30 years in Sudbury Hill
When my parents split up, I was seven and I lived with my mother (and sister and brother) in one rented location after another. So, as an adult, I’ve hated moving.
Today Vee and I celebrate living 30 years in the same house: a semi-detached place in a quiet crescent in Sudbury Hill in north-west London. Some of the neighbours are still the same but many have changed and all the children who were here when we arrived have – like our own son Richard – gone to university, got married, and started families.
Of course, we’ve done a great deal to the place over the years and Vee’s brother-in-law – a builder called Derek – has earned a great deal from us and become very well known to our neighbours.
I love the diversity of our area. In our road, our immediate neighbours include Irish, Spanish, Polish, Indian, Pakistani and Lebanese. Our postman is Nepalese, our doctor is Indian, our newsagent is Sri Lankan, our dry cleaner is Pakistani, my dentist is Iranian, my hairdresser is Greek Cypriot.
Vee would be happy to move to the coast now – but I really enjoy London.