In my life

This week In my life talks to Stephen Pearce, potter

Where did you go to school?

I went to 11 different schools. I won't name them all!

What was your best subject?

If I'd had a teacher it would have been maths.

What was your worst subject?

Geography.

If you could put a new subject on the Leaving Cert, what would it be?

Students should get a chance to learn to create something that makes them happy.

What was your earliest career ambition?

To buy a car to chase girls in.

Who was your favourite teacher and why?

Eileen Webster, my English teacher, because she listened and cared.

Who was your childhood idol?

My mother.

Who was your best friend?

Pat Scott, my godfather and Ruth Gill, my godmother.

What is he/she doing now?

Pat is painting better than ever. Long may he live.

What song most reminds you of your schooldays?

Any Elvis song. Elvis Presley saved my life at school

What food most reminds you of your schooldays?

Hospital food, over-cooked stodge.

What was your school uniform like?

I didn't have one. My mother knit me light blue jerseys.

What's the boldest thing you ever did in school?

Because I hated boarding school I became more and more bored and frustrated and in the end I ran away.

Who did you bring to your debs? I've been around longer than the modern debs phenomenon.

What was your most memorable holiday?

At 15 my father took me to France on a motor scooter. We saw all of the chateaux of the Loire. He tried to get me to go with him to hear some monks chant. The best part was going from Cobh to Le Havre by liner. It cost £8.50 return and took two days each way. The first night a Canadian girl took me up on deck, gave me my first Coca-Cola and first kiss looking over the rails at the sea, white in the moonlight. Maybe I should have been looking into her eyes? Her lips were very soft and she was wearing some amazing perfume. That was my only holiday. Other times I always worked in the pottery for holidays. I loved work.

What's the last book you read? Poems by Hafiz, a Muslim poet.

Did you go to college and if so, what did you study?

No, I wanted to get out and earn a living as soon as I could.

Would you send your own children to the same schools that you went to?

No way, certainly not.

What was the best thing about your education?

FE Foster, father of Roy. He understood that I hated school and gave me all sorts of practical projects that kept me sane. Thanks, FEF, for your love and kindness.

What was the worst thing about your education?

It was like teaching a dog to be obedient. How about creativity? There was nothing in it for me. I am a practical person who hates paperwork. I still can't read a set of accounts because they always balance. My experience of numbers is that they never balance. Either there is too much or too little stock. Either you overspend on budget or underspend. It never balances, so if accounts balance, someone is adjusting something, which to me seems strange.