In the beginning...

I was at the hiring fair at Whitby folk festival in 2006. As far as I know I was the only storyteller there. I'd done some work at Four Fools a few months earlier and was eager for more.

The audience at the fair were braced for an eclectic mix, and the set was well received. Afterwards I was approached by a puckish man in sunglasses who took me to one side.

He asked my age, and finding me to be suitably youthful pressed a flyer into my hand. The piece of card was emblazoned with the logo of the Young Storyteller Competition, which the gentleman urged me to attend before promptly vanishing.

And that, for me, is how it all began.