I left school at fourteen, wandered the world, ended up in prisons abroad, and came out the other side. Now in my sixties, I’m a bricklayer-turned-writer, music promoter, and author—building the next chapter of my life, brick by brick, word by word.

Calloused hands from bricklaying. Lessons carved out in prison cells, on the streets, and in life itself. Learning isn’t about age; it’s about showing up, taking risks, and building your own future. From the music scene to the classroom, every chapter proves it’s never too late to start again.

Bricklaying First
Before writing, promoting music, or publishing books, I was a bricklayer. Knees sore, back aching, hands scarred—but every wall I built taught me patience, discipline, and pride. Bricklaying grounded me. It gave me my first real anchor in a world that didn’t care I’d left school at fourteen, with no qualifications, no plan, and a stubborn streak that got me into more trouble than I can count.

Leaving School and Finding My Way
Fourteen. Too young. Too reckless. Too full of myself to care about rules or lessons. I skipped school, made mistakes, thought I knew better. No one stopped me. No one cared. Bricklaying became my first real skill, the first thing I could master in a world that had no time for mistakes.

Travel, Trouble, and Hard Lessons
Life didn’t wait. I travelled, got into trouble, and ended up in prisons in Thailand and Jamaica. Mistakes? Plenty. Lessons? Even more. Those experiences taught me resilience, grit, and the value of survival. They shaped me in ways no classroom ever could.

Finding My Voice
Through all the chaos, I chased creativity. Writing, promoting music, telling stories—I kept that fire alive. I held onto the belief that learning never stops, even when life seems determined to push you down.

Returning to Education in My Sixties
In 2022, I walked back into a classroom, enrolling at Birkbeck University to study creative writing. Half the students are half my age, and I’m reminded of something I wish I’d known at fourteen: it’s never too late to start again. Every lecture, every essay, every workshop is a chance to reclaim the life you thought you’d lost.

The Power of Lifelong Learning
Starting a new term reminds me that life doesn’t quit on you just because you once quit on yourself. The mistakes, the doors I walked away from, the prisons, the trouble—they’ve shaped me, but they haven’t defined me. Brick by brick, word by word, I’m building something that lasts.

Key Lessons
Life doesn’t end just because you make mistakes.

Age doesn’t matter when it comes to learning and growth.

Your past—however messy—can become the foundation for something lasting.

Final Thoughts: Build Your Future
I’ve built walls, written stories, promoted music, travelled the world, faced prison, and survived it all. Now I’m building the next chapter. If you feel it’s too late to learn, too late to change, too late to start again—know this: it isn’t. Show up. Do the work. Build. And never let regret steal the rest of your life.

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