At the age of about 5, I discovered that the good old colouring pencil could be very useful (especially when it came to getting you out of trouble)! Back in the '70's, when things in our house were tough financially, my Grandad kindly gave my parents some wallpaper, with an egg and spoon pattern, to freshen up his grandson's bedroom.



The temptation was just too much, and one night, after staring at the eggs and spoons, I decided to see how much I could tear off! I must have felt guilt, even at that age, because to disguise my deed, I found my favourite pencils and set about carefully colouring the missing chunks of pattern. Fortunately, my parents and grandad found it amusing!

My naughty doodles started to appear everywhere, including some very old 'The War Illustrated' books (treasured by my parents) in which I added a little more action to the photos! I'm sure I convinced myself, at the time, that I would be adding something worthwhile to the book! ...Cont'd