through the experiences of a family whose connections stretch throughout the borough, should be published in the public interest...

Documents include the Trotters' family tree, paperwork from Rodney's school days, snapshots from family holidays, and even the first chapter draft of Rodney's novel. The book will be illustrated with never-before-seen memorabilia and ephemera, from Raquel's original dating agency form, from before she met Del, to a set of prompt cards Del created for Trigger: 'DON'T let Roy Slater fit you up for stealing 3,000 Green Shield stamps ever again, even if you did get an electric blanket and a toaster when you came out of jail. DO try to remember that Dave is actually called Rodney.'

The book also includes extracts of original scripts from writer John Sullivan's personal files.

First published: Thursday 6th October 2016