Are you a saver or a spender?<\/p>\n
I\u2019m a spender. I\u2019m very much \u201ccarpe diem\u201d, and even though I often feel guilty after buying something a little extravagant or purely desirable and not really affordable, I rarely regret it.<\/p>\n
What was the first job you received money for, and how much were you paid?<\/p>\n
I think it was a paper round in London, during the holidays. I can\u2019t remember how much I was paid, but it was something minuscule, like a couple of pounds, in cash. I also remember my first proper payslip from temping between school and university. It was such a shock to discover that a chunk of my weekly wage was deducted for tax. I was outraged.<\/p>\n
Do you shop around for better value?<\/p>\n
Definitely. I love finding a better deal or a good bargain, especially on things like flights, utilities, insurance and so on. I\u2019m a bit of a commitmentphobe, however, so I\u2019ll procrastinate on dates and times, and often end up missing the best flight deals. I will usually look online first, find the best deal and take it from there.<\/p>\n
What has been your most extravagant purchase and how much did it cost?<\/p>\n
My first home, in 2001, a small one-bed flat in London, cost \u00a3179,000. I had a deposit of \u00a317,000, left to me by my grandmother, and the bank lent me five times my then-theatre-producer salary for the mortgage. <\/p>\n
I was so broke. I only had a mattress on the floor and a borrowed microwave, and had to use the launderette round the corner for a year. Then my aunt bought me a washing machine as a combined Christmas and birthday present \u2013 the best gift!<\/p>\n
[\u00a0Jerry Fish: \u2018I have lost pretty much everything. It was one of the best things to happen to me\u2019Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n What purchase have you made that you consider the best value for money?<\/p>\n Probably the house I bought with my husband, where we now live, in Ballycotton. It\u2019s a big old mishmash of a building, part-Victorian, part-1930s, with 1990s add-ons. It\u2019s a great party house, and we had our wedding there, too, so it\u2019s a very special place to me. We have the most glorious view over the bay that I will never tire of. I look out to sea every morning and say thank you. You can\u2019t put a price on that.<\/p>\n Is there anything you regret spending money on?<\/p>\n Not one thing per se, but I do tend to panic buy. If we\u2019re having friends over and I\u2019m food shopping, I always overcater; I\u2019m not good at portion control. I also have a lot of clothes and shoes, mostly from a previous life when I used to attend a lot of events. I don\u2019t really regret it, though; perhaps they\u2019re there to remind me of my folly! I also have items I\u2019ve had for decades that I still get a lot of wear out of, so swings and roundabouts.<\/p>\n Do you haggle over prices?<\/p>\n For some things, yes. I\u2019m not shy about asking for a discount, either, if I\u2019m a regular customer or bulk-buying for an event. I feel strongly about supporting local, whether that\u2019s literally at home, or when travelling abroad.<\/p>\n Do you invest in shares and\/or cryptocurrency?<\/p>\n I\u2019m a Luddite when it comes to cryptocurrency. It\u2019s the 21st-century version of the South Sea Bubble, right?<\/p>\n Do you have a retirement or pension plan?<\/p>\n I have a small pension, and last year discovered I had a pension in the UK I knew nothing about! I\u2019d forgotten it was set up when I got my first job, and it had just been rolling along. <\/p>\n