What elements do you think are necessary for a good day at work?

Enthusiasm, curiosity, dynamism.

Describe your ideal Sunday afternoon.

Snoozin’, eatin’, snacks, time in the park with my son, food.

What’s your most memorable travel experience?

My most memorable travel experience was probably Japan. I went there on my own for ten days, Tokyo, Kyoto, got the bullet train to Hiroshima, saw where the first bomb went off. That appealed to the historian in me. That was a really good trip because I was doing it on my own, the first time I’d ever travelled on my own in a country which wasn’t English-speaking. So I had to really push myself, find solutions – if you get to a train station at five o’clock in the morning and you need to find your accommodation, how do you do that with no phone, data? I really enjoyed that trip. The people were the best bit. Once you got talking, wow, did they like to talk to you! I admire how much pride the Japanese take in everything, keeping everything clean, things being on time. That was a really good travel experience. I was 22.

What is a recent piece of media that stuck with you and why?

Project Hail Mary. I watched it at the cinema a few months ago. I thought it was remarkable. I’m a sucker for anything in space, space is one of my favourite settings. I just love the grandeur of it, the endless possibility of it. Project Hail Mary was great, it was very uplifting, very different to what I’d seen before, portraying an alien in a positive light. I really enjoyed the film, I really enjoyed what it was about, I really enjoyed the visuals. I’m a picture person so if I can see it, I’m like “oh, that’s what we’re on about”, and that film just really brought it home.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Astronaut! I’d love to be an astronaut. I don’t know why, I just like space, I love it. Anything about the planets, I’ll end up watching it. I love the Apollo missions, that’s my favourite project of all time. It’s incredible, what they did. I think there’s more technology in my smartphone than the shuttle had. It’s extraordinary what they did – that ambition, that drive. It’s something we could still learn from.

What menu would you choose for your last meal?

I think it would be – well, the easy one is dessert, and that’s tiramisu. I love tiramisu. With a double espresso, that’d be really nice. A bottle of red wine or full-fat Coke or lime and soda. For a main, it’s the toss of a coin between some sort of pasta dish or chilli, I love both of them, they’re amazing. If I had to push myself, I’d go chilli cheese fries. For starters, what would I go for? Antipasti, charcuterie, that kind of good stuff.

Marmite?

NO. Absolutely not. [gagging noise]

Agile or waterfall?

Waterfall.

Summer or winter?

Winter, definitely.

Messi or Ronaldo?

Messi.