Many years back I was interviewed by a reporter from the Manchester Evening News who asked me to sign a couple of Doctor Who books for his children. Later, when I was jotting down his contact details in my address book, I noted the names of the children as well.

I met him again more than a decade later. As it happened, I’d been transferring all my details to a new address book the week before. He introduced himself and I responded with, “Great to see you again. How are Rachel and Philip these days?”

Now there’s one person on this planet who’s convinced I must have a phenomenal memory for names. Everyone else, alas, soon picks up the truth.