It has been mentioned before. Although he'd have been there a few years after me I spent a fair bit of time around Tile Hill/Canley in my teens/early 20's and on the whole it was fine. Obviously there were some areas worse than others and he may well have been around some of the less desirable bits. I also imagine being black would've been a big problem for him which I didn't have.
Trouble is he makes it sound like the whole area was a no-go zone when it really wasn't. I walked to and from Woodlands everyday for over five years and never had a single problem.