Phil was first inspired to write when he read The Lord of the Rings as a child. Back then the ambition was to create a whole fantasy world with dragons and sword fights but, as George R. R. Martin seems to have cornered that market, he now writes comedy thrillers set in the (almost) real world instead.
He is somewhat obsessed with the public and media's fixation with celebrity, which forms the backdrop to his books. These also tend to feature spies, gangsters, hit men, failed pop stars and daytime-TV presenters.
Phil lives in London with his wife and two children. His main rule in life is to never let tomato ketchup touch any green food. He hasn't yet worked out any deep meaning behind this and suspects it is not the soundest of principles to live by - although it's better than quite a few he's come across down the years. Best not to get him started on that.