I was born a miners son with a voice too loud for the valleys and a hunger that frightened me. Unmasking Burton is my reckoning. Not the legend, not the films, not the voice you think you know but the man beneath it. A boy who escaped through poetry, who conquered stages, who loved fiercely and drank harder, and who never quite outran himself. Through memory, verse, and sharp humour, I lay bare ambition, class, fame, and failure. This is not a tribute. It is a confession. And for once, I am speaking plainly.