“Did you know you almost never were?” Grandad is watering the plants in the garden, looking sharp for the job in his pressed shirt and trousers. His pomade-dry hair shines in the rare, late summer sun. “‘Never were’?” I reply, incredulous as only a 14 year old can be. “Never were,”...

Chemistry class. We file in, ties loosened, shirts untucked, more interested in punching each others’ shoulders than in anything this dusty old formaldehyde-soaked room has to offer. The girls watch and “tsk” at our pointless displays of mid-adolescent masculinity. Mr Driver ushers us in with a sneer, the invisible telltale...

It’s lunchtime at Summerbee Senior school and my friends Jonathan and Chris and I have gathered in a small, well-shaded corner of the playground to eat and discuss the relative merits of different hip hop albums - specifically, a series of compilation records we all love, collectively named “Electros”. “I’m...

I’m standing at the top of the zig zag looking down over the spread of beach below. It’s early in the day yet, but people are already filing into place inside their beach huts (if they’re lucky enough to have one, which we are) or directly onto the sands, all...

It’s maths class and in walks Dean. He sits next to me and pulls a cassette player out of his bag. “Walker, listen to this.” He presses the play button. It’s scratchy and there’s a slight echo, but what I hear is a girl rapping breathlessly over a super-raw beat....

“Get ready, love – we’re almost there…” It’s the summer of 1983 and I’m in the back seat of our car, vibrating with joy. We’re on our way to 101 Toys in nearby Westbourne - a thrill on any day, to be sure. But this day is different. This day,...