In its golden heyday, in the Victorian age, the Isle of Thanet (the easternmost part of Kent) was a popular holiday resort. People like Charles Dickens used to go to Broadstairs.
I’m from Crosby, although oddly enough, when you grow up so close to something, you take it for granted, don’t you?
About three or four years ago, I thought it would be lovely to have an old-fashioned seaside week somewhere.
My connection with Arran goes back a long way. I remember before Mum and Dad had a car, we went to Arran on holiday and they just had bikes, with little seats for myself and my brother.
I have always moved south in my life, and now I’ve got to about as south as you can get – I live on the beach in a place called Portslade, which is just on the border of Ho
Although I live in London now, I’ve always felt strongly that I need to be able to get to a stretch of water.
Wales is almost an island. You’re never far from the sea. I’ve recorded a lot of albums on the coast in my friend’s studio in Rhosneigr, Anglesey (pictured).
I grew up in Chatham on the Medway Estuary. It was a naval town but I never thought of it as coastal. I was more aware of my home looking across the North Downs.
I am obsessed by the sea. In my ideal life, I’d like to have a house on the coast. There’s something about the water that makes me feel calm.