I’ve come to the conclusion that I am either extraordinarily lucky, impressively resilient… or simply very difficult to get rid of.

After many years of near-misses, medical mishaps, questionable decisions and the occasional brush with what might reasonably be described as “the end,” I’ve finally written it all down in my new memoir, The Life and Times of a Death Dodger (Featuring the 8½ Lives of Nicholas Evans).

The title, I should point out, is not an exaggeration.

Over the course of my life, I have managed to survive everything from serious illness to accidents, from my own poor judgement to things entirely outside my control. At various points, it would have been perfectly reasonable for the story to stop rather abruptly. And yet, inconveniently for Death, it didn’t.

So this book is my attempt to make sense of that – or at least to tell a good story about it.

It’s Not Grim – I Promise

Now, a book about repeatedly nearly dying might sound a little heavy. I can assure you it isn’t.

If anything, writing it has confirmed my long-held belief that life is, at its core, faintly ridiculous. Even at its most serious, there is usually something absurd going on just beneath the surface – and I’ve tried to capture that throughout.

There are doctors who inspire both confidence and alarm in equal measure, moments of decision that in hindsight look… optimistic, and situations where sheer luck steps in at precisely the right moment (often just after I’ve done something inadvisable).

If you enjoy memoirs that find humour in the chaos – the kind written by people who don’t take themselves too seriously – then you’ll feel at home here.

More Than Just Close Calls

While there are plenty of near-death moments (I did promise you eight and a half, after all), the book isn’t just a catalogue of narrow escapes.

It’s also about:

• Growing up in a very different Britain
• The people who shape us — for better or worse
• The strange business of getting older when you never quite expected to
• And the quiet realisation that survival, in itself, can be a rather remarkable thing

Along the way, there are stories of family, friendships, work, misjudgements, recoveries and the occasional triumph – though I wouldn’t like to oversell those.

So Why Write It?

Partly because I thought it was time.

Partly because people kept saying, “You really should write this down.”

But mostly because, looking back, it seems faintly absurd not to. If you’ve been given this many chances – whether through luck, timing, or sheer stubbornness – the least you can do is turn it into a decent story.

If You Fancy a Read…

If any of this sounds like your sort of thing – a memoir that mixes humour with honesty, and takes a slightly sideways look at life and death – I’d be delighted if you took a look.

👉 The Life and Times of a Death Dodger is now available on Amazon as an eBook and soon will be available in paperback. You can also read the outline here.

(And yes, I’m still here — which, given the evidence, is not something to be taken for granted.)

If you do read it, I hope it makes you laugh, perhaps wince once or twice, and maybe even reflect on your own near-misses – the big ones and the small ones that quietly shape a life.

After all, we’re all dodging something.

Some of us are just keeping count.

© 2026 Nick Evans