I grew up in Dorset on the English south coast, an area that for many people is synonymous with King Alfred, Wessex and Thomas Hardy (The Mayor of Casterbridge etc). History has always been very important to me – my first love was dinosaurs. And also reading. As many children do, I always had my nose in a book; often one written by Enid Blyton who stayed in the area and based many of her stories on Dorset locations including Brownsea Island (Whispering Island) and Corfe Castle (Kirrin Castle, Five on a Treasure Island).