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Part 2 of my 40 facts to mark my 40th birthday. Here we go.
21. I once had to give up a role in a play at university due to scheduling conflicts. The role was taken over by Rosamund Pike. She was OK. I suppose.
22. I used to own a gerbil called Nancy. Her full name was Pregnancy. I can't remember why, as she was never pregnant.
23. My all-time favourite sweet is a Roy of the Rovers pineapple chew bar, now sadly discontinued.
24. I used to sing in an all-female a cappella group which contained both the historian Dr Janina Ramirez, and the first-ever winner of Junior Masterchef.
25. The first time I met Jeremy Vine, he had on a Los Pollos Hermanos T shirt. He confidently asserted that I would know what TV show this referred to. I didn't.
26. I live just down the road from the battlefield of Towton, the battle which saw Edward IV crowned King, and the bloodiest engagement ever fought on English soil.
27. I wear contact lenses on TV, but aleays wear glasses in real life. Beth, by contrast, wears contact lenses for the day-to-day, but glasses on television.
28. I used to work for the same news agency as Alex Brooker off The Last Leg.
29. I couldn't blow up a balloon until I was in my mid-30s. Just didn't understand the technique.
30. In the year above me at school were a guy who appeared on series 3 of Big Brother, and a guy who appeared on series 2 of The Apprentice. Neither were hugely memorable.
31. If you didn't think my singing was bad enough, my party piece is to sing the entire lyrics to the Macarena. In Spanish. While doing the dance.
32. I was taught Latin by the man who won Mastermind in 1974. (I also strongly suspect him of having taught fellow alumnus Jeremy Paxman his quizmaster style.)
33. I once bet on a greyhound which died while in the lead of its race. I assumed this was a regular occurrence, only to find it had never happened to another dog in the track's history 
34. I originally missed out 34 when I was writing these tweets and had to go back and add it later. Muppet.
35. I once won the jackpot on a bar quiz machine alongside Lord Freddie Windsor.
36. I've sung at Disneyland Paris to an audience of one.
37. When I was in labour with my son, the midwife did the whole 'do I know you, your face is familiar' routine even as I was doubled over with contractions.
38. I've been a Formula One fan since I was four. My earliest F1 memory is of Niki Lauda winning his final championship with McLaren.
39. I have a morbid phobia of recorded voices, dating back to the childhood criticism I used to get from my Speak'n'Maths.
40. Before I'm 50, I'd like to write the novel I've always wanted to write.
Thanks for reading xxx
Thanks for reading xxx
