Aultimer & fatB****rd - thanks for the information. I think that, as a geographically naive youth, I must have inferred that Mr Lewis intended the town in his book to be Scunthorpe. It's interesting (and possibly coincidental?)that the later book gives Carter's home town as Scunthorpe, though.
Even weirder though is that while I'm typing this, in the back room, from the front room I can hear Michael Caine's distinctive tones issuing from the telly!!