As this post to the Ten obscure facts about yourself thread shows, my parents are from widely differing parts of Britain, and when it came to naming their first-born (me) there was quite a tussle. My mother won, my dad chose my middle name of Lindsay as consolation prize; this was both his first name, and his father's first name before him, back to time immemorial.

Now any Scot will tell you, Lindsay is the family name of the Earls of Crawford (who apparently live in biscuit tins), and any Tynesider will know that it is not unusual as a first name for boys there.

Unfortunately, I found myself growing up in Yorkshire with both first and middle names that were unusable. I have yet to meet an English primary-school teacher who has heard of "Huw" as a first name, in spite of the fact that the BBC has many newsreaders and commentators of that name, while "Hugh" has almost faded from use entirely. And "Lindsay" was quite an exotic handle in a part of the world where "Albert", "Sam" and various Old-Testament first names are still in use. There were occasions when I might have preferred to have been called "Sue".

Rant over. My parents, incidentally, are quite dear people, still living harmoniously (in every sense of the word; they are both members of a large choir), and disappointed only in their wastrel and prodigal eldest son. Boo, hoo !