From as long ago as I can remember I have been intrigued by anything mechanical: from clocks to engines and everything in between. My first 'big break' was when, about age six, I received a Meccano Set as a present. I never looked back from that day to this. I learnt all the basics about levers, wheels, axles, gears etc from 'designing' Meccano models and later, when I had discovered batteries, bulbs, wires and electric motors and magnets . . well, that was it! So it perhaps comes as no surprise that the day following my graduation from the Royal Manchester College of Music (prior to becoming a school music teacher!) I was in my parents' garage removing and dismantling the engine of my newly-acquired Morris Minor as a prelude to reconditioning and rebuilding it! I still enjoy the challenge of a non-working radio, broken toy or blocked sink!

Well, into the second term of teaching I met my future wife and so, with our marriage and the purchase of our first house, began my life in DIY (with a bit of parenting thrown in for good measure!). Over the years I've done plumbing, wiring, kitchen fitting, laying tiles, roof repairs, building and all sorts of other things in addition to keeping up my interest in electronics and computers. (I've never mastered the art of plastering, however, which seems to me best left to the professionals or the experts in icing cakes!)

So that's the sort of person that I remain to this day - not for me the mud and agony of kicked shins and dislocated limbs which more sporty types seem to revel in!

Oh, and I think I might have forgotten to mention that, in spite of the teaching, I have always maintained my love of and interest in music, but that's not for this page - you'll have to search elsewhere if you're interested in reading a bit about that.