He studied journalism at Guildford College before working at the Slough Evening Mail, and becoming a patron of folk clubs from the late 1960s.
He also wrote books, starting with biographies of Dire Straits (1994) and Abba (with Tony Calder and Andrew Loog Oldham, 1996).
Subsequent books were In Search of Albion (2005), a similarly light-hearted journey around English traditions and rituals, and Sing When You're Winning (2006), about the history and culture of terrace songs at football matches.
Other plays he wrote which have been performed on stage in different parts of the country include One of Us Is Lying, When Barry Met Cally and I Am the Way.
In 2017, his theatrical music show, She Moved Through the Fair: The Legend of Margaret Barry, co-written with Irish singer Mary McPartlan, debuted at Glasgow's Tron Theatre as part of the Celtic Connections festival.