Tuckerization is the use of a real person’s name as a character name, place name, or equipment name in a story. Its also spellt tuckerisation – I suspect that us Brits anglicising it. Its not unlike a company paying an author to include their name in a piece of fiction or product placement in a film.

If you’re famous like David Beckham then (forgetting about the use of celebrity names- akin to committing suicide legally and financially) then the Tuckerized name would be recognisable, but my name David Bolton- well theres loads of us out there so how do you know which it is? So I guess I won’t be looking for to be tuckerised anytime soon.

Now the point about Tuckerization is that it only includes the name, not appearance or other characteristics of the named individual. Why not go the extra step and put a real person in. Hey we could call that Boltonization ( Boltonisation!) rather than the reference to John Bolton/UN.

The alien female purred as she approached David. “You may think of yourself as fat, bespectacled, asthmatic and ugly, David” she whispered, as her 4 tentacles unbuttoned his shirt. “But that is on your world and in my world you are what every ur-woman desires as their partner (and dinner).” She stepped out of her skin and …