My mother had become a widow with two sons to look after while she was still in her early twenties.

When I was just two and my brother was six my father, Jim, took ill and later passed away at the Robinson Hospital as the result of a brain haemorrhage.

We lived in a small single-storey house with a thatched roof in Ballymoney that we rented from a local farmer. Beckett was at Dunlop’s side every step of the way, for his victories at the North West 200 and the Ulster Grand Prix, for his incredible fight to race again after his near-death crash at the Isle of Man TT, and for the terrible crash that tragically cut Dunlop’s life short in 2008.A riveting behind-the-scenes book about Robert Dunlop – not to be missed. Now, for the first time, Beckett talks candidly about their incredible partnership – the struggle to get Robert to believe in himself, the long nights spent perfecting the bikes, life on the road and in the paddock and Dunlop’s determination to race and win, often against terrifying odds. Together, they lived an extraordinary adventure, one that took Robert from a virtual unknown to one of the most exciting and successful road racers of his generation. For more than twenty years, he was mechanic, mentor, fixer, friend, practically family. Beckett went on to become Dunlop’s right-hand man. They were a formidable force, and Robert only needed Liam in his corner, he didn’t need anyone else.’Louise Dunlop, Robert’s widow When road racing fan Liam Beckett offered a young Robert Dunlop the use of a workshop at his house in Ballymoney, he didn’t realise that that it would change both of their lives forever. ‘There were always just the two of them, Robert and Liam, and there wasn’t one weekend when Robert went racing that Liam wasn’t with him.

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