The Warm Up: The Story Behind the Lycra with Television’s Mr Motivator

Derrick Errol Evans was born in Jamaica to a single mum, given away at just three months and raised by his Popa and Auntie. Raised in the religious, strict confines of 1950s Jamaica, Derrick talks openly about his childhood: the sexual abuse he suffered as young as six years old and his journey to Leicester, England aged nine, standing up to the school bully after years of torment, and sleeping rough after years of routine beatings by his Popa. The Warm Up is not a typical celebrity autobiography – Derrick laces the story of his life (from childhood through to retirement) with inspirational reflections and advice. His position, as fitness guru, popular television personality, and motivational speaker, makes him ideally placed to offer insights into life, work, love and family, based on his own, often challenging, experiences. Via a horrific divorce, a notorious relationship with Olympian Tessa Sanderson, endless litigation over the children, and a libel trial, he eventually got onto the UK’s TV screens, which plummeted him straight into the hearts of Brits throughout the 1990s. He is still regarded with great fondness and frequently asked to make personal appearances around the world at festivals and as a brand ambassador.