An Insight

In the words of a Depeche Mode song, “This is an insight into my mind“…

I like most sports, in particular rugby and football. I retired from playing rugby when I  turned 35 with a persistent hamstring injury and other things starting to fall apart! A couple of years later, I managed to get the hamstring sorted and sometimes my brain tells me I could still manage a game…

I still play 5-a-side football and have just got back into going to the gym after a “lazy lay off”.

My favourite band is Depeche Mode. I first saw them in 1982, age 14 at the Portsmouth Guildhall and have followed their career ever since. It’s good to see that now they’re ‘getting on’ a bit, it’s quite fashionable to like them. I can’t wait to see them at the O2 (Dec ’09 & Feb ’10) as I missed “Touring the Angel” due to an unforgivable cock-up when I somehow managed to have the tickets for about 10 months but had the wrong date on Outlook

I also like The Killers, The Jam and INXS. I’ve seen U2, REM and Madness in concert and regret not being able to have seen The Jam.

My comedy tastes were influenced from an early age by my Dad letting me watch Monty Python, The Goodies, Fawlty Towers and others. I remember him getting me into a cinema aged 12 to watch the Life of Brian when it was a 14 screening. It’s just a shame we don’t seem to have as much top quality comedy now as then ‘though I realise that could just be a biased view.

Likes:

• Seeing my sons develop
• Our national heritage
• Depeche Mode
• British sports people who still compete to win, not just for money
• Knowing that I delivered a good piece of work
• The feeling when England won the Rugby World Cup in 2003
• Top Gear
• Ricky Gervais
• Jack Dee
• Derren Brown
• Mock the Week
• Have I Got News For You?
• The sound of rain on canvas
• Freddie Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen post Ashes victory – no pretensions!
• Genuine teamwork

Dislikes:

• MP’s who abuse their position
  (should I just say MPs?)
• Lack of competitive sport in schools
• Do as I say, not do as I do
• Our country’s soft touch approach to immigration
• Big Brother (the program, not CCTV)
• Most ITV programs
• Fast food chains sponsoring sport
• The number of foreign players in the Premiership
• The inflated salaries in The Premiership
• Footballers not caring about representing England
• The inflated salaries in banking
  (I know, not counter staff)
• Squeezing houses into the South
• Inconsiderate drivers
  (I hope BMW never start doing vans…)
• Able bodied drivers parking in disabled spots
• Dog owners who don’t clear up their dog’s mess