Banbury upbringing is at the heart of memoir charting trauma, neglect and adversity
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From the embers of loss, burnout and physical upheaval, Banbury-born Steve Wyatt has experienced a journey of reslience and transformation.
The 50-year-old has recently published his memoir, charting an extraordinary story through trauma, neglect and illness.
Wyatt, who now lives in London, grew up in Banbury and was a pupil at Banbury Secondary School and Sixth Form Centre.
"Many of the experiences that shaped my early life took place in Banbury town and form part of the memoir,” he said.
“Although I now live in London, writing the book meant returning to those formative years and reflecting on how experiences beginning in childhood went on to influence much of what followed. Banbury is an important part of the story”
Published independently in August 2026, Rising Through Fire: Still Standing, Still Me looks back across five decades of Wyatt’s life.
It covers childhood and bullying, identity and growing up as a gay man, relationships, living with HIV, a career spanning more than 25 years in leadership and service, physical and mental health, loss, some particularly difficult periods - and ultimately resilience and rebuilding.
“At 50, writing the book also gave me an opportunity to reconsider what resilience actually means. I had spent much of my life associating it with endurance and simply carrying on. I have come to realise that sometimes the resilient thing isn't to keep going at all. Sometimes it is recognising that something has to change,” he said.
"It is not intended to present a life without mistakes or difficult experiences. It explores loss, burnout, reinvention and the moments that test us, but it is also about hope, resilience and the strength that can emerge from life's most difficult chapters.
“This memoir looks back honestly at the experiences that shaped me and the people who supported me along the way. It is about learning, rebuilding and finding purpose again and a reminder that it is possible to rise, even when everything feels uncertain.”
Rising Through Fire: Still Standing, Still Me is the true story of a life shaped by childhood neglect, bullying, loss, illness, betrayal and the relentless search for belonging.
It is a memoir of surviving experiences many people would have found overwhelming and discovering that resilience is not about never falling but about choosing to keep standing.
Growing up with instability and emotional neglect, Wyatt was forced to become independent long before any child should have to. As an adult, new challenges emerged.
Living with HIV, chronic illness, depression, financial loss, family estrangement and the responsibility of caring for those he loved, forced him to confront adversity in many different forms. Yet through every setback, he continued moving forward.
Written with honesty, compassion and reflection, this is not a story of self-pity or easy answers. It is an account of perseverance, personal growth and finding meaning through life's most difficult experiences.
Alongside the hardship are moments of humour, friendship, kindness, purpose and hope that reveal how healing often comes from the people who choose to stand beside us.
More than a memoir, Rising Through Fire explores identity, mental health, grief, recovery and what it means to rebuild a life when certainty has been stripped away.
Rising Through Fire is available from Steve Wyatt’s website here or alternately on Amazon here.