Alan Stoob: Nazi Hunter: A comic novel

Alan Stoob, hero of this hilarious novel has been described as a new member of the great pantheon of British comic characters - genus awkward old bastard - that already includes Mr Micawber, Mr Pooter and Captain Mainwairing.

Originally a Twitter sensation, whose fans include India Knight and Dara O'Brien, he now walks the pages of this book finding Nazi conspirators in the most ordinary surroundings.

Alan Stoob is a retired policeman who worries about his piles, suspects his wife had an affair with Henry Cooper and is outraged when people wastefully use A4 sheets to photocopy A5 documents.

Into this very ordinary, domestic setting comes world famous Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal, who invites Alan to take on responsibilities for hunting Nazis in hiding in the county of Bedfordshire.

Alan agrees and finds that wherever he looks he sees evidence of Nazi conspiracy and he begins to follow a trail of evidence that leads him to members of the UK Cabinet and even the President of the United States.

'Alan Stoob and its hero are laugh-out-loud funny... the human story at the heart of the diaries charting Alan's failing marriage and his relationship with his depressed fortysomething son is tragically comic amid the increasingly surreal plot.' - The Times

Saul was born in London at some point during the 1970s. Saul's early years were noteworthy for his ability to run fast, an obsessive interest in cricket and the early signs of the chronic snoring that was to dog his later years.

At university he acquired a reputation for being half-Jewish, and a penchant for donner meat with chips extra chilli sauce please. After uni he moved to Brighton to busk for a living, much to the almighty chagrin of his father.

Since then Saul has spent an impressive amount of his adult life in gainful employment, and an equally impressive amount in the bath. He has been a freelance journalist since 2005 which means more time for baths again.

Recently he has written features for the Guardian, sketches for the BBC and regular columns for Metro, Square Mile and the Ham & High.

Follow his alter ego Alan Stoob on twitter @NaziHunterAlan

An exclusive interview with Alan Stoob
How did you start hunting Nazis?

I was clearing my desk after 30 years with the Bedfordshire Constabulary and about to retire to Bournemouth when the phone rang and Simon Wiesenthal asked me to hunt Nazis in Bedfordshire. So I did that instead.

It's strange that there seem to be so many in Bedfordshire. Why is that?

People often ask me that, Amazon. It's all to do with the underground ratline that connects Bremen to Biggleswade and that has resulted in hundreds of elderly Nazis flooding the local area. Bedfordshire is the new South America, Dunstable its Paraguay.

How did the book come about and what can readers look forward to in it?

I always keep a diary. That way I'm able to keep track of Nazis I've hunted, videos I've lent out and such like. When esteemed publisher Hodder & Stoughton caught wind of my work as Britain's Premier Nazi Hunter™ and asked if I'd like to write a book I was immensely flattered - until I asked them about an advance (they said I'd have to pay THEM). So instead I sent them my diary from 2012.

Describe an average day in the life of Alan Stoob.

For security reasons I am unable to do that.

Who is your top scalp in terms of Nazis?

Top scalp would have to be evil Heinrich Schlump, the Plasterer of Paris - though Alois Purloin, the Muppet of Manheim, runs him a close second.

Are there any at large?

Of course. Clearly you haven't visited Biggleswade on market day.

What is the best weapon against Nazis?
The truth.

In the book's character list, you make the distinction between 'Good Nazis' and 'Bad Nazis'. Talk us through that.

Many of us have joined clubs, only to regret it later. I myself was once vice-president of the Dunstable Bowling Association until I recognised the sheer evil that lurked beneath the surface. That doesn't make me a bad person.

The publication of Alan Stoob: Nazi Hunter will probably inspire others to follow in your footsteps. What are your top tips for beginners?

Back off - this is my territory.

Has your wife read the book?

Indeed she has. She doesn't like the bits about her affair with late Henry Cooper, nor for that matter the passages that reference my fling with 1987 Businesswoman of the Year, Deborah Meaden. But overall she said it had her "gripped like a trout" (she's Dutch).

What next for Alan Stoob?

A bath, two episodes of Bergerac then bed.