Books

- I am learning to drive, so The Highway Code is never far from my reach. My job involves a lot of reading, so my well-thumbed copy of Building the Curriculum 5 is also close at hand. Reading is one of the few activities that are truly in “my” time, so when I get the chance I visit old friends in Middle Earth. I’ve read most of James Herbert’s classic horror thrillers and I’m looking forward to his latest bestseller, Ash.

Film

- Watching films is possibly my favourite pastime. While I enjoy classics, such as Cinema Paradiso (pictured), I am also quite at home with a good old-fashioned action blockbuster. My all-time favourite film would have to be Star Wars. I was transfixed as a lad and 30-odd years later nothing much has changed.

TV

- Aside from the news there are few shows that I regularly watch. I like to keep up to date with Doctor Who. My must-see show of recent times is Game of Thrones, which I enjoyed more than trying to plough through George R.R. Martin’s books.

Music

- I’d like to say that my taste in music is varied and interesting but that simply isn’t true. I can sum up my musical likes - no, loves - in two words: Iron Maiden.

Appstechnology

- My smartphone has become indispensable and contains many of the books, films, TV shows and music mentioned already. Keeping up with current affairs and social networking on Facebook and Twitter are also important to me.

Family

- Better than all of the above, however, is family time. There’s nothing quite like getting all the gang together and sharing a good meal and a good laugh.