The council estate we grew up on in Bradford was quite rough but the good thing about it was that it was on the edge of a large woodland and beautiful countryside. As a child I spent most of my time outdoors and I loved camping out in the back garden. When I got older, my favourite thing was to go camping with my girlfriend in North Yorkshire in the Dales. I didn't realise how much I would miss the countryside until I left it and lived in London for twenty one years, and I re

This is the 12th In my 'Strange and Troubled Past' series. 'Black Handkerchief' Acrylic On Canvas 40 by 40cm Between the ages of fifteen and eighteen I was usually off my head in one way or another. Mainly though it was acid, too much acid. I got to the stage where even when I wasn't on it, I felt like I was. At this point I'd had enough really but each day there would be a little paper square placed on my open palm and I'd be thinking 'I really don't want this but then I'd s

This is probably the most embarrassing blog post in this series I've had to write yet. I'm forty six years old so I shouldn't really get embarrassed by things any more but nevertheless I do slightly. This painting is about a point in my life roughly twenty years ago, although it only feels like five. I'd been getting black out drunk and taking drugs for a while. I could be accused of oversharing but I wouldn't really go into what events led me to be such a fuck up, the sort o

Charlie Chester I acrylic on canvas board 40 by 30cm No 12 in the 'Strange and Troubled Past' series (trigger warning: if you are easily upset or offended then don't read on) I love swimming, I wish I could swim every day, usually I only get to swim about once a year though. I'm going to make it my goal to swim more this year though and the town we have just moved to has a lido. I got to thinking about swimming when I was younger, so many nostalgic feelings came to me. The s

This painting is from a very particular moment in time, things were not going well for my other half Bella and I. 2021 was a very hard year for us, we'd had a run of difficult years since 2016, not all bad but testing times. I know it's been a tough time for most people what with the pandemic and strange events around the world. At this moment we were close to breaking point, for reasons too personal to write about here at this time but maybe one day. The thing was though, we

When I was young I'd say I was generally liked by other children although I never felt like I connected with them and always felt like an alien that had been plonked on a planet and put in a human body and could see the other humans looking at me from behind their noses and I went along with it. On top of that I had a funny shaped head, ha! An elongated skull. I remember been in a doctors room and him measuring my head and my mum asking him questions but I was never told why

80's Primary School Teacher, Acrylic on canvas, 40 by 40cm This small event changed my life, I'm not sure if it was for better or worse. When I was an older child I'd had teachers do worse to me like full on hit me but that never bothered me, this did bother me though. The teacher was a piece of crap though for reacting the way she did, I won't mention her name because she doesn't deserve to be associated with me. There was a school bully, I won't mention his name either. He

Recurring Nightmare 71 by 51cm Acrylic on canvas. Unfinished I don't really like this painting at all Even if I finished it, I can tell I wouldn't like it. Maybe one day I'll go back and finish it, maybe if money is tight and I need a canvas, I'll paint over it. I had this dream from as young as I can remember and all the way until I was around twelve I think. It got less and less frequent and then stopped altogether. I used to wake up from this dream screaming and even thoug

'Thrown Out' Acrylic on canvas board 30 by 40cm There's not much of a story behind this painting, it's just a funny memory from a point in time with my dad. I went to his as usual to knock off school and get drunk and a little stoned. He must have been 'flush' because he took me to the 'boozer'. There was a pool room and we played for a couple of hours. He'd go into the next room where the bar was and get pints for himself and halves for me. Eventually the landlord of the pub