Antony Chessell is a graduate of London University and of the Open University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and has worked in local government and the oil industry in England and in Scotland, where he and his wife now live. Two married daughters and their families live in Edinburgh and Melbourne, Australia. He is fascinated by national and local history but his interests are wide and include mountaineering, literature, art, travel, historic buildings, building practices, and genealogy. His interest in home defence and the inter-service Intelligence units was enhanced by his sixteen years as a Warning Officer in the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation in Scotland, working alongside the Royal Observer Corps and in close liaison with units of the Royal Air Force. An interest in trees was stimulated by taking part in the Woodland Trust's 'Ancient Tree Hunt' which succeeded in recording 100,000 notable, veteran and ancient trees by 2011.