Please tell us a little about yourself.
After starting work in the grocery trade at fifteen and inspired by a very special girl, I went back to school at the age of 23, starting from scratch with "O levels", then to college as a mature student and ended up with a B.Ed degree as Head of Drama in a Comprehensive School. I've now escaped. I refuse to say retired because that's what old people do - and I'm enjoying doing things that involve creating. I also do charity work, my wife and I travel, providing employment for people who work in airports, hotels and restaurants.
What's your story about?
My story is a childhood memory about the New Theatre, Cardiff, and an early experience of school.
Why did you choose to tell this particular story?
Initially because it suited in that it was about growing up in Cardiff but as I worked on it I realised there was more to it than that. It became something I wanted to say about life. We all know what it is like to be put down, the experience can sometimes have a devastating effect on our confidence. I sometimes think I've spent most of my adult life doing things that, as a child, I was taught I was incapable of doing. The story is about one such incident. But it isn't about being a victim. Quite the opposite, it is about winning through and succeeding. The will to succeed is often the product of adversity, failure in one way is often the route to success in another. That, I hope, is something the people who see my little film will identify with.
What did you find most rewarding about the workshop?
After 29 years of teaching where, inevitably, no matter what subject you teach, there will be some pupils who do not like that subject and either can't be bothered or become disruptive, it was an absolute joy to work on something creative with a team of committed people.
