Turing biography on special offer at 99p

This is rather a late acknowledgement of the government's recognition of the great computer pioneer Alan Turing in the budget.  In short, they have set aside £42m for a university unit to study big data, and they are going to call it the Turing Institute.

The announcement came just three months after Turing was given a royal pardon, rather belatedly, for his conviction for homosexuality in 1952 - which started the chain of events which led to his suicide two years later.  And, yes, it was suicide.

It also comes just a few months before the release of the film about his code-breaking work at Bletchley Park, starring none other than Benedict Cumberbatch, who is beginning to corner the market in portraying genius.

There is clearly something in the ether about Turing at the moment.

Which is all to the good because my e-biography of him, Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma, is on special offer from tomorrow and for the rest of the week.  You will be able to download it for 99p - which is pretty good for 20,000 words...