Modern man My mum was a home economics teacher at the local secondary
school. When my sister and I finished for the day at primary school we would
walk 100 yards over to Mum’s school and sit in on the last lesson of her
day. As a result I can sew and cook.
First job I did a paper round from the age of 11 until 17. My dad was
great. He’d get up every single morning, make me a cup of tea and help me
sort my papers.
Dream job It was always my dream to be a policeman. But I took an eye
test at school when I was six and it turned out I was colour blind. They
gave me a letter with all the jobs I couldn’t do. I scanned down the list
and there was ‘policeman’. I went home and cried. I still applied for the
special constabulary when I was 19 – I hoped my eyes had sorted themselves
out – but they found me out.
Starting over In 2007 I had a meeting with someone in BBC Sport because
I was keen to move on from children’s television. She asked me, ‘What are
your journalistic qualifications?’ I told her I hadn’t got any – I hadn’t
been to university, I had just started working in television while retaking
my A-levels, and had been at the BBC for years by then. She said, ‘You’ll
never work for BBC Sport.’ But Niall Sloane, who was head of football at the
BBC, let me go out and report from lower league football games around the
country. It was like I was on work experience again.
Clock Harriet and I met in 1999, and got married in 2007 in our village
in Norfolk. This cottage longcase clock (pictured below) was a wedding
present from my mum and dad; it was made in Norfolk by a guy called John
Wells in, we think, 1822. I love to hear the chime every hour. It connects
me with home.
Lotus Amazingly, in 2008 I was offered the Formula One contract. I’d
seen big names bandied around for it, but never thought they’d give it to
the guy who was presenting Mobster Lobster on children’s TV. Growing
up, I’d always been into F1. Living in Norfolk we all supported Lotus,
because it was based about 10 miles from my house. Ayrton Senna was one of
my heroes – this is a replica of him in his Lotus car (pictured below).
Photographs by Frantzesco Kangaris