Thanks very much for the top tips. It sounds as though this might be an even more tricky process than I thought.
As for the marital route, the reason for not slogging over CAA exams and staying in the UK is an ex wife in Texas who lives there with my kids. I know, I should have got the GC before, I naively thought the immigration process would look kindly upon my case, you live and learn!
Thanks again for responding, I might have to look at the Helicopter route.