Scampus

In my mid-40s, I have lived my entire life in Brisbane, Australia. Brisbane is easily one of the best places in the world to live, once you make allowance for the hot, sticky days of summer. (Air conditioners are handy around here - wish I had one.)

Interests:

• Trivia competitions - playing, not organising.
• Website design - I work as a webmaster, although my qualifications are those of a librarian.
• Beach volleyball - 4- or 6-a-side teams only, please!
• Reading - primarily fantasy and science fiction.
• History - ancient, medieval and modern, but in particular the last century of the Roman Republic (133 B.C. - 27 B.C.). Sulla, Marius, the Gracchi, Pompey, Cicero, Clodius, Clodia, Caesar - some of the most fascinating people to have ever lived.

My partner, AnnMaree, keeps me honest. We have two British Shorthair cats, Tigger and Biggles, aka "Tig'n'Bigs." Our house is an extended Queenslander cottage, last renovated in late 2000.

Favourite books

• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien - has been since 9th Grade, and I'd say always will be
• I'm also a fan of C.S. Lewis's Narnia series
• some Anne McCaffrey (mainly the early Pern books - the later ones fell away in quality)
• almost all David Gemmell work

Least favourite books:

Sorry, but I can't stand Robert Jordan's never ending "Wheel of Time" series - it's so obviously become no more than a money making exercise that he's spinning out for as long as people will let him get away with it. For similar reasons I now avoid fantasy series (3 books or more) simply because the authors usually have one idea which they warp and torture until it stretches out over 3 or 4 books - far more pages than the concept usually warrants.

Favourite movies

• Casablanca, closely followed by
• Monty Python's Life of Brian - some of the greatest comic scenes yet filmed ("He has a wife, you know...!")
• The Shawshank Redemption - one of the best movies never to score an Oscar
• Anything by M. Night Shyamalan rates up there as well
• Arsenic and Old Lace still amuses me.

Favourite music

Here's my absolute top five:

• Hey Jude, by the Beatles
• Siren, by Divinyls
• Hanging on the Telephone, by Blondie
• What I like about you, by the Romantics
• Counting the Beat, by the Swingers

These are my 5 star jobs - there are another 29 in my collection rated at 4 stars (which I won't bore you with).

Favourite television shows

I'm not that big a TV fan, but when I do watch, this is what I seek out:

• Fawlty Towers
• Blackadder
• Grass roots - an enthralling Australian series following the machinations of a seaside resort's mayor and other local councillors
• SeaChange - another fantastic Australian series
• M*A*S*H
• Cheers