I was 10 when I first experienced radio properly. It was the summer of 1997 and I remember listening to Radio 1 constantly. I don’t think I had a favourite presenter at that point, I just remember they played great music.

A year later my brother Tom was listening to Chris Moyles, and his then excellent afternoon show on Radio 1, in the car and it struck me that being a radio presenter was my goal.

I listened to Moyles religiously for about 8 years after that. I wouldn’t claim Moyles was an influence however. I like to think I’ve taken my radio persona from my other favourite radio presenters, people  like Simon Mayo, Mark Radcliffe and Richard Bacon.

At about the same time as all this was happening, the internet was becoming more accessible in peoples homes. I remember finding a service online that allowed you to broadcast whatever you wanted from a microphone on your desk and music from your media player on your computer.  You wouldn’t believe the excitement when the listening figure on the screen hit the figure of 1.  I don’t know who that 1 person was, but they were my first ever listener.  If you read autobiographies of radio presenters they always say did radio shows in their bedrooms for any unlucky member of their family that happened to be around, what I was doing was just a modern late 90’s version of that.

Over the next few years the experimenting with that lead to weekly radio shows with me at the helm and all my friends joining in. Highlights included an email one week from a listener in Bosnia, that sticks in my mind for some reason.  Another highlight was being featured on the front cover of a local magazine called Shetland Life. I had become some sort of minor celebrity in Shetland because I had an ever so slightly geeky hobby.  There was something highly embarrassing about the good looking girls at school suddenly having proof that I was indeed a nerd.

I did work experience at Radio Shetland when I was 15. That led to various paid freelance work while I was still at school.

After 6th year I went to Aberdeen college to study radio. Honestly, I knew most of what I was being taught already but it was nice to get off Shetland and experience student life.

I did small bits of work for BBC Radio Scotland and some work experience at a new radio station called Original 106 in Aberdeen.  That work experience led to getting a freelance production job, which led to becoming a freelance presenter at the weekends, which in turn led to a freelance presenter on weekday evenings. Finally in October 2009 I was handed the afternoon show.

You can hear me Monday – Friday, 2-7pm on Original 106. On 106.3/106.8FM in the North East of Scotland and online at www.originalfm.com