Yes, we (the Fantastic fic authors) picked up the Cobra mk ii issue when reading the Gollancz books. It got past the Frontier censors (sensors?

) but not ours.
I think that's what you get when you don't have arguably 'real' fans writing the stories. The Cobra mk ii has never been mentioned in any of the official guides, thus the only canon reference remains the original 'Elite manual' where it is referenced as a failed design due to a design fault in the hull, - thus it never flew.
Michael Brookes sequel to TDW? In name only really, he's called it a 'spiritual successor' rather than a direct sequel in the traditional sense. He was first in line when DB started thinking about books for ED and thus nabbed that chance. Can't blame him really! As far as I know he hasn't started writing it yet.
As for the narrative. We've all been asked to provide Frontier with story elements from our books for Elite: Dangerous. Is there a grand narrative for the game? Unsure at present. There will certainly be 'events' that take place, an encounter with the Thargoids be a surefire one. Various areas of the galaxy are being pegged out as 'off-limits' for now, so that they can be reserved for new adventures.
As for the history. ED is set in 3300, the politics has moved on from 3250 (FFE era) with the Alliance being bigger and bolder. Mankind has spread out further, and the introduction of the new hyperdrives (fast travel compared to previous gen hyperdrives) is upsetting the balance of power...
Cheers,
Drew.