Introduction.- Explaining peak oil: What it is, and why it happens.- A brief history of forecasting peak oil.- When should we expect the peak?.- Why has peak oil been so poorly understood?.- Caveats and conclusions.- Definitions.- Oil reserves data: 1P vs. 2P.- Suggestions for use of IHS Energy’s ’PEPS’ dataset.- Further aspects of oil forecasting.- Detail on specific oil forecasts.- Peak oil and climate change.- Peak demand.- Peak gas.- Reading University ’Oil group’ and publications.