I was once hired to write a column for 'The Guardian' and then got fired before I'd submitted my first one. That was unusual. Most newspapers wait until I've written at least one piece for them before firing me.

I don't envy young Brits crossing the Atlantic to make their fortunes today.

I tried being a mechanic and I tried catering, but I realized I had even less aptitude for semi-skilled labour than for academic work.

There's no reason why you can't deliver a grammar-school curriculum to an all-ability intake.

I was once hired to write a column for 'The Guardian' and then got fired before I'd submitted my first one. That was unusual. Most newspapers wait until I've written at least one piece for them before firing me.

America thinks of itself as a meritocracy, so people have more respect for success and more contempt for failure.

I wouldn't describe myself as a master of anything.