I'm Fine

Richard Hall

In 1996, at the age of fourteen, Richard Hall met a man who changed his life. Two and half decades later, he called the police. As a result, the man was jailed for twenty-two years.

This is the story of what came before the police: how a teenage boy who had been hounded at school because he was gay walked into a world where he thought he would be safe, but which he was too inexperienced to navigate. In his naïvety, he thought what happened next was normal, or somehow his fault.

In a vivid, compellingly readable account, Hall recreates with unnerving frankness – and with surprising bursts of humour – the year in his childhood when the attention of older admirers went to his head, with lasting consequences for the rest of his life.

I’m Fine is not just the intensely moving story of one mixed-up boy’s private hell. It also stands as a powerful warning about predators operating with the impunity conferred on them by ‘community’ status.

‘An incredibly powerful memoir. The courage, fortitude and fire it takes to share a story of this magnitude is nothing short of miraculous’ Diriye Osman

’An exceptional coming-of-age story that is a damning exposé of those who seek to prey on us while we are learning who we are. Charming, engaging, funny, sad and real’ Bethany Clift

‘All gay men should read this brave, compelling, important coming-of-age memoir for the unflinching light it shines on masculinity, gay identity, sexuality and power’ Neil McKenna

‘Hall is funny, sharp-tongued, occasionally cruel – but never dishonest. Beneath the camp, there’s something fierce and aching. This is the story of survival, told without apology’ Ray Robinson

‘Richard Hall has a written a real page-turner and a superb memoir. Vivid and intriguing, it’s very far from being a misery memoir because it manages the genius trick of keeping all hindsight out of it, and almost the entire account is written from the point of view of a 15-year-old unreliable narrator. It’s a massive achievement’ Adam Macqueen

‘A very sensitive and moving story. It’s really important that we talk about these things instead of sweeping them under the mat’ Caroline Martin, BBC Radio Wiltshire

Hardback: 320pp

Published: Eye (Aug 2025)

ISBN: 9781785634239