Phil and I are country bumpkins. We live in a beautiful Cotswold village, surrounded by fields and farms and woods and crops. With a population of just 200, we have more sheep and cow neighbours than human ones. We love the country: red kites circling our house, the changing harvest over the year, badgers and … More Country Bumpkins in London
I’m not a fan of interviews. If someone asks me a question, I don’t take a deep breath, I don’t stop and think, I don’t spend two minutes planning my answer. No, I’m a chatterer. I’ll immediately start talking at super fast speed, simultaneous to my brain whirring away, quickly trying to recall my planned … More In A Tizzy Over An Interview
It took eight years for me to get a diagnosis. Eight years of wondering and worrying, speculating and self-diagnosing. From my early twenties, to my dramatic collapse at 32, I knew there was something medically wrong. I had started to walk slower, swim slower, run slower than my peers. Despite moving at half their speed, … More Solving The Puzzle
A game of Monopoly was an adrenaline fuelled activity in my family. With our competitive natures and argumentative streaks, it was never a polite quiet game. My brother would steal money from the bank every time we looked the other way. My sister would cause outrage by going in to cahoots with another player, letting … More Becoming A Gamer
I remember the first time I felt like my throat was closing up. One Friday night, back in 2005, Phil and I were sipping red wine and listening to some Damien Rice songs. Suddenly I felt strange. My throat had closed up. Literally in a second, my throat had sealed shut, and my next normal … More Throat Spasms -Will I Be Kicked Off The List?
I’ve never managed to keep a diary. I’ve owned many, started many, hidden many around my room. As a youngster, I’d begin each new year with a fresh diary and great intentions to complete it. The first few entries would be in my neatest handwriting with a sharpened pencil. But after a few days, the pencil … More Writing It Down
Riding the London underground is a rite of passage. My first trip was aged seventeen, with my fellow country-bumpkin school friends, on our inaugural adult-less adventure to the capital. The tube was dramatic, dark and eerie. We nervously stood staring at the map on the tunnel wall, trying to decipher the squiggle of lines. When the … More Braving the Underground
I love a new year. There is so much potential, so much possibility, so many opportunities ahead. I love looking at my new blank diary and imagining all of the excitement that 2017 will contain. 365 days to be filled with craft and books and writing. Four seasons to be filled with catch ups over … More To Plan or Not To Plan
New Year’s Eve is a strange one for me. For the most part it is a big celebration, a reason to be proud. I’ve got through another year, I’ve survived, I’m still alive and hanging in there. But that happy jubilant mood is always accompanied by a slight nervous fear, a niggle at the back … More Welcome 2017
`I love Christmas. It is magical. For one week of the year, the world becomes brighter, sparklier, shinier, louder. It is a chance to take a break from normal life, to get excited like a child, and be surrounded by love. But it is also exhausting! Thus, the way I celebrate has had to change … More Christmas With PH
We Can Adjust The Sails 