I came from a working-class family, but I was supported by a grant system and had my fees paid, so I came out of Oxford with a debt of something like £200.

I'd like to be more spontaneous.

With the passage of time, people’s memories always edited the past. A lot of details slipped from their grasp, while others that had seemed trivial at the time took on greater weight.

Discovering dedicated mystery booksellers was a bit like going to heaven without having to die first.

Father, everybody has mugs these days. It’s not a sign of debauchery and disrepute to drink tea from a mug.

You are Tadeusz Radecki? I am in the right place?′ ‘I know who I am. What I want to know is who you are.

It wasn’t enough but it was a start. It might keep him going...

The nurse looked surprised. ‘You’re a bit high on the totem pole to be taking statements.’ Carol debated momentarily how to describe her relationship with Tony. ‘Colleague’ was insufficient, ‘landlord’ somehow misleading and ‘friend’ both more and less than the truth. She shrugged. ‘He feeds my cat.

They think of policemen as they do of Labradors – noble, loyal, good with children, man’s protector and friend. In.

The Glasgow accent was so strong you could have built a bridge with it and known it would outlast the civilization that spawned it.