Are you superstitious?

On reflection, I would say no, I’m not superstitious. But I believe in the supernatural. I definitely believe in that, like the Holy Spirit.

Which animal would you compare yourself to and why?

He had lots of qualities. He was loving, friendly, sympathetic, generous, thoughtful, loyal, liked a cuddle, had good table manners, and took regular naps.

Write a letter to your 100-year-old self.

“I remember you,

I remember you.”

…it’s the end of the poem “Remembrance “ by Ray Bradbury.

Where would you go on a shopping spree?

I dunno. I can’t think of anything I want at the moment. We went to Alnwick in Northumberland last year for holiday, and I wouldn’t mind going back there. It’s a historical town and has lots of nice shops and cafes. Lovely place.

What is your middle name? Does it carry any special meaning/significance?

The name Howard is a masculine name of Old Norse and German origin, generally meaning “high guardian” or “brave heart“. It is derived from Hávarðr (high guardian) or the Germanic Hugihard (heart-brave).

What is the last thing you learned?

That I’m not impervious to the latest marketing from Apple. I just ordered a MacBook Neo.

How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success?

In the early Eighties, I was happily working as a bricklayer, when along came a major recession, which was largely caused by the policies of Mrs Thatcher. I found myself unemployed along with 350,000 other construction workers.

Being out of work was no fun, not least because of the low income. So I decided to use my spare time to get some qualifications. Within a couple of years, I had enough to gain entry into university. I studied philosophy with the history of scientific thought. And I gained a class IIii BA and went on to become a college lecturer.

It was quite a career change.