…I GREW UP IN JOAN CRESCENT IN ELTHAM. The road was nondescript and still is, and there was always the faint whirr of the A20 whenever you stepped into the garden or opened a window too wide. Growing up in south-east London was famously samey— it didn’t really matter who you were. You were in houses that felt comfortable and modern, but ultimately were there to bully families and individuals into conformity, sanity and normality, during times when there was always the dangerous hint of rebellion in the air.
WE HAD NICE FAMILY TIMES AND THERE WAS NEVER ANYTHING UNFULFILLED ABOUT MY CHILDHOOD, but I look back on it now and it was the epitome of normality. There was the telly, the record player, the vegetable patch, the trip to Danson Park. I always had the feeling I wanted to rebel against the sterility of it all, although I did soon realise that sterility is a perfect breeding ground for love, affection and security. It is a fantastic platform for that.
SEEING DAVID BOWIE LIVE WAS A HUGE MOMENT FOR ME. I was 11. He gave kids a licence to say, You can be an adult and a fantasy character, a magician, someone other than yourself. He inspired me, Space Oddity inspired me; and so many millions of others.
MY DAD WAS A TREMENDOUSLY HARD WORKER and it was often at the expense of the one thing we truly craved from him—time.
Denne historien er fra Reader's Digest April 2021-utgaven av Reader's Digest UK.
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Denne historien er fra Reader's Digest April 2021-utgaven av Reader's Digest UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
EVERY SECOND COUNTS: TIPS TO WIN THE RACE AGAINST TIME
Do you want to save 1.5 seconds every day of your life? According to the dishwasher expert at the consumer organisation Choice, there’s no need to insert the dishwashing tablet into the compartment inside the door.
May Fiction
An escaped slave's perspective renews Huckleberry Finn and the seconds tick down to nuclear Armageddon in Miriam Sallon’s top literary picks this month
Wine Not
In a time of warning studies about alcohol consumption, Paola Westbeek looks at non-alcoholic wines, how they taste and if they pair with food
Train Booking Hacks
With the cost of train travel seemingly always rising, Andy Webb gives some tips to save on ticket prices
JOURNEY TO SALTEN, NORWAY, UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN
Here, far from the crowds, in opal clarity, from May to September, the sun knows no rest. As soon as it’s about to set, it rises again
My Britain: Cheltenham
A YEAR IN CHELTENHAM sees a jazz festival, a science festival, a classical music festival and a literature festival. Few towns with 120,000 residents can boast such a huge cultural output!
GET A GREEN(ER) THUMB
Whether you love digging in the dirt, planting seeds and reaping the bounty that bursts forth, or find the whole idea of gardening intimidating, this spring offers the promise of a fresh start.
Under The GRANDFLUENCE Suzi Grant
After working in TV and radio as an author and nutritionist, Suzi Grant started a blog alternativeageing.net) and an Instagram account alternativeageing). She talks to Ian Chaddock about positive ageing”
Sam Quek: If I Ruled The World
Sam Quek MBE is an Olympic gold medalwinning hockey player, team captain on A Question of Sport and host of podcast series Amazing Starts Here
Stand Tall, Ladies
Shorter men may be having their moment, but where are the tall women?
