Christopher Beach

Toys have always been part of my life, from the joys of Lego, to playing out my wildest fantasies through the exploits of my team of Action Man figures. One of life's pivotal moments happened on a wet Cornish Sunday in 1979. Having spent many weeks idly fiddling with a Rubik's Cube, on this special day I was suddenly aware that in my hands was a solved cube. Wow, amazing. As I grew up my 'boys' toys' morphed into musical instruments, but that original affection for my playthings stayed with me mentally - and physically, stored in my loft. A few years later and I found myself actually making and designing them for many of the major games companies across the world. I also have managed to bring some of my own designs to market: The Rubik's Safe Cube, Dinky Inks, Fantasy Flowers, Secret Treats, The Golden Coin Maker and Thumb Warriors. To this day I continue to work in the toy industry, inventing, designing and producing highly detailed prototype models. It is an ongoing challenge to solve design problems and find solutions to bring ideas to life. My love of toys is as strong as ever and the challenge of writing an adventure story about the most famous puzzle in the world was one I couldn't resist.