WORLD-renowned science-fiction writer Stephen Baxter was born in Roby in 1957. He attended St Edward’s College, Liverpool, where he partly set his 2007 novel for young readers, The H-Bomb Girl.

Since 1987, he has published more than 40 books, mostly sci-fi, and over 100 short stories in countries across the globe. His novels have won many awards including the Philip K Dick Award, the John W Campbell Memorial Award, the British Science Fiction Association Award, the Kurd Lasswitz Award (Germany) and the Seiun Award (Japan) and have been nominated for several others, including the Arthur C Clarke Award, the Hugo Award and Locus awards.

He has degrees in mathematics from Cambridge University, engineering from Southampton University and in business administration from Henley Management College. He has worked as a teacher of maths and physics, and for several years in information technology. He is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society as well as President of the British Science Fiction Association and a Vice-President of the HG Wells Society.

In 1991, Baxter applied to become a cosmonaut - aiming for the guest slot on Mir eventually taken by Helen Sharman.

His TV and movie work includes development work on the BBC's Invasion: Earth, broadcast in April-May 1998, and the script for Episode 3 of Space Island One, broadcast on Sky One on 21 January 1998. His novel Voyage was dramatised by Audio Movies for BBC Radio and broadcast in 1999. He now lives in Northumberland.

Read more about Stephen Baxter on his website.