10 Things About Me

Andrewagreen

1) I've always wanted to be a writer but the ambition rarely stretched as far as writing anything. I've been lucky enough to work with words, writing reports and boring stuff but my creative efforts have been few and very far between. My first book on here Summer Sun, Winter Rain took me forty years to write.

2) I've had occasional successes though. Living, Breathing Slough won a competition and featured on national and local radio. I also won hymn writing competition and had my winning entry performed by the London Gospel Choir and a 1,000 strong congregation that included the Archbishop of Canterbury and Andrew Motion the Poet Laureate.

3) My father was in the army so we travelled around a lot. I attended ten different schools; five of them, in three different countries before I was eight.

4) I was evacuated from Trieste as a small child, lived in Cyprus before the Turkish invasion and on a huge German base that has become a ghost town. Summer of Sixty Six recollects what it was like to be in Germany during the 1966 World Cup.

5) After college I spent two years on Voluntary Service Overseas, equivalent to U.S. Peace Corps or Canadian, CUSO working as a librarian in Northern Nigeria.

6) I have been twice married. I had three sons with my first wife. Tragically one of them, a twin was a victim of Sudden Infant Death and only survived ten weeks. Our older son was three and his twin brothers ten weeks old when we suffered a Sudden Infant Death (also known as Cot Death). It took many years to get over this and in some ways I never have but my older son's wife recently gave birth to twin granddaughters.

7) My younger son is a Stand Up Comedian; a regular on the London comedy circuit.

8) I am a Christian by conviction and an ex lay minister in the Church of England. I've shared my beliefs in Down to Earth God.

9) I love travelling and am particularly in love with India. We have had several holidays in Kerala and Goa, have travelled across Northern India and visited Sri Lanka and Nepal too. We have also been to Mexico and the Dominican Republic but I have never been to the States or Canada. I'm hoping to visit the US next year. We regularly visit Sweden, where my wife has family and visit Italy at every opportunity.

10) I am obsessed with sport particularly rugby and running. I am passionate Harlequins fan and recently got back into running. In my younger years I completed six London Marathons with a fastest time of 3hrs 16mins. We used to help with the finish so one year I was first to cross the line. Pity it was only a practice.