If one wants to understand the beautiful physics of graphene, they will be spoiled for choice with so many reviews and popular science articles now available. I hope that the reader will excuse me if on this occasion I recommend my own writings [1–3]. Instead of repeating myself here, I have chosen to describe my twisty scientific road that eventually led to the Nobel Prize. Most parts of this story are not described anywhere else, and its timeline covers the period from my PhD in 1987 to the moment when our 2004 paper, recognised by the Nobel Committee, was accepted for publication. The story naturally gets denser in events and explanations towards the end. Also, it provides a detailed review of pre-2004 literature and, with the benefit of hindsight, attempts to analyse why graphene has attracted so much interest. I have tried my best to make this article not only informative but also easy to read, even for non-physicists.