Hi – and thank you for visiting my website (even if it was only by accident). The site is mainly devoted to a series of challenges that I attempted between 2014 and 2018 to try and raise mental health awareness; to encourage people to talk, and show that it is fine to ask for help.
Photos of many of the challenges can be found on the following page, and below is my version of Snow Patrol's "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" performed with my friend and work colleague Georgina Sayers, and recorded at The Garage Studios in South Shields. The other audio file is an acoustic demo of Blink 182's "All the Small Things" sung with Carl Pemberton (formerly of Journey South). I later sang the track live with Carl's band V12 to complete another challenge.
In 2011, I first revealed that I suffer from a chronic but mild form of depression (now recognised as dysthymia). I have written a book about my experiences and challenges entitled "Today, Just Like Yesterday" (below), which was published on 12 April 2018 - five years after the appearance of my first book "Desperately Seeking Susan Foreman", the quest to obtain a signed photo from all the female Doctor Who companions.
Away from writing, I have had a lifelong love of sport, with particular interests in cricket (which I attempted to play for many years), rugby league (which I didn't), netball (and there's a separate page dedicated to Grangetown's Prem 1 squad), and the Olympic Games.
The challenges have now ended, and a new "conversations" project is underway, but I am also looking forward to spending many hours of quality time with my wife Elaine and our new puppy Ruby. Mental health will always be part of my life ... part of me; and the message will stay the same: never be afraid to talk or ask for help ... you never know how much you might be able to achieve if you do...
Photos of many of the challenges can be found on the following page, and below is my version of Snow Patrol's "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" performed with my friend and work colleague Georgina Sayers, and recorded at The Garage Studios in South Shields. The other audio file is an acoustic demo of Blink 182's "All the Small Things" sung with Carl Pemberton (formerly of Journey South). I later sang the track live with Carl's band V12 to complete another challenge.
In 2011, I first revealed that I suffer from a chronic but mild form of depression (now recognised as dysthymia). I have written a book about my experiences and challenges entitled "Today, Just Like Yesterday" (below), which was published on 12 April 2018 - five years after the appearance of my first book "Desperately Seeking Susan Foreman", the quest to obtain a signed photo from all the female Doctor Who companions.
Away from writing, I have had a lifelong love of sport, with particular interests in cricket (which I attempted to play for many years), rugby league (which I didn't), netball (and there's a separate page dedicated to Grangetown's Prem 1 squad), and the Olympic Games.
The challenges have now ended, and a new "conversations" project is underway, but I am also looking forward to spending many hours of quality time with my wife Elaine and our new puppy Ruby. Mental health will always be part of my life ... part of me; and the message will stay the same: never be afraid to talk or ask for help ... you never know how much you might be able to achieve if you do...
