Sinclair Research "FM Wristwatch Radio", an LCD wristwatch with a radio attached. However, the watch had several problems and never went into full production. Sinclair had long had an interest in electric vehicles, and during the early 1980s he worked on the design of a single-seater "personal vehicle", eventually starting a company called Sinclair Vehicles Ltd in March 1983. He launched the Sinclair C5 electric vehicle on 10 January 1985, but it was a commercial disaster, selling only 17,000 units and losing Sinclair £7,000,000. Sinclair Vehicles went into liquidation later the same year. The failure of the C5, combined with those of
Clive Sinclair (author) published in 1973 by Allison and Busby. As he said in a 2012 interview: "The truth is I’ve always been a short story writer rather than a novelist. "Bibliosexuality" was originally a collection of short stories about a certain David Drollkind. Margaret Busby said she would publish it, if I could find a way of linking them. That’s how it became a novel." Sinclair went on to become better known as a writer of short stories, with his next book, the 1981 collection "Hearts of Gold", winning him the Somerset Maugham Award. In 1983, he was recognised in "Granta"′s list